Gotsezhy – Wiwa Community Tourism

Gotsezhy – Wiwa Community Tourism

September 3, 2020 Planeterra Partners

Gotsezhy Wiwa Community Tourism

Santa Marta, Sierra Nevada, Colombia

Impact

Since partnering with Planeterra to develop their Indigenous-owned tourism business, the Wiwa community of Gotsezhy has experienced significant benefits. The community has seen a substantial increase in their economic income, allowing them to invest in various social programs. These initiatives include improved garbage management, the establishment of community gardens, enhanced access to drinking water, and advancements in education.

The empowerment of women has played a crucial role in this progress, as they actively participate in selling their handicrafts and contribute to the local food experience. Additionally, the younger generation has embraced opportunities for growth, with youths receiving training as local guides to share their rich culture and traditions with visitors.

100
people employed
450
community members benefitting
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Critical Need

In 2015, Planeterra began working in Colombia with the Indigenous people of the Sierra Nevada — the Wiwa and Kogui. They are descendants of the ancient Tayrona people and have remained in isolation throughout history until the last couple of generations, where they have had increased contact with the outside world as they struggle to avoid conflict in the high mountainous region where illegal activity persists.

Most of these communities that are located on the route to Santa Marta benefit very little or are excluded from the tourism sector. 


Our Involvement

The Wiwa community of Gotsezhy had a strong desire for access to tourism that could uphold their cultural values. They wanted to celebrate and share their customs and traditions while also guaranteeing territorial sanitation and economic autonomy for the families in these communities. Planeterra worked directly with the community leaders to identify opportunities in communities along the Ciudad Perdida (Lost City) trekking route.

Planeterra worked with Wiwa Tours, an Indigenous-owned agency, to implement a comprehensive training and capacity-building program. The aim was to enhance employment opportunities for Indigenous-owned tourism businesses and guides in the region. This initiative led to the establishment of a training kitchen, meal, and handicraft experience in the Wiwa community of Gotsezhy, all facilitated by local residents. Moreover, the creation of a community enterprise named Regufio Gotsezhy along the trek route has opened avenues for women to sell traditional bags and handicrafts to visiting tour groups, as well as provide meals to trekkers. 

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Floreana Ecotours

September 3, 2020 Planeterra Partners

Floreana Ecotours

Floreana Island, Ecuador

Impact

Through Planeterra’s partnership and connecting Floreana Ecotours to tourism industry partners, tourism activity has increased on the island, allowing them to receive a greater number of passengers who can participate in different activities and services provided by members of the community such as food, lodging, kayaking, trekking, and more. This increase allows the residents of Floreana Island to have more employment opportunities, especially the younger people on the island. This partnership has increased their income and has improved their household conditions. Further, through their increased income and empowerment through our partnerships, it has enabled the community to be able to protect the unique biodiversity of the island.

3
people earning an income
9
community members benefitting

Critical Need

Tourism is the main economic activity in the Galapagos, dating back to the early 1970s when local communities offered tours around the islands on their personal fishing boats. Over the past three decades, the number of visitors has increased to well over 100,000 tourists each year and is now at a critical point. Specifically, one of the islands in the archipelago, Floreana Island, experienced a sharp increase in short day tours but the residents were not seeing the benefit of this growth. 

With few job opportunities from this added tourism, the community’s youth had been choosing to leave the island to study and they rarely returned. Investing in training and infrastructure in the Galapagos’ first community-based tourism program benefits both the island’s young entrepreneurs and its unique wildlife, preserving Floreana for future travellers and islanders alike.

Our Involvement

Planeterra invested in a large scale training program to enable residents of Floreana Island to manage all aspects of tourism on their island. The community-owned-and-managed association coordinates tourism activities such as guiding, trekking, kayaking and snorkeling; improving food services; developing business and hospitality management skills including accounting, and reservations.

The goal is to provide job opportunities for the island’s 150 residents to benefit from the booming tourism industry. By controlling the number of arrivals to the island, and improving the experience with an overnight stay, Floreana can maintain its pristine habitat, clean waters, and natural heritage.

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Resourceful Ōtautahi

September 3, 2020 Planeterra

Resourceful Ōtautahi

Christchurch, New Zealand

Impact

The walking tour, Resourceful Otautahi, provides a steady stream of income to Rekindle. This allows them to expand their work and reach more community members through a new base at the Arts Centre in central Christchurch. It also allows them to employ guides and artisans who can share their stories and crafts to a wider population, and earn an income from their craft. A resourcefulness workshop with Rekindle doesn’t just build new skills and knowledge about the environment – it connects people.

Through this partnership, Rekindle is able to provide free workshops to community members to learn new skills and the importance of our relationship with the environment around us.

