Nurturing the growth of ecotourism

Iracambi has been working for the past two years with federal, state and local partners to develop ecotourism in the beautiful and little-known Serra do Brigadeiro. The area is rich in potential tourist attractions including the Serra do Brigadeiro State Park, stunning mountain and forest scenery, beautiful waterfalls and rock pools for bathing in, a rich assortment of wildlife: hummingbirds, toucans, and several species of monkey including the largest known population of the highly endangered Wooly Spider Monkey. It is also home to hospitable people, good home cooking and a wide array of opportunities for rural tourism.

Iracambi's role in supporting the growth of the ecotourism sector in the Serra do Brigadeiro includes working with local families to develop tourism-friendly income-generating projects, such as making tinctures from wild harvested medicinal plants and using these to create our popular soaps, as well as developing a portfolio of day and overnight trips which include hiking, camping and sharing in day to day life of local farm families. The Iracambi producers’ group started by making soap, cheese and artisanal crafts as a cottage industry, and has now developed into a tourism business providing hospitality services to researchers, visitors and volunteers at the Iracambi Atlantic Rainforest Research Center. We host and guide our visitors, take them to visit local farms where they can take a ride in a pony cart, learn how to make and savor the local cheese, roast coffee and sample the delicious brew, trek through the forest, and learn about the rich traditional life of the area. We also support policy and decision making at all levels, which aims at creating a vibrant tourism sector founded on preserving and restoring our forests and rivers while contributing towards improving the lives of the people who live here.