Copyright: Exploring Solutions Past: The Maya Forest Alliance ©2002

Executive Summary

The world's population growth has taken on threatening proportions where conservation has become a major concern of local, national, regional as well as international agencies. The Maya forest, once home to the ancient Maya civilization, is now the focus of intense management scrutiny and pressures of growing local land use needs. Adapting to the changing conditions and managing with more flexible designs is a crucial requirement to meet both short-term and long-term development objectives. To accomplish both resource conservation and human development, innovative management planning with strategic and dynamic designs need to be encouraged. This is precisely what the El Pilar Program has been promoting.

Over the past ten years, the innovations of the El Pilar Program have constructed an interdisciplinary progressive strategy for the El Pilar Archaeological Reserve for Maya Flora and Fauna. The program has impacts in almost every ministry of government and has regular interaction with most. Initiated as a collaborative research project in archaeology and operating with permit with the Department of Archaeology, El Pilar was destined as a tourism destination. Its location at the border with the Petén of Guatemala brought in Foreign Affairs. Support from other ministries, such as Agriculture and Natural Resources, relate to the investigations into traditional forest gardening. And there are other links with the rural focus of community participation and capacity building: Rural, Human, and Economic Development, as well as Education and Civil Society. There are few areas that the program does not touch upon, and inclusion is the watchword.

The El Pilar Program acknowledges the honor and the opportunity to promote new and innovative management designs. Developed from experiences from many distinct fields and professions, with contributions of time, knowledge and funds, the results of the first decade of the El Pilar vision is heartening. Challenges in the development of the protected area have strengthened the process and obstacles have been adapted to with resilience and spirit. The success of the planning process has revealed new opportunities in tourism for rural communities, for tourism, and for regional relations. The growth and evolution of opportunities are central to the El Pilar philosophy, impacting the education in communities, reform local-level resource management, and inform conservation designs for the Maya Forest.

MesoAmerican Research Center, University of California, Santa Barbara CA 93106
Office +1-805-893-8191, FAX +1-805-893-5677 email: ford@marc.ucsb.edu

Under the Canopy

Beneath the lush canopy of the Maya forest, the Maya Center of El Pilar prospered for 1,700 years, reaching its zenith around the year AD 700. Over the course of centuries, since as early as 700 B.C., the center flourished and gradually grew to become the primary administrative center in the Belize River area, replete with sweeping plazas and temples.

As the Maya at El Pilar evolved, so did the forest that sustained them. To meet the needs of their growing population, Maya households cultivated the forest's abundant plant life suitable for human use. Indeed, current research shows that today up to 90% of the forest's botanicals are valuable to humans. Cultivating these resources, the ancient Maya of El Pilar supported a population that far exceeded today's figures. Studies reveal that the population density 11 centuries ago, during the Maya Classic Period, was from three to nine-times the region's current level. Today, the Maya forest stands as an enduring monument to the resourcefulness of the Maya.

Regional, local, and site-specific areas of concentration in the Maya forest

Although it withstood millennia of Maya occupation, today the Maya forest is at risk. Contemporary agricultural strategies, population movements, and human development schemes that lack environmental consideration now threaten the rich, biodiverse forest that the Maya cultivated a millennium ago. Today, the Maya forest is ranked second of 25 resources at risk by Conservation International, an internationally known non-profit organization. Contemporary political lines cut the landscape: new roads slice through the forest, paving the way for human migration into the world's last terrestrial frontier, and political boundaries overlay ancient monuments. The forest around El Pilar stretches before the eye unbroken, yet the international border between Belize and Guatemala invisibly divides El Pilar's monuments between the two nations.

Without formal protection, the ancient Maya monuments themselves are at risk. Looter's trenches scar many of the monuments at El Pilar. While Maya monuments enhance the burgeoning tourist industry and foster interest in Belize's past, exposure and excavation can lead to the accelerated deterioration of these valuable resources. The short-term need for site development and promotion can be balanced with a long-term goal of resource conservation. Priority should be given to methods that will preserve the monuments for the enjoyment of generations to come.

