11 / Jul / 2021

By Jim Damalas 
Co founder Greentique Hotels 
Member of the Board of Directors of the Corcovado Foundation.

Looking back some 25 years, the idea or vision to start a new career in Sustainable Hospitality was a risk I took when I decided to leave my job in Hollywood for the new frontier of tourism in Costa Rica.

The design and concept for creating Si Como No Resort and Wildlife Refuge in Manuel Antonio, which began with six rooms and a private wildlife refuge, evolved into the family of boutique properties and tour operations we named Greentique Hotels in 2004.

We soon discovered that our membership in the Corcovado Foundation enabled us to share our knowledge with other foundation members and expand our common mission with many rural communities the foundation supports.

That included our project in Rural Tourism with the addition of the Santa Juana Rural Mountain Adventure Lodge and Cloudmaker Nature Reserve. The project created local employment and pride by the village community, which became the caretakers of valuable biodiversity and watershed areas.

I have recently had the privilege of also becoming a member of the Board of Directors of the Corcovado Foundation. The foundation leads several programs in conservation, environmental educational practices, initiatives to conserve both the biodiversity and the rural culture of the regions, and more.

The foundation also works on programs and crowdfunding campaigns that finance the efforts to protect sea turtles, provide meals to senior citizens, and preserve and provide resources to national parks and environmental education workshops on sustainable farming and gastronomy.

Recently we registered our 501c3 foundation, The Nature Fund for Costa Rica.  This sister organization will open new opportunities for the Corcovado Foundation to enhance our mission of aiding and enlightening the next generation of ticos and tica’s to help keep these beautiful and democratic country leaders respecting Mother Nature.