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by Libuse Binder
While modern society has embraced many comforts from today’s technology,
our sense of community and responsibility for the environment are its
casualties. One of yoga’s allures is its ability to return practitioners to the
powerfully simple virtue of connection.
According to Georg and Brenda Feuerstein, authors of Green Yoga (Traditional Yoga
Studies, 2007), “At its best, yoga is a holistic tradition that fully acknowledges the interdependence
of everything. Its contemporary teachers and practitioners are called to
translate the yogic wisdom teachings into a viable ‘green’ lifestyle, which treats both the
inner and outer environment with reverence.”
Both yoga and travel offer ways to explore and expand the connections between
our inner selves and the outer world. Thanks to sustainable tourism practices, yoga
practitioners and travelers alike can honor their relationship with the earth while
exploring the limits of their imagination, engaging with diverse cultures, and experiencing
our planet’s rich biodiversity.
Find Your Platform
Many yoga teachers have embraced the concept of sustainable tourism, making
beach locales such as Costa Rica and Mexico popular retreat destinations. “Yoga
and nature go hand in hand because they are both so healing,” says Lana Wedmore,
owner of Costa Rica’s Luna Lodge, where visitors can come for a scheduled yoga retreat
or take one of her daily yoga classes on a platform in the rainforest overlooking
the Pacific Ocean.
The yoga platforms at Estate Concordia,
and its sister property Maho Bay
Camps (both on the island of St. John),
offer stunning views of the Caribbean. At
Utah’s Sundance Resort, guests practice
on an outdoor platform with unobstructed
views of Mt. Timpanogos. EcoTulum
Resorts and Spa in Mexico offers hatha
yoga classes either in the tropical jungle
or on its Caribbean beachfront terrace. At Morgan’s Rock Hacienda and Ecolodge
in Nicaragua, sunrise and sunset yoga
classes are on a platform on the secluded
beach. In the high desert of Arizona, Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center provides spiritual yoga and juice-fasting
retreats against the backdrop of Coronado National Forest.
Connected to Conservation
What exactly does sustainable tourisni mean? While
“eco-friendly” and “green” have becorne marketing
huzzwords for hotels and resorts, many organizations are
establishing rating systems that help tourists determine
just how green their prospective destinations really are.
Internationally, The Rainforest Alliance helped to establish
a Sustainable Tourism Certification Network, which
offers a SmartGuide to Sustainable Travel. The Costa Rica
government has established the Certification for Sustainable
Tourism (CST) program. Lodges, hotels, and resorts
can apply for certification based on criteria such as water
and electricity use, impact of property on surrounding environment
and communities, recycling and reuse policies,
and environmental education programs.
Resorts and lodges are often located on the most
beautiful Iand a country has to offer. In the case of ecoproperties,
an integral part of their operating practices is
a commitment to environmental stewardship, with many
supporting conservation easements
that protect designated Iand. Others
establish nature reserves and
support the work of national parks.
“The owners of these places realize
they are borrowing the Iand,” explains Julie Dohrrnan,
a certified Anusara yoga instructor who has led several
retreats in Costa Ricc, “and they are honoring the land by
inviting others to both experience and help protect it.”
Guaria de Osa rnaintains ethno-botanical gardens,
where it grows and protects native and endangered
plants, trees, flowers, and medicinal herbs. The Lapa Rios
Rainforest Ecolodge, situated within a private nature
reserve adjacent to Costa Rica’s Corcovado National Park
and overlooking the Pacific, has worked with both the
National Park and The Nature Conservancy to ensure
protection for its 1,000-acre property.
The Sundance Resort partners with the 5,000-acre
Sundance Preserve, a non-profit dedicated to the promotion
of sustainable land management and innovative
creativity and action. Morgan’s Rock, on one of the most secluded beaches in Nicaragua created a private nature reserve, which offers a safe haven for sea turties and even
a near-extinct species of iguana. In Baja, Mexico, Rancho
La Puerta’s Fundacion La Puerta has initiated a 2,000-acre
conservation easement. The resort also funds the Tecate
River Park and offers sustainable agricultural education to
the communitv.
Sustainable by Design
Because deforestation and irresponsible energy use
threatens many of the arcas around these Iodges, construction
materials for the resort huildings—along with energy
choices, products, water sources, and food—are a crucial
part of the sustainability equation. Many eco-lodges specifically
choose recycled and renewable construction materials
and design buildings that utilize nature’s own heating,
cooling, and water filtration systems.
“Green travelers can now enjoy intimacy with nature
while staying in dwellings constructed almost entirely of
recycled rnaterials,” says Stanley Selengut, founder of Maho Bay and Estate Concordia. Structures at both properties
feature green techniques; recycled construction material
including nails and tiles; naturally ventilated units that
produce their own solar power; and minimal defoliation
and soil erosion. Environmentally responsible projects at Luna Lodge include a solar-powered, salt-filtered pool
with a recycled plastic deck and a new restaurant built with
sustainable wood and recycled plastic lumber.
Devil’s Thumb Ranch in Colorado uses reclaimed
wood for resort buildings. Morgan’s Rock adapted wood
from reforestation or certified logging projects to construct
its bungalows, rnanv of which have a tree growing through
their roof—literally—so no growth would be cut down.
Guaria de Osa’s buildings are constructed out of felled
wood from windstorrns. Mexico’s Rancho La Puerta waterproofed
local, traditional adobe mud bricks with a mix
of soil and prickly pear cacti pulp and even transformed
an old tennis court into a service road.