In this respect, El Pilar serves as a model. In order to formally protect the natural and cultural resources at El Pilar, a path of conservation was embarked upon nearly ten years ago. The El Pilar Archaeological Reserve for Maya Flora and Fauna in Belize and the protected Monumento Cultural El Pilar para la Flora y Fauna Mayas in Guatemala were established to safeguard the shared resources at El Pilar. Along with research and education on ancient Maya land use, the innovative, cross-border, participatory management planning process designed by the El Pilar Program promises to build a lasting and effective base for the conservation of the Maya Forest.

Towards Formal Protection

In 1992, Anabel Ford, an archaeologist from the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB) began meeting with government officials in Belize to introduce a new vision for the Maya forest: a protected reserve at the little-known Maya center of El Pilar. Ford had a history at the site. She had made her first visit to El Pilar with John Morris and Jaime Awe of the Belize Department of Archaeology (DoA) in 1982. By that time, the site had already been officially recorded in the DoA. But El Pilar's true size remained unknown - and promised to be significant. As director of UCSB's BRASS project (Belize River Archaeological Settlement Survey), Ford was interested in investigating Maya settlement patterns. She incorporated the El Pilar site into the BRASS project and began the initial survey and map of the site in 1984.

Ford's work captured the attention of officials in Belize. Daniel Silva, who would later become the Cayo area representative, and Elias Awe, now director of the Belizean Non-Government Organization (NGO) Help for Progress, noted her work after attending a presentation to the Cayo Jr. Chamber of Commerce (Jacees). During the following years, visits to El Pilar became more frequent as work at the site gained momentum. In 1992, Cayo Area Representative Daniel Silva, together with Department of Archaeology, contracted a team of local workers under the direction of Ford to clear El Pilar's main plazas, opening them to the view of the general public for the first time. With the full support of the Belize Government, Ford planned a full-scale investigation at El Pilar during the 1993 field season. The BRASS/El Pilar Program was set in motion

During these initial years of investigation at El Pilar, it had become apparent that the site needed formal protection. In Belize, lands were periodically cleared of high bush for farming and in Guatemala trees were being illegally logged. Furthermore, the DoA could do little to stop looters without establishing full-time surveillance at the site. Numerous illegal excavations had damaged the ancient monuments at El Pilar, threatening their structural integrity. As a protective measure, the BRASS/El Pilar Program provided funds for a local caretaker, Teo Williams, to be on-site in 1992.

Meanwhile, boundary proposals for a protected reserve at El Pilar had been submitted and circulated within Belize Ministries. Two sets of boundaries were submitted for the consideration of the government. One set of proposed boundaries delineated an area of a kilometer and 1/2 around the El Pilar site; another covered 3x3 kilometers, or roughly 2000 acres of land. The DoA chose to move ahead with the latter. As the BRASS/El Pilar program worked toward the official establishment of these boundaries, a network of alliances evolved reflecting the growth of the El Pilar vision, inevitably touching two nations and upwards of 60,000 Belizeans and Guatemalans living in zones adjacent to the reserve.

An Expanding Network

From the outset, the BRASS/El Pilar Program, along with the Government of Belize, was concerned that the developments at El Pilar translate into real opportunities for surrounding communities such as Bullet Tree Falls. Early official visits with Manuel Rodriguez of Lands and Earl Green of Forestry helped to frame objectives. Convinced that local stewardship is the key to effective conservation efforts in the Maya forest, Ford met with villages at community centers regarding the creation of a local organization related to the development of El Pilar as a protected reserve. In 1993, a broad-based community organization called Amigos de El Pilar (AdEP) formed to advocate the collective efforts at El Pilar, sustainable development in the community, and local education geared towards the conservation of cultural and natural resources. With the initiative of Fred Prost, AdEP member and owner of the Parrot's Nest, the group was officially registered as a NGO in 1994.

An expanding network of collaborators connected AdEP and the El Pilar Program to the tourist world. In 1994, Godsman Ellis, president of the Cayo Belize Tourism Industry Association (BTIA), approached Ford about joining forces with AdEP and BRASS/El Pilar in a collaborative project that would bring El Pilar into the growing fold of eco-tourism with funds from the Natural Resource Management and Protection Program (NARMAP), under the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

