MIDEASTENVIRONET - The Middle East Environmental Network

“Not many Jordanians realise that Dana Reserve is among the few world leaders in sustainable nature conservation with its tourism related projects,” said Chris Johnson, director of Wild Jordan, which developed the Feynan Eco-lodge.

The project, which was recognised by the British Guild of Travel Writers, an
association nearly half-a-century-old with over 270 experts involved in the
world of travel, gave merit to Feynan as a tourist potential that benefits
the local community and environment.

Travel writer Hugh Taylor wrote: “This superbly designed adobe lodge… built
entirely of local materials has a unique arabesque design by a local
architect, incorporates traditional adobe building techniques and has produced a
building that is functional, romantic and blends with its surroundings.”

The lodge at Wadi Feynan sits deep in the mountains of Jordan’s southern
Rift Valley, near the west border of the 320-square-kilometre Dana Reserve. It
was designed as a retreat for tourists wishing to explore an archaeologically
rich area while hiking, stargazing and interacting with the local bedouin
community.

A recent visitor who works in the marketing department at Fastlink,
27-year-old Nour Abu Nameh, described her first experience at the lodge as “amazing,
relaxing and quiet”.

According to Wild Jordan’s tourism operations manager, Ali Goussous, its
unique quality of seclusion is emphasised by the fact that it’s eight kilometres
away from the nearest road and accessible only by 4x4, one of the community
shuttle services, or a five-hour hike through the gorge of Wadi Dana.

“We put it in a very remote area to encourage people to discover the other
side of Jordan. The remarkable sense of isolation is freedom for those tired of
the trappings of an urban society,” Goussous said.

He explained that environment-friendly measures include: solar powered
energy — it is lit by candles at night; natural ventilation systems; thick insulated
walls to minimise energy use; and the recycling of garbage and food.

The electric generators on site are rarely used unless needed for Internet
connection, as some businesses book the lodge as an exclusive working
getaway.

“The all bedouin staff cooks vegetarian cuisine from local desert vegetation
and food is stored traditionally without the use of electricity. Upon request,
lamb is cooked by fire in a ditch or manually grilled over the fire for six hours,” he said.

In terms of archaeological sites, the area previously known as “Feynan
Kingdom”, is regarded by many experts to be second only to Petra in importance,
according to its directors.

It shows evidence of human habitation stretching back 10,000 years and was
the first place in the world where copper ore was extracted and smelted for
human use.

The ancient community’s prosperous ages were during the Byzantine times when
the powerful trade which supplied most of the known world with copper products
was performed at the Khirbet souk. Remains of the souk, ancient churches and
Islamic and Christian graves are accessible through hiking tours with guides.

According to the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RSCN), the
lodge itself provides an unparalleled experience in desert accommodation. The 26
rooms, which are lit by candles at night, create an atmosphere reminiscent
of the ancient caravanserai that gave rest and shelter to the camel trains that
plied nearby trading routes.

New income

In addition to being at the cutting-edge of ecotourism, Feynan Lodge is also
directly supporting 34 local bedouin families and the nonprofit project is
self-sustainable.

“In fact, the whole Dana Reserve supports itself because of our unique
business approach in nature conservation. To be self-sustainable is extraordinary in
terms of these types of conservation areas which usually need to be
government supported,” the Wild Jordan director said.

The retreat, which opened two years ago under Wild Jordan, the business arm
for the RSCN, was constructed as a pilot project in line with the organisation’s
efforts to provide alternative forms of income for the impoverished bedouins
in the area, whose main source of income is through goat herding.

“The 9,000 goats in the area were basically eating the reserve to death.
Tourism gives people an alternative to grazing and we are seeing a gradual shift
into a new economy,” Johnson told The Jordan Times.

He noted that unless the local tribes see real economical benefits, it is
hard to change attitudes in an area that is used to living from hand-to-mouth.
But said that bedouin youth are eager to be part of the modern world and are
picking up on ways to profit from nature.

Income generators include homemade candles and leather products which are
used at the lodge and sold throughout the Kingdom.

“Each year, the two lodges and one campsite in Dana Reserve contribute
around JD250,000. The revenue goes back into protecting the area and supporting the
local economy,” Johnson said.

At the 2003 World Summit, Dana was chosen as one of the four best sustainable ecological projects in the world.