Travel Reference
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teach english to villagers in mexico
MAZUNTE, MEXICO
Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could
do only a little.
—Edmund Burke, British statesman
27 |
It's easy to spout off about ecology and conservation and saving the whales when you
live in the developed world. But what do you do when your entire livelihood depends on an
endangered species?
Case in point: Mazunte, Mexico. For centuries, the families in this little Pacific coast town
lived off the now illegal sea turtle and turtle egg trade. They're willing to admit that the turtle
deserves to be saved, but that begs a pretty important question: How are they going to feed
their families? When the turtle slaughterhouse was closed in 1990, the year the Mexican gov-
ernment officially banned the killing of sea turtles, it was apparent to everyone that something
had to give.
Enter ecotourism. Why not earn a living selling services—tours, food, lodging—to rich
gringos who want to save turtles?
So far, the scheme is working. The turtles are making a comeback, and tourists are paying
five dollars a head (not a shabby sum in the state of Oaxaca) to visit the Centro Mexicano de