Caretaker facility construction 1995

With the NARMAP resources and matching funds from the BRASS/El Pilar Program, Ford's research endeavor at El Pilar grew into a much larger undertaking that required the collaboration of non-governmental agencies within and outside of Belize and with government agencies such as the Department of Lands, the Ministry of Natural Resources, and ultimately the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as Guatemala was drawn into the El Pilar vision. Funds were directed towards a number of new initiatives that materialized over the following years. In 1994, the Belize government guaranteed that permanent funds be allotted for the maintenance of a caretaker at El Pilar. This was the first official step toward the protection of the site, and came along with other developments. The BRASS/El Pilar Program continued to provide for two additional caretakers to maintain the grounds, and began the construction of a caretaker's facility that would ensure full-time surveillance of the site. With the Amigos de El Pilar, the BRASS/El Pilar Program created a network of trails that incorporated the site's various ecological zones and Maya monuments, providing the infrastructure for visitors as tourists began to hear of El Pilar's charms and make their way to the site. To develop tourism at El Pilar, the program also began training local guides to work at the site.

As El Pilar began to feature more prominently in the tourist world, Amigos de El Pilar and the BRASS/El Pilar Program inaugurated an annual Fiesta El Pilar that highlights local culture and Maya history and draws thousands of visitors every year.

Completed caretakers facility 1996

Publishers of major tourist guidebooks were also notified of the development of El Pilar and began to feature the site and local communities in their travel publications. The Program also developed an El Pilar web page that brought international attention to the site. These early efforts increased interest in El Pilar as an attractive travel destination.

At the start of 1994, an impressive delegation of government officials, including Manuel Rodriguez and Earl Green, visited El Pilar through the Ministry of Natural Resources to assess the lands situation and the establishment locations of the reserve boundaries. Now working more closely with ministry officials such as Lindsey Belilse, the Permanent Secretary (PS) of the Ministry of Natural Resources, and Dr. Victor Gonzales, the PS of the Ministry of Tourism and the Environment, it was clear the government strongly supported the reserve. With the collaboration of ministry officials, it was decided that the park should be an archaeological reserve under the administration of the DoA. This strategy avoided the bureaucratic complexity of creating both an archaeological and a natural reserve that would have spanned multiple ministries. Though El Pilar would officially be an archaeological reserve, a name was chosen that incorporated the environmental emphasis of the reserve - the El Pilar Archaeological Reserve for Maya Flora and Fauna.

The boundaries of the El Pilar Archaeological Reserve for Maya flora and Fauna embraces 1,997 acres in the north of the Belize River area where no other reserves are present. The Statutory Instrument registering the reserve is No. 54 of 1998, gazetted on the 23rd of May 1998.

Parallel Paths in the Maya Forest:
Connecting Communities to Conservation

As it is presently known, the El Pilar site is divided into three primary sectors. In Belize, Xaman Pilar (North) and Nohol Pilar (South) are connected to Pilar Poniente (West) in the Petén of Guatemala via an ancient causeway that is bisected by the international border between Belize and Guatemala. Though the two nations have been historically divided by a contentious past, the BRASS/El Pilar Program blazed a path of conservation and research that united managers in Belize and Guatemala around the protection and management of the shared natural and cultural resources of El Pilar.

Conservation efforts in Guatemala began in May 1994 at the USAID meeting on community development. Dr. Archie Carr III of the Wildlife Conservation Society arranged for the participation of Ford, who made a presentation on the initial progress of the fledgling community organization, AdEP. The presentation introduced Guatemalan circles to the BRASS/El Pilar Program's vision for community inclusive management of shared resources at El Pilar. During that trip, Ford also met with the head of Prehispanic Monuments at the Instituto de Antropologia e Historia (IDAEH), Erik Ponciano, to introduce him to the work at El Pilar and to ask permission to map Pilar Poniente. Ponciano was enthusiastic about the possibility of a contiguous reserve and permits to map the area were issued in record time.

Miguel Orrego maps Pilar Poniente in 1994

No time was lost in the mapping of Pilar Poniente. Guatemalan archaeologist Miguel Orrego of IDEAH and José Sanchez of Consejo Nacional de Areas Protegidas (CONAP) spent a week mapping the area and submitted an initial report to IDAEH and Consejo Tecnico de Arqueología by July 1994. In September of that year, Ford was invited to meet with the Guatemalan Ministry of Culture to present her vision of a contiguous reserve at El Pilar. By 1995, El Pilar was launched as a concept park in Guatemala and the official boundaries of the El Pilar Archaeological Reserve for Maya Flora and Fauna were established in Belize.