22
people employed
130
hours of free community workshops

Critical Need

When people feel connected to the environment and people around them, amazing things can happen. In a city like Christchurch, New Zealand, where the downtown core was devastated by the 2011 earthquake, making space for resourcefulness and community participation remains essential. Christchurch continues to struggle to find ways to bring community members together to feel connection and belonging.

 Planeterra’s partner, Rekindle, provides that space for community members to come together and share a meaningful experience. Being resourceful not only fosters care for the environment and its resources, but it also provides a shared sense of purpose. Rekindle delivers workshops that focus on resourceful skills as a means of strengthening community and building self-confidence in a hands-on environment.

Our Involvement

Planeterra has partnered with Rekindle to create a walking tour through the city core which connects travellers to the place, environment and people of Christchurch.

Planeterra provided the catalyst grant needed to launch this new tour. This catalyst grant provided resources and capacity training to develop this small business.  

Due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, Rekindle has opted to shift their business model away from international travel, focusing on workshops and engagement in their local community.

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Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre

September 3, 2020 Planeterra Partners

Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre

Whistler, Canada

Impact

The Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre affords youth from reserves in the region transport for classes, and the opportunity to train in the hospitality industry through on-site museum and cultural tours. Through their partnership with Planeterra and integration into our travel partners’ itineraries, the center is able to increase its visitor numbers, providing more opportunities to expand its training base and the range of visitor activities offered.

410
youth trained since 2008
1,200
community members indirectly benefitting

Critical Need

The colonization of what is now known as Canada, compounded with the implementation of residential schools and the fracturing of families, alongside flu and smallpox epidemics led to the alteration or loss of much of the oral history important to the Squamish and Lil’wat Nations of the Whistler region. There exists a demand for a larger First Nations presence in the area, to ensure the ancient cultures of the Lil’wat and Squamish Nation are protected. There is also a great need for economic opportunities which will benefit youth who live on nearby reserves.

Our Involvement

The centre relies on grants and visits to their museum, cafe and other experiences they offer, in order to continue their training programs for youth living on reserves that are often miles away. Planeterra successfully incorporated a visit to the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre into the itineraries of our travel partners to secure a steady influx of visitors for the center. Groups can participate in activities such as a medicinal tea ceremony, bannock tasting, or a tour of the museum and grounds.

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Shedia Home

September 3, 2020 Planeterra Partners

Shedia Home

Athens, Greece

Impact

A regular customer base to the brand new Shedia Home, a café which opened in May 2019, provides valuable sustainable income for Shedia’s programs. Planeterra’s partnership with Shedia also increases the visibility of Shedia’s Invisible Tours, a tour of Athens which “makes the invisible, visible” conducted by a guide experiencing homelessness, as well as Shedia’s art project, which trains and employs individuals experiencing homelessness. Look above you when you visit the café – the art installment hanging from the ceiling represents the 43 individuals who now have homes thanks to their connection with Shedia.

250
community members benefitting
1000
community members indirectly benefitting

Critical Need

Homelessness is a significant social issue in Greece, which was exacerbated by the Greek Financial Crisis which started in 2009, during which an estimated 111,000 Greek companies filed for bankruptcy. There is currently no accurate record of how many Athenians are experiencing homelessness, but the official unemployment rate hit almost 28% during the economic crisis that devastated the country over the last few years, with youth unemployment especially surpassing 50%.

Shedia – meaning “raft” in Greek – is a not-for-profit organization that works to employ and empower people experiencing homelessness and social exclusion in Greece. They have a vast number of programs including a soccer team, an upcycling/art project, a street paper, an educational social tour of Athens led by homeless guides, and a café-bar-restaurant in the historical center of the Greek capital called Shedia Home. Through their programs, 150 people experiencing homelessness and social exclusion have been provided with the opportunity, through working and not begging, to earn an income to cover some of their most basic needs, on a daily basis, while 20 full-time employment positions have been created in the recently launched Shedia Home.

Our Involvement

Planeterra has partnered with Shedia Home and connected the café with one of our tourism partners, G Adventures, so it will now be included on itineraries stopping in Athens.

Travellers will get to have a drink at the café and enjoy an educational talk from one of Shedia’s guides, all of whom are experiencing homelessness themselves.

Shedia’s guides give unparalleled insight into what life is like for individuals who are experiencing homelessness and/or social exclusion, and how Shedia’s programs are combatting the crisis.

