Monteverde : Ecology and Conservation of a Tropical Cloud Forest

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Although only 2-5% of butterfly eggs in the wild sur-
vive to the adult stage, careful hand-raising allows for
a 70-80% success rate. Thus, the quantity of butter-
flies can sometimes surpass MBG's capacity; surplus
butterflies are released to the wild. Unlike other but-
terfly gardens and butterfly farms in Costa Rica, which


raise butterflies to sell to collectors, the MBG raises
butterflies only for educational purposes. Most people
care about and protect what they see and what they
know; environmental education provided by the MBG
thus contributes to conservation and serves as a model
for other areas with ecotourism.

COMITE DE ARTESANIAS SANTA ELENA-MONTEVERDE
Leslie J+ Burlingame

he Comite de Artesanias Santa Elena-
Monteverde (CASEM) is an example of sustain-
able ecotourism involving local people. In
1998, the cooperative included about 140 people,
nearly all women, who produce high-quality hand-
made crafts featuring designs based on local biota
(Fig. 10.13). Most of the items for sale to tourists in
Monteverde are clothes with designs of birds, frogs,
butterflies, orchids, and other plants and animals of
the cloud forest. Together CASEM and MVI estab-
lished a Monteverde ceramics studio in 1995. Eight
local women founded CASEM in 1982; they recog-
nized in the mid-1970s that the Monteverde Zone
must diversify its economic base beyond dairy farm-
ing. Rural women needed economic opportunities
that could be combined with taking care of their chil-
dren at home (K. VanDusen, pers. comm.). The
founders obtained a loan from the Interamerican
Foundation to train women in marketing. They re-
ceived substantial training and materials from Jean
Andrews (J. Andrews and P. Jimenez, pers. comm.).
By 1983, the 80 women involved in the project
established a formal cooperative. In 1985, they be-
came a division of the Coope Santa Elena (Coope).
With a gift from Andrews, Monteverde fund-raising
activities, and a bank loan backed by the Coope,
CASEM's building was completed in 1987 (C. Vargas,
pers. comm., Fig. 10.14). It has an elected board and
a paid staff. Members set their own prices; 65% of the
money from the sale of articles returns directly to the
artisan; 10% goes into a savings account for the arti-
san; the remaining 25% covers salaries, expenses, and
training classes and materials.
A major key to CASEM's success lies in dedi-
cated women who established training workshops in
Monteverde and neighboring communities. The ar-
tisans benefit because they receive fair wages for
their work, work at home and stay with their chil-
dren, and have learned skills in business, leadership,

and social interactions. Their self-confidence and in-
dependence have increased, and with economic suc-
cess they have improved their status in their fami-
lies and communities (Monteverde Journal, vol. 1,
no. 2,1994, Leitinger 1997, P. Jimenez, pers. comm.).

Figure 10.13. One of the "members" at the women's
artisan cooperative center (CASEM) in Monteverde,
displaying handmade crafts and artwork, many of which
depict nature themes. Photograph by Leslie Burlingame.

383 Conservation in the Monteverde Zone

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