Participants of the Encuentro El Pilar Top: Jan Meerman, Anabel Ford, John Morris, Hilda Rivera, Juan Antonio Valdes; Bottom: Mario Zetina, Jose Antonio Montes, Miguel Orrego, Erik Ponciano, Rudy Larios

To bring together representatives from Belize and Guatemala to discuss the future of El Pilar and outline preliminary plans for the reserves in Belize and Guatemala, the BRASS/ El Pilar Program organized a binational workshop called the "Encuentro El Pilar." Sponsored through the Department of Tourism and the Environment in Belize by the Comisíon Centroamericana de Ambiente y Dessarollo (CCAD) directed by Jorge Cabrera, representatives from Guatemala included Juan Antonio Valdes, director of IDAEH, and Erik Ponciano of Monumentos Prehispanicos. José Antonio Montes from the Institute for Environmental Rights and Sustainable Development also attended. Montes would later become an important component of the El Pilar Program as a regional policy advisor. Representatives from Belize included Brian Woodye and John Morris of the Department of Archaeology, Rafael Manzanero from Forestry, Michael Bejos of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Amigos de El Pilar. All participants had the opportunity to visit El Pilar to assess its possibilities.

The "Encuentro" El Pilar, covered by Belize News 5 and major radio and newspapers, led to solid commitments on the part of Belize and Guatemala. Participants outlined short and long-term steps towards formal protection of El Pilar. Representatives from Guatemala developed a timetable for the establishment of a Cultural Monument at Pilar Poniente, which falls in the Maya Biosphere Reserve (RBM) in Guatemala's Petén. The Government of Belize committed to signing into law the Statutory Instrument to make El Pilar a legal national reserve and pledged continuing support to the El Pilar Program, directed by Ford. Jointly, participants agreed to develop parallel management schemes for the administration of El Pilar, delegating management to include local communities.

Along with lawyers in Belize and Guatemala, Thomas Ankerson of the Mesoamerican Law Center of the University of Floria carried out a studied evaluation of the legal implications of a cross-border park. Osmany Salas and Dolores Balderamos-Garcia prepared a source document for Belize and José Antonio Montes prepared a similar document in Guatemala.

Encuentro El Pilar Site Visit: Mario Zetina, Jose Antonio Montes, Anabel Ford, Dolores Balderamos-Garcia, and Miguel Orrego

These important documents detailed the institutional basis for moving forward with the vision of contiguous parks in Belize and Guatemala and set the stage for the Mesa Redonda El Pilar, held in Mexico City in 1997. With funds from the Ford and the Macarthur Foundations, the El Pilar Program organized the Mesa Redonda El Pilar, bringing together 28 professionals from Belize, Guatemala, Mexico, and the United States representing archaeology, ecology, law, and government to develop a vision for the future management of the contiguous reserves at El Pilar. The Mesa Redonda's end result was a comprehensive set of values and guidelines to shape the focus of development at El Pilar. The innovative plan, collectively devised by experts at the Mesa Redonda, recognizes that a critical component for the preservation of cultural and natural resources is the incorporation of local communities in management design and implementation.

Indeed, local communities are the ultimate managers of cultural and natural resources, so their involvement is critical. The Maya forest will not be effectively managed until communities are incorporated in conservation efforts. At El Pilar, communities have shown that they play an important role as guardians of the forest. For example, when a group of displaced farmers threatened to burn land in the reserve in 1996, AdEP gathered the signatures of over 100 community members who sought the protection of El Pilar. AdEP then went to Belmopan to meet with government leaders and vent their concerns. Through this effort, and the subsequent action of the DoA, the government acted with AdEP to stop the destruction of the reserve. In this case, the community acted as a government advocate to ensure that national regulations be enforced at El Pilar.

The El Pilar Caretaker house and garden

Apart from recognizing the need for community support, participants of the Mesa Redonda noted that the development of El Pilar as an archaeological reserve would undoubtedly draw more tourists to the area. Although Belize had a successful track record with tourism, the tourist industry was still dominated by large hotels, cruise packages, and tours that bypass local villages. John Morris of the DoA emphatically stated that, "the development of infrastructure for tourism needs to take priority. Emphasis on small scale enterprises, local arts and crafts, village and community cooperation can help." Participants of the Mesa Redonda El Pilar stressed that communityÐbased eco-tourism is the most appropriate path of development for El Pilar.

