Inkaterra PerU SAC, Peru

Finalist, Conservation Award 2010

Inkaterra is a Peruvian ecological research and tourism operations' company, founded in 1975 and located in the Andean cloud forest as well as the Amazonia forest. Its tourism portfolio - a mix of luxury tourism and 'voluntourism' initiatives - comprises Inkaterra Macchu Picchu Pueblo Hotel, Inkaterra Reserva Amazónica lodge, boutique hotel Inkaterra La Casona in Cusco and Mapi Hotel in Maccu Picchu. Through its hotel operations as well as established ecotourism products, such as the Inkaterra Canopy Walk or the Anaconda Walk, Inkaterra funds its extensive research projects, the results of which have been published in numeruous prestigious publications, and have led to the discovery of 15 new to science species on its premises.

Inkaterra is also a leader in environmental conservation, documenting Peruvian traditional culture on DVD and CD recordings. The company employs 500 people, many of them members of the local community, it hosts a great number of visiting researchers at its own cost and welcomes 46,000 guests annually.

Judges' Verdict
From the outset Inkaterra has been involved in ecological research to help conserve and protect Peru, and is the country's first carbon-neutral tourism company. Inkaterra's achievements and projects include: fixing 3,300,000 tons of carbon dioxide within the 40,800 acres of rainforest in the Inkaterra Ecological Reserve, monitored in conjunction with the University of Leeds (UK) since 1989; and a Rescue Centre for endangered Spectacled Bears, which has led to the re-introduction of one female bear into the wild in the Machu Picchu Reserve. Inkaterra has also restored 12 acres of native cloud forest at Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel, which has seen the return of 192 bird species, 111 butterfly species, 372 native orchid species, many ferns, bromeliads, and medicinal plants; and it holds the record for the world's largest collection of orchids found in privately owned ground (372), having also successfully identified 362 species of ants in one single place.