At the beginning of this year, a small group of American tourists who participated in an ecotour visited my farm. They wanted to see orchids and birds, attracted by the tropical diversity. I presented a map of the farm with its forested areas and pastures as an interactive conference during the evening of the first day of the tour, talked about the strategies I followed and the trail we would walk the next day towards the area of highest orchid concentration. I must confess that I felt good in the role of a teacher again, explaining and answering questions that had arisen in just an afternoon of walking through a lot that grew trees through a process of natural succession and selective cleaning that was taking place since 1989. The trees had a bit of moss on the side that faced the humid winds that came from the Pacific and served to retain some seeds of epiphytes that found conditions to emerge and grow, including orchids. The lot was bordering a ditch protected with barbed wire so that the cattle would not circulate and a small stream of water could be heard. That isolation allowed the sighting of a multiplicity of plant species that attracted attention; among them, Quereme, was showing its floral beauty.

The visit had transcended its initial objectives and the tourists understood that a very original approach on sustainable agriculture that combined both traditional and modern techniques was implemented and that it makes possible the recovery of degraded soils and environments. The tourists were amazed. A spontaneous question that arises takes me by surprise, making me think about the profound reasons of human actions: Why do you do this?

The question is important because it leads me to more questions: Why is humanity destroying the planet? Wouldn’t that destroy ourselves?  Don’t we care about the future of our sons and daughters? Haven’t environmentalists been assertive enough presenting their arguments to convince environmental predators and polluters to change their attitudes and behaviors?

The global economic trend caused the migration of rural inhabitants to the big cities and created a need for a mass production industrial agriculture that was both destructive and predatory of soils. That same trend converted people into money-seeking consumers as their only mean to get consumer objects that are wasted and thrown away as garbage each day; it invented the word ‘progress’ as a mean to justify a life style that it made popular as the only expression of good living. In Colombia, that migration was stimulated by the government, the fanciful lure of the cities, the land expropriations carried by the actors of the internal war to be sold later to big cattle-land owners and by a culture that undervalues the agricultural peasant world that worked to survive in the middle of an environment ruled by the marketing mafias of agricultural products. So the question was difficult to answer.

In order to gain a bit of time I began answering with the improvised reflection “I am not sure why I do it”, which was taken as a hilarious statement. Then, I corrected myself stating that I felt so much pleasure from observing beautiful pastures of a native grass that I learned to manage with a very long rest period that could be accomplished by a daily cattle rotation of 180 small lots. The grass seemed delightfully tasted by the animals. I felt pleasure observing the trees growing in the middle of the lots. One person mentioned that my farm seems like a huge garden and that I enjoy it as much as she does her plants.

More reasons quickly crossed my mind: The great challenge it meant to show that it was possible to do agriculture under these difficult mountain conditions in which our grandparents had failed because of the use of environmentally unsustainable models reinforced by the government, the ruling classes and the dominating techno-scientific approaches. Something that ended up being the colonization of inaccessible mountains to grow coca and marijuana in places far from the government reach.

I continue down this road with some obsession and confidence. I believe that adapting intermediate technologies with imagination and creativity can perform miracles in the Andes mountain range, as stated by my new friend Arthur in his farewell comment. But also in an intelligent combination of tradition and innovation. A final statement for clarification: Only in the last years I have considered ecotourism, which is an unintended effect that will benefit the people interested. I will try to not impact too much the small world I have accomplished building.

COMMENTS FROM VISITORS

What a wonderful experience! We were welcomed and felt like family for our entire visit. Marie cooked wonderful meals and accommodated all dietary requests from our group. Our lodge was so comfortable with extra blankets , plus spare boots, and raincoats that we forgot to bring. Food was delicious and were local dishes, tasty and well-seasoned. Views were awesome from the top of the mountains. We saw orchids every few feet, every day were new orchids. Also saw lots of cloud forest birds. Great place for both plant people and birders.

Karen. Little Rock, AR USA

In a time when the natural world is suffering from so much habitat destruction and drastic climate change, it is so reassuring to find a family who took a stripped and erosion-damaged mountainside and used modern, sustainable farming techniques to revitalize the land and bring back many of the native species, both plants and animals, so that even a short walk rewards us with many sighting or rare orchids and birds which could not have survived here before the restoration. I call it Otto’s Miracle in the Andes.

Arthur, Amateur Naturalist. Arkansas, USA

Thank you for sharing your wonderful home & inspiring us with your sustainability accomplishments. I enjoyed your knowledge about this beautiful place. We saw numerous orchids, & ate delicious food in a most beautiful setting. Entomologist, ornithologists & Ecologists will benefit from visiting this biologically diverse retreat.

Elizabeth. Arizona, USA

50 orchid species in two days with nice selection of western slope colombian birds. Wonderful life-long effort to return lands to productive state with natural regeneration. Good service + food + guides.

Shane, bird life list 6,200. Santa Fe, NM USA

Otto –

For me, the best part of this entire experience was meeting you and your family and staying at your sustainable farm. I was amazed by the concepts you have implemented to turn your farm into a true paradise. The cloud forest was incredible -so many orchids and types of vegetation.

Thank you for your kindness and personal attention. I felt very secure knowing you were always there. And thank you to Maria who worked nonstop to keep us well fed and comfortable.

Janet. Santa Fe, NM USA