The El Pilar Program and the community organization Amigos de El Pilar stand committed to develop the type of tourist venture that does not overlook local residents. AdEP President Marcos Garcia described the work ahead for AdEP and the local community in a statement to fellow participants: "People of the village do not have a clear idea of what eco-tourism is all aboutÉwe need to be trained so that the impact of eco-tourism will be positive and not negative. This is one of the alternatives we think should work in conjunction with Amigos de El Pilar, reaffirming that we have a future with eco-tourism." To offset these obstacles, the participants of the Mesa Redonda El Pilar urged the governments of Belize, Guatemala, and national and international organizations to work with local communities to forge a model for cooperative cultural and natural resource management.

Through the initiative of the BRASS/El Pilar Program and AdEP, local communities are gaining awareness of El Pilar and the opportunities it presents for local development. AdEP sponsored events such as local workshops, BBQ's, an essay contest, the Fiesta El Pilar, and community outreach have integrated people into efforts surrounding El Pilar.

To increase the effectiveness of the El Pilar Program and AdEP and to advance their goals within the community, Help for Progress (HfP), a Belizean NGO committed to improving rural life in the Maya Forest, was enlisted by the BRASS/ El Pilar Program to work with AdEP in 1998. In respect to reserve management, regional program advocates were formally incorporated into the El Pilar Program as well. In Belize, Anselmo Castaneda, a conservationist with an agronomy background, focuses on local and regional environmental issues. In Guatemala, José Antonio Montes, an international attorney, concentrates on legal and political processes. These bodies constitute an important element of the El Pilar institutional framework.

MRII visit to the Tzunu'un Forest Garden

The official development of contiguous reserves at El Pilar was the highlight of the 1998. In Belize, Statutory Instrument #54 of 1998 was signed into law by Minister Henry Young of the Ministry of Tourism and the Environment, officially protecting the El Pilar Archaeological Reserve for Maya Flora. In Guatemala, the Monumento Cultural El Pilar was declared as a protected area within the Reserva de la Biosfera Maya by Consejo Nacional de Areas Protegidas (CONAP), the government agency that oversees the Maya Biosphere Reserve and El Pilar. The cross-border aspect of the El Pilar archaeological reserves is unique in the region. Now that both the governments of Belize and Guatemala recognize El Pilar as two contiguous areas protecting one cultural resource in two countries, the next step would be to develop a strategy for managing the reserves.

To work out this point, The BRASS/ El Pilar Program organized a second Mesa Redonda El Pilar (MRII). Held in Placencia, Stann Creek, Belize in 1998, the MRII brought together the growing network to further the unique program of research and development at El Pilar. The MRII provided government counterparts in cultural and natural resources with a forum in which they could work together proactively. This is typified by resource managers Oswaldo Sabido (Belize) and Milton Cabrera (Guatemala), who enthusiastically developed collaborative projects around El Pilar.

With reserves officially established on both sides of the border, the El Pilar Program was now in a position to bring broad goals introduced by the first Mesa Redonda into a design for concrete action. Participants drafted a management plan for El Pilar that included short and long-term goals related to law, community participation, and tourism.

The Mesa Redonda III Working Group: Elias Awe, John Morris, Rudy Larios, and Miguel Pereira

A gratifying number of locals from villages in Belize and Guatemala participated in the proceedings of the MRII. The clear accord between AdEP and the government representatives at the MRII was underscored by the latter's approval of the community's role in reserve management planning, a role that they suggested would be enhanced by university level training aimed at building local management capacity. Not only was AdEP an effective participant in the MRII, endorsing the drafted management plan, they relayed the results of the proceedings to the residents of surrounding communities. The inclusion of the community Ð the group that has the greatest stake in the future of the El Pilar Archaeological Reserve Ðaugmented the viability and the credibility of the management planning process at the MRII.

