Rewilding Argentina is currently involved in the first stages of developing a new nature tourism destination within El Impenetrable National Park. Since this is not a well-known tourism destination, the organization has to invest heavily in the design and construction of the necessary infrastructure to receive tourists, such as trails, signage, and camping sites. Rewilding Argentina aims at ecotourism of which the local communities can benefit. Marisi Lopez, Iberá Park Project Coordinator: “Tourism can be a powerful conservation tool, since – when done right – it can trigger a new restorative economy for the benefit of neighboring communities. Through tourism, they can become centers of a new economy.”

So far, Rewilding Argentina has built and is now maintaining one camping site and two glamping sites. The organization offers various training courses to local people: interpretive guides, wildlife sighting, first aid and tourist services.

The infrastructure is built around the four entrances (‘gateways’) to the park, each linked to a local community. In this way, the resulting benefits will be distributed among the surrounding communities. Marisi Lopez: “With the ‘Entrepreneurs by Nature’ program we help participating communities to set up micro-enterprises that develop products and services for visitors of the park. The program supports them throughout the chain of production, by building capacity and collaborating with the marketing of their products and services.”