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Migrantour Naples

September 2, 2020 Planeterra Partners

Migrantour Naples

Naples, Italy

Impact

The Casba Social Cooperative runs tours led by migrants to Naples, with the main goal of improving the lives of migrants by fostering acceptance from locals. Tours are created for local Italians, as well as tourists, students and anyone else interested in discovering their area from a fresh perspective to get to know newcomers to their city. Through tour guides who are migrants themselves, locals and travellers are exposed to the beauty created by a melting pot of cultures, languages, and religions living together harmoniously in Naples. Planeterra’s partnership with Casba enabled their tour guides to receive tourism training from a local professional, and also brings in much-needed revenue from tourism for the organization’s efforts.

8
guides employed
24
community members benefitting

Critical Need

Europe currently faces the greatest migration challenge since the end of World War II, with a large number of people seeking refuge from war, poverty, and political instability. More than 500,000 migrants have landed at Italian ports alone since 2014. The Italian government continues to ask the European Union for financial support to manage the flow of migrants, mostly arriving from North Africa, but the flow of migrants to the country continues to grow. There is a need to develop avenues through which various communities can integrate in a way that appreciates and celebrates diversity and inclusion.

Our Involvement

Planeterra partnered with Casba Social Cooperative in 2018, connecting the organization with a steady stream of travellers for their walking tours. The Casba Social Cooperative is a non-governmental organization and cultural mediator that works with migrants to help them integrate and become more accepted into Naples society, avoiding the spread of negative stereotypes, considering diversity as a resource. Planeterra’s partnership with Migrantour Naples and Casba allows travellers to learn about aspects of Naples that have been influenced by new cultures and religions brought by newcomers to the city they now call home. Planeterra provided funding for local training for Casba’s guides, as well as guidance from a tourism professional on product development, as well as public speaking and storytelling. 

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Migrantour Rome

September 2, 2020 Planeterra Partners

Migrantour Rome

Rome, Italy

Impact

Through tour guides who are migrants themselves, travellers are exposed to the history of migration in Rome, and the beauty created by a melting pot of cultures, languages, and religions living together harmoniously. At the same time, newcomers are placed at the heart of the proposal, sharing their fresh perspective and multiplying the opportunities for meeting and dialogue. Not only does Planeterra’s partnership with Migrantour Rome help to spread their message, but also brings in much-needed revenue from tourism for the organization’s efforts across Europe through Planeterra’s links in the tourism industry.

7
guides employed
331
community members benefitting

Critical Need

Europe currently faces the greatest migration challenge since the end of World War II, with a large number of people seeking refuge from war, poverty, and political instability. More than 500,000 migrants have landed at Italian ports alone since 2014.

The Italian government continues to ask the European Union for financial support to manage the flow of migrants, mostly arriving from North Africa, but the flow of migrants to the country continues to grow. There exists a drastic need for economic opportunities and social programs for migrants entering Italy in search of a better life.

Our Involvement

Viaggi Solidali is a social cooperative operating since 2004 that promotes responsible tourism. In 2010, they conceived and developed the Migrantour project in Turin, which has since extended to other cities. Migrantour Rome is part of Viaggi Solidali, while the Migrantour network extends to other European cities managed by different non-profit organizations

Partnering with Planeterra, Migrantour Rome created an “alternative” tour that shows the multiculturalism, and hidden gems of Rome that make the city unique and diverse. Guests participate in a tour led by a newcomer to the city, who takes them to various shops, associations and places of worship for a wholesome intercultural experience that tourists in Rome rarely see.

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Guneysinir Community Park & Almond Co-op

September 2, 2020 Planeterra Partners

Guneysinir Community Park & Almond Co-op

Guneysinir, Türkiye

Impact

The almond plantation cooperative that doubles as a community park provides not only a source of shade and water retention but a source of income once almonds can be harvested. Another added benefit is that it is becoming a place for families and visitors to enjoy together. The first harvest is expected in 2021, creating new jobs for the community. Additional profits will be invested into local women’s empowerment and children’s education programs. The park is maintained by a local family that was in need of regular employment. While the father maintains the land, the children host travellers with snacks and showcase their handmade crafts to sell. This provides an opportunity for income and the chance to boost confidence through tourist interactions.

300
almond trees planted
4,000
community members benefitting

Critical Need

The town of Guneysinir is located in a region that receives very little precipitation, with rainfall dropping to less than 10mm between the months of July and September. In addition to the stress imposed by drought and climate issues, this area is in need of alternative economic opportunities for its growing population. Unlike the more popular touristic Western side of the country where job opportunities are diverse and plenty, people of Guneysinir rely heavily on agriculture for income. The addition of an almond orchard to this community provides an attainable means to combat drought, a place for community members and visitors alike to enjoy, and also a sustainable model for social enterprise development. 

Our Involvement

This project was inspired by conversations with G Adventures’ local team in Turkey and the residents of a nearby homestay experience. With the help of the local municipality, a 10,000 sq.m. plot of land was identified for the park and the community was able to plant new almond trees on this land.