The development of the contiguous reserve, the remarkable achievement of the BRASS/El Pilar Program in 1998, was matched in 1999 by the endorsement of parallel management plans that were developed at the MRII. The Protected Areas Technical Evaluation Committee El Pilar (PATEC-EP) was formed and held six meeting to finalize the draft management plan for El Pilar. The committee was made up of prominent policy makers including John Morris, Joseph Palacio, Elias Awe, Eugene Ariola, Rafael Manzanero, Eugenio Ah, Natalie Rosado, Evarista Avella, Paul Francisco, and Anselmo Casta–eda. The group reaffirmed the importance of ensuring that local communities receive direct and long-term benefits from El Pilar, describing in the PATEC-EP notes that, "in order to promote the advantages that can be derived from El Pilar's location, an alliance has been formed between the Amigos de El Pilar and the site, the El Pilar Program, and internationally." The PATEC committee finalized and endorsed the innovative management plan, the first of its kind for the DoA, serving as an example for the management plans for archaeology yet to be developed in the region (Appendix I).

A similar finalization process was undertaken in Guatemala that led to CONAP's endorsement of the management plan. These proceedings culminated in November 1999 at the "Día del Sombrero Verde" workshop in Yaxha. There, governmental and non-governmental agencies from both Belize and Guatemala drafted a letter of intent for cooperative management of El Pilar. This significant document recognizes the importance of surrounding communities as local caretakers and those most impacted by development at El Pilar.

The Mesa Redonda III : A Collective Planning Group

The first two Mesa Redondas produced a comprehensive plan to guide the management of El Pilar. A third Mesa Redonda El Pilar (MRIII) was held in June 2000 in Remate, Petén, Guatemala. The objective of the MRIII was to formalize the institutional arrangements for the administration of El Pilar in Belize and Guatemala in legal terms. Initiated by the legal research of Montes and Ankerson, the MRIII resulted in the creation of a technical advisory group called the Consultative Council for El Pilar (CoCEP) to support management entities in both countries and coordinate tourism development. CoCEP membership is made up of representatives from all involved management bodies: AdEP Lakin of Belize, AdEP Chikin of Guatemala, Help for Progress, Canaan Kaax, the DoA, IDEAH, the Belize Department of Forestry, CONAP, Mesoamerican Biological Corridors, BRASS/El Pilar, Instituto Guatemalteco de Turismo (INGUAT), and the Belize Tourism Bureau.

Meeting of CoCEP 2001 at the Galleria of El Pilar

In June of 2001, the first formal meetings of CoCEP convened (Appendix II), and a strategic plan for El Pilar that unifies the interests enshrined in drafts of both Belize's and Guatemala's management plans was approved. The Council promises to secure cooperative management, prepare delegation agreements and statutory instruments, and to develop a sustainable, long-term funding base for the operation of the contiguous reserves. CoCEP has the potential to strengthen the participation of communities adjacent to EPAR and to forge tourism links that are so fundamental to the immediate needs of the community and the long-term goal of conservation in the Maya forest.

Creating El Pilar

Ten years ago, one could only visualize El Pilar as a world-renowned park with established boundaries, basic infrastructure, and innovative trails. A decade of hard work, the incorporation of local protagonists, the promotion of collaborations, and the evolution of design have resulted in a new destination unimagined only a decade ago. Developed by professionals who saw the potential and were drawn to the evolving El Pilar vision, plans and developments slowly accrued so that today --with the help of volunteer investment and grant funding-- the cumulative resources at El Pilar are now a major asset for the region. The fixed property of the El Pilar Archaeological Reserve for Maya Flora and Fauna represents the collective results of many individuals from Belize, the Maya forest region, and the international community. Grant funding developed by the El Pilar Program has engendered a support base from international donors, private foundations, national agencies, and a rich tapestry of scientists and professionals.

These fiscal and human resources have developed, enhanced, and sustained the current values of the park for visitors totaling more than 6,000 per year. Many of these assets are regularly enjoyed and appreciated by the local community, primary and secondary students, as well as international visitors. These include the unique interlocked trail system and appropriate comfort stations. Other assets were developed to meet the requirements for housing caretaking staff and maintaining the facilities at the site. Still others, not obvious to the casual visitor, are evident in the interpretive system at the site, in the support materials for the visitor, and in the inclusive participatory management planning process. Every aspect of the puzzle has played an essential role in the creation of El Pilar.

