CONDE NAST Best Ecotourism Tour Operator Award - July 2000 For years, The Ese´eja community´s only exposure to tourism was the tour boats plying the river in front of their homes in Peru´s southeastern Amazon basin. It wasn´t until 1994, when they were approached by Kurt Holle and Eduardo Nycander, founders of Rainforest Expeditions, that they became directly involved in the business of hosting visitors.   CONSERVATION INTERNATIONAL Ecotourism Excellence Award - July 2000 Rainforest Expeditions RAINFOREST EXPEDITIONS founders Eduardo Nycander and Kurt Holle launched the Tambopata Research Center in 1989. Ten years later, they expanded the business by adding Posada Amazonas, a 24 room lodge on the tambopata River about 75 kilometers downstream from the Research Center.   BRITISH GUILD OF TRAVEL WRITERS Silver Otter - Honorable Mention - November 2001 Posada Amazonas The Silver Otter Award is given for the best new overseas tourism project which not only has a tourist potential but is also of benefit to the local community. The three finalists are Sher Bagh, a forest-friendly tented camp in Rajasthan, India which is committed to