Planeterra provided a grant which has covered initial tree planting and maintenance expenses for the land, as the community patiently works towards their first harvest. Planeterra has secured income for the community through corporate partner G Adventures’, as travellers visit the park and enjoy a snack made by a local family, supporting a budding social enterprise.

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Parque de la Papa

August 21, 2020 Planeterra Partners

Parque de la Papa

Pampallacta, Perú

Impact

Parque de la Papa is seeing an increase in tourist activity due to their ongoing partnership with Planeterra. This increase allows the park to invest in more opportunities. Planeterra has also funded a micro-enterprise (in 2014) owned by a group of 16 women who make medicinal teas by hand, from one of the six communities. The women sell their teas at one of our other projects, the Parwa Community Restaurant. Today the Peruvian government nominated Parque de la Papa as an Agrobiodiversity zone which recognizes and supports their conservation work. 

85
people directly impacted
510
community members benefitting
Parque de Papa Pampallacta, Peru

Critical Need

The Parque de la Papa is an organization of  five communities located in the highlands of the Sacred Valley in Cuzco, Perú.  More than 7,000 Indigenous community members currently work together to preserve the area with hundreds of varieties of native potato (around 1,300) as well as the knowledge and ancient teaching related to the cultivation and management of their agricultural landscape – a cornerstone of life in the area. Though resources are limited, their lands are considered a centre of potato origin and diversity.  Currently, the potato is one of the four most important crops on earth, produced and preserved throughout the centuries by them.

Economic opportunities that enable Indigenous people to remain living in the communities in which they have traditionally lived for generations are desperately needed. That’s why Parque de la Papa was created in 2006 with the support of many international organizations. They have launched agro-tourism programs and developed community micro-enterprises related to tourism services and activities with the purpose of creating economic opportunities. However, the community enterprises were in need of customers to reach their full potential and achieve financial success. The community enterprises had significant barriers accessing the international market, and when they did gain access, they risked losing their unique traditions and cultures.  Women continue to face barriers accessing the formal job market, and youth continue to have limited access to jobs and education, and so often migrate to the big cities. 

Our Involvement

Planeterra and our local partner “Asociación ANDES” supported Parque de la Papa (Potato Park) through training and customizing the organization’s experience for travellers. Travellers from Planeterra’s tourism partners visit the park to learn about life in a rural agricultural Andean community and their seed conservation program, which is conserving indigenous potatoes alongside the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway. Visitors also learn about the traditional planting and harvesting process, as well as Indigenous weaving practices. Planeterra also provided funds to improve the facilities at the visitor center in Pampallaqta community which was a much-needed boost for their tourism economy. 

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Ccaccaccollo Women’s Weaving Co-op

August 21, 2020 Planeterra Partners

Ccaccaccollo Women's Weaving Co-op

Sacred Valley, Peru

Impact

When Planeterra first developed a partnership with the women in the Ccaccaccollo community, the cooperative was run by only 3 women – today, the cooperative is owned by 46 women. Planeterra funded training programs to help bring back the weaving traditions that had been lost over the previous generations as there wasn’t a way to earn a significant income. 

Through our partnership and a connection to travellers, the Ccaccaccollo Women’s Weaving Co-op has been able to contribute to their families’ income. The women who have been with the project since the beginning report that all of their children study in university. Those involved in the cooperative are the first generation to be completely literate in Spanish. Today, the community is using tourism as a tool to protect and preserve natural and cultural resources and express, share, develop, and pursue their traditions.

Due to the success of the Co-op, they have since opened a Community Homestay.

80
people employed
560
community members benefitting

Critical Need

The community of Ccaccaccollo is an Indigenous community located in the Andean area of Cuzco, Perú. It is inhabited primarily by 140 Quechua speaking families. Despite the close proximity to Cuzco and Machu Picchu, and the thousands of tourists that visit these sites each year, very few communities from the surrounding countryside benefit from tourism. The Ccaccaccollo community maintains a traditional way of life and many work in agriculture. Like many communities around the world, women are frequently excluded from educational and economic opportunities. 

Our Involvement

Since 2005, Planeterra developed a partnership with the Ccaccaccollo community to develop a women’s weaving cooperative, to create economic opportunities for the women of this community. Planeterra implemented capacity building programs, built facilities and purchased equipment for the co-op. Planeterra supported the women with new methods of production that would make items more desirable to travellers (smaller, less expensive items such as hats, socks and sweaters that can be used on the treks in the area), while also maintaining their traditional weaving methods made from llama and alpaca wool. 

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+1(416)263-4671
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Canada Not-for-Profit Corporation Number: 793488-2, US 501 (c)(3) public charity, EIN 83-1619668