There was no El Pilar on any archaeological maps, let alone within the tourist venue, before the Program was launched; now it is a recognized destination featured in all the major guide books. Comments in the site guest-book demonstrate the great appreciation of the visitors. El Pilar is now known for the alternatives that it offers. Comments range from the marvel of seeing Maya houses, the great bird watching, the mysterious windows into the monuments, and to the wandering nature trails making them feel like Indiana Jones. There is admiration for the knowledge imparted by the caretakers with the enjoyment of Teo William's tales of the Duende and Marcos Garcia's knowledge of the animal haunts. Workshops with tour guides underscore the variety of values already promoted for El Pilar from respect for the monuments in their natural setting to a welcoming park for secluded picnics. All these are the myriad of treasures that are part of El Pilar and all are equally important to the whole. It is clear that the potentials of the reserve are yet to be reached.

The El Pilar Experience and Tourism Potential

The El Pilar model has focused on aspects at the site rarely displayed within the realm of the Mundo Maya and in so doing has created a new niche for those looking for a genuine Maya forest experience off the beaten track. Tours of the Maya monuments have drawn increasingly more visitors and have always focused on aspects that provide the best examples of a facet of the ancient Maya life. Tikal is popular for its massive size, Palenque for its abundance of inscriptions, Copan for its elegance. When it comes to sites that offer a view of monuments in the natural surroundings of the Maya forest, El Pilar is in a class by itself. Just getting there is part of the adventure, traversing through the range of environments present in the Maya forest along the El Pilar road. Starting from the valley farmland of Bullet Tree Falls, the adventurer rises uphill through a patchwork of dense jungle, limestone cliffs, and freshly cleared farmland before finally encountering the site. The caretaker house and its cheerful flower garden welcome visitors.

The main Plaza Copal of El Pilar: View to the eastern temple Xikna viewed under the canopy shade... Below: Imagined for the future with the architecture partially revealed ....

Ford Foundation visits the Tzunu'un house of El Pilar

The value of the site itself has been conservatively estimated by independent evaluations (Appendix III). Areas of estimated value include the reconstructions, trails, and interpretative components, and the cultural assets derived from the results of the excavations. All major temples, pyramids, and plazas at El Pilar have been subject to investigation, excavation, consolidation, and interpretation. The evidence on the plan map, the architectural elevations, and the chronological history are based entirely on results of the research components of the Program. These are essential base operations for the development of the site and provide historically accurate interpretations for scientific inquiry and general appreciation.

Trails are designed to cover the dimensions of El Pilar: the public ceremonial plazas, the private regal quarters, and the surrounding residential architecture. In addition to the existing assets at the park, there is a well-developed management plan that details the potential views and exposures that would make the experience complete.

The Mirador rest stop at the H'emena at El Pilar

Assets at El Pilar include the main building facilities related to the caretaking operations on-site that have a current value of more than $76,000 US. Support equipment is another important part of site maintenance and care, and includes water pumps, generators, the trimmer mower, radios and other material. This equipment has allowed the small, dedicated, and enthusiastic caretaking staff to maintain the dispersed trails ranging more than 5 kilometers around the site, the interpretive areas (such as the Tzunu'un Maya house and forest-garden), and large plazas (Copal, Duende, and Faisan) in a condition that invites the visitors into the scenes.

The six major trails that link key natural and cultural areas of the site have a collective value of more than $1,000,000 US. These trails have been sited and developed as a means to navigate the various sections of the site and to create a base for the magical qualities of discovery that are usually limited to the archaeologist. Assets include constructions, rest stops, interpretation, excavation, and conservator measures instituted in reconsolidation of various structures.

The current site map is based on fundamental archaeological investigations, updated with evidence from target annual investigations, such as the discoveries at Jobo. Major interpretive materials have been developed for site promotion. Flyer maps available on-site and at the Be Pukte Cultural Center, the web site (www.marc.ucsb.edu), trails guides sold through the AdEP group and El Pilar Program base, as well as the postcards and posters sold at the Be Pukte. These instructive and educational materials have been circulated to major publishers of travel books to gain wider visibility for the vision of El Pilar.

Construction of Galeria at El Pilar in Plaza Duende

El Pilar has generated visibility that has reached such institutions as the World Monument Watch, where the site was listed among such well known monuments as the Taj Mahal. Other international institutions, such as Rolex, are continuing promotion efforts for El Pilar via the Rolex Award for Enterprise network. The value of these global connections is immeasurable, as they provide El Pilar with open-ended sources of visibility. Global recognition and connectivity enhances the unique part that El Pilar can play within the variety of cultural and natural destinations of Belize and the Maya forest.