To help conserve water, Estate Concordia installed
rain catchers on roofs and processes what’s collected
on-site to potable standards. Devil’s Thumb Ranch uses
a water-sand filtration system so the resort doesn’t rely
on man-made resources. Morgan’s Rock and Rancho La
Puerta filters gray water on-site and uses it for irrigation.
At Maho Bay, Estate Concordia, and Rancho La Puerta, guests get in on the conservation with Iow-flow or composting toilets and pull-chain showers.
Intelligent building design also
assists in regulating indoor temperature.
Many eco resorts are off the grid,
meaning that they rely on alternative
forrns of energy. Lapa Rios, Luna
Lodge, and EcoTulum run generators
for limited electricity. Luna Lodge,
which is now converting to a hydroelectric
power system, has bio-gas
for cooking and low-watt lighting.
Guaria de Osa uses solar power, and
Estate Concordia offers guests solarpowered
eco-tents. The Sundance
Resort, in partnership with Utah
Clean Energy programs, has replaced
50 percent of its tradtiona1 electricity
sources with wind power. Devil’s
Thumb Ranch, honored in 2004 with
an EPA Award for Environmentally
Sensitive Remodeling and Expansion,
heats cabins and other resort buildings
with geothermal heat.
Indigenous and
Sustainable Cuisine
Fresh, delicious food, made with
local and organic ingredients, supports
sustainable agriculture and
reduces greenhouse gases created
hy shipping. Many lodges, including Luna Lodge, Guaria de Osa, Rancho
La Puerta, and Sunrise Springs grow
their own organic fruits, vegetables,
and herbs. Sundance Resort’s Tree
Room Restaurant, built around a tree
that stands as its centerpiece, treats
guests to seasonal mountain cuisine
prepared with organic and local
ingredients. Devil’s Thumb sources
local producers for its organic meats and produce.
For even more of a food experience, Rancho La Puerta offers cooking classes, and the Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center takes visitors to the source of their food with organic farming courses and by serving 100- percent organic, vegan fare—rnuch of it grown in its own gardens. Sunrise Springs, a memher of Slow Food International, also serves organic and local cuisine served in its restaurant.
Keeping it Real
While many hotels and resorts offer basic recycling facilities, green resorts do more to reduce the effects of consumption on the local environment by using cleaning supplies and personal-care products made from biodegradable,non-toxic ingredients.
Sorne resorts have stepped up efforts with sheer innovation. Recycled rnilk jugs transformed into tables and chairs on the decks of the Sundance Resort; old wine bottles fresh out of the glass-works kiln turn into housewares and eye-catching art around the property. At Maho Bay and Estate Concordia, used glass becomes handblown art; old bed linens morph into waIl hangings and tablecloths.
Organic beauty has also made its mark on eco spas. EcoTulum’s holistic Mayan spa relaxes visitors with organic, locally made beauty products. Sunflower-seed panels and hernp fabric decorate Sundance Resort’s spa, built of salvaged lumber frorn the Great Salt Lake. Most oils and scrubs cornprise organic ingredients and guests can wrap themselves in soybu robes, a blend of soybean and bamhoo. Rancho La Puerta incorporates organic herbs grown on-site into its treatment products.
Commitment to Education
The tranquility of these resorts
often belies their existence within and around native populations.
For many, preserving and contributing to the indigenous cultures is as important as protecting local ecosystems. They buy locally, employ area residents, and
offer educational opportunities.
The owners of Lapa Rios helped found the Carbonera School for the children of the Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica’s least developed region. In Nicaragua, the Americas’ second poorest
country, Morgan’s Rock offers education and employment opportunities to the community
.
Ecotourism raises awareness about fragile ecosystems, involves local communities, and encourages guests to partake in conservation. At Lapa Rios, visitors can choose among such get-smart adventures as an overnight trip through the jungle, a reforestation tour that includes planting trees, and a visit to the local school to share stories with students.
Guests at these properties also have opportunities to monitor wildlife, assist in protection programs, and learn about surrounding ecosystems. “Protecting the land is important for the wildlife, and the health of the landscape,” explains Jessie Walthers, environmental education director at the Sundance Nature Center. “People are more inspired to protect the land when they can see firsthand what they are trying to protect.”
If the practice of yoga has the power to heighten awareness of both ourselves and our places within the greater community, then these beautiful, remote destinations serve as lenses to focus such introspection. By stepping into nature and connecting with her elements, We not only place ourselves firmly within the natural world, we begin to understand our fundamental responsibility in sustaining its sublime balance.
Libuse Binder is currently writing a book, 10 Ways to Change the World in Your 20s. www.tenways.org
Eco websites
Wherever your wanderlust takes you, these eco-havens help you connect with both your spirit and your planet:
Devil’s Thumb RanchTabemash,Colorado www.devilsthumbranch.com
EcoTulum Resorts and Spa
Tulum, Mexico www.ecotulum.com
Guaria de Osa Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica www.guariadeosa.com
Lapa Rios Rainforest Ecolodge Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica www.laparios.com
Luna Lodge Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica www.lunalodge.com
Maho Bay Cam psi
Estate Concordia Coral Bay, St. John,
US
Virgin Islands
www.maho.org
Morgan’s Rock Hacienda
and Ecolodge San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua www.morgansrock.com
Rancho La Puerta Tecate, Mexico www.rancholapuerta.com
Sundance Resort Sundance, Utah www.sundanceresort.com
Sunrise Springs Inn & Retreat Santa Fe, New Mexico www.sunrisesprings.com
Tree of Life
Rejuvenation Center Patagonia, Arizona www.Treeoflife.nu
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