Costa Rica
Jack Ewing
- Proprietor, Hacienda Baru Lodge (Ecotourism)
Born Lamar, Colorado, United States, 1943. BSc. Animal Production and Genetics, Colorado State University (1965).
“[N]ational parks …[are] run by the government, and the government sometimes doesn’t think about the needs of the people who are paying the bills, of the visitors. … private nature reserves are thinking more like a private business … we go out of our way to make our customers happy.”
Summary
Jack Ewing, Proprietor of Hacienda Baru Lodge, narrates the growth of ecotourism in Costa Rica and chronicles his own journey from the time of his arrival in that country from the United States in the 1970s and his early work in the cattle industry. Ewing explains how infrastructural improvements, including the spread of electrification and roads, promoted interest in tourism generally. The movement toward ecotourism was furthered in 1990s with the introduction of a variety of programs and activities such as rain forest expeditions and bird-watching tours. Ewing discusses strategic aspects of the industry such as attracting and retaining talented staff, advertising, and customer satisfaction.
Additional Resources
- Environmental Movement and Ecotourism in Costa Rica, 1992, Series II, Oral History Sound Recordings, 1968-1992, Royal G. Jackson Papers, circa 1905-1992, Oregon State University Special Collections
- Martha Honey, Ecotourism and Sustainable Development, 2d ed., Washington, D.C.: Island Press, 2008
- Sterling Evans, The Green Republic. A Conservation History of Costa Rica, Austin: University of Texas Press, 1999
- Hacienda Baru [company website]
- Geoffrey Jones and Andrew Spadafora, "Entrepreneurs and the Co-Creation of Ecotourism in Costa Rica," Harvard Business School Working Paper 16-136.
- “Costa Rica Ecotourism” [video]
Interview Citation Format
"Interview with Jack Ewing, interviewed by Andrew Spadafora, June 3, 2014, Creating Emerging Markets Project, Baker Library Historical Collections, Harvard Business School, http://www.hbs.edu/creating-emerging-markets/."