The local concern for community development, the regional recognition of conservation needs for the Maya forest, and the growing specialty of expedition and adventure travel call for the evolution of new travel niches to fulfill distinct parts of the travel mosaic. Local community investment in their own valuable resources is enhanced with such a development vision as experienced at El Pilar. Cayo today offers an array of destinations in culture and nature. Among the distinct opportunities, El Pilar provides one of the facets that make the area so attractive to the adventure traveler.

What Lies Ahead: Resilience with Challenges

The Mesa Redonda process provided El Pilar with a visionary management plan. Organizational structures have emerged in the process. Now, with CoCEP's establishment, the organizational infrastructure for the contiguous reserves at El Pilar is operational.

This threshold has arrived at a critical moment. Visitation to El Pilar has increased from 20 to 30 tourists in 1992 to 6,000 tourists a year in 2000, with considerable increase in tourist visitations expected in the near future. We are rapidly approaching the moment that John Morris warned of at the first Mesa Redonda nearly 5 years ago when large hotels, and arranged tours threaten to overpass local communities.

The progress that has been made at El Pilar is remarkable, but how it will operate in the future remains uncertain. While the government of Belize has endorsed the El Pilar management plan, there has been no formal adoption. This final step of the management planning process is crucial to ensure that local communities remain the primary beneficiaries at El Pilar. Until the management plan has been formally adopted, relations between the managers and the community will remain tentative and ambiguous.

Current problems within the reserve attest to the need for critical linkages between management bodies. Recently, illegal incursions impacting the culture and nature of El Pilar have taken place within the reserve. This is largely due to variable enforcement of park boundaries and lack of communication between critical departments, such as Archaeology, Lands, and Forestry.

Early strides of forging links among governmental agencies and those agencies and the AdEP community group have not been reinforced. This relates to the slow process of management planning implementation.

At El Pilar, all necessary institutional structures are in place: government authority, community caretakers, NGO support, and research projects. Each of these bodies, however, have their own set of objectives. The advisory board, CoCEP, is designed to integrate and coordinate these objectives. There is, nevertheless, uncertainty about CoCEP's mission. Defining the group's mandate and strengthening the actual links between its members will give the body direction.

To envision the El Pilar Program design in the future, it is useful to look at how far the program has come in the past 10 years. Fortunately, thanks to the foresight of the government of Belize, non-governmental organizations, and the El Pilar Program, a true path of community led conservation has been embraced at El Pilar. With the support of many institutions we have preserved the archaeological site and, little by little, we have created an awareness of its potentials. The Fiesta El Pilar has become an annual fixture, attracting thousands of visitors from around the world. Six trails have been developed in the reserve for visiting tourists along with comfort stations, picnic area, and lookout points. Trail guides are available to inform tourists of the important work being done at the site. The development of contiguous parks and parallel management plans have been applauded worldwide and hailed as a major accomplishment.

AdEP President and forest-gardener, Heriberto Cocom, at the Tzunu'un Maya house and forest garden of El Pilar

Finally and most importantly, the local community has been involved in the process. "I think this is a good beginning," reflected AdEP forest-gardener Heriberto Cocom at the first Mesa Redonda, "what we are trying to do to renew." Indeed, with the community, the Belizean and Guatemalan governments, and the El Pilar Program; the culture and nature at El Pilar we are witnessing a renewal of the cultural and natural resources at El Pilar.

Acknowledgements

The development of El Pilar owes much to the people of the region and the governments of Belize and Guatemala who have supported the vision to explore an innovative management scheme. They have explicitly given the El Pilar Program the privilege to demonstrate different views of the ancient Maya that include not only the mysterious monuments, but also life beyond the temples. We have sought to achieve convergent objectives that are worthy of experiment, and create a new niche in conservation and tourism: the eco-archaeological experience. In the case of El Pilar, we have something that has, at once, challenged the tradition, yet at the same time opened many doors. To imagine the Maya forest as one region, to appreciate El Pilar as one resource, and to collaborate with a hope has given us a dimension to include El Pilar among the novel destinations of the Mundo Maya. We dedicate our first ten years to all those who know they are a part of this history and to all those who inevitably will beÉÉ

BRASS/El Pilar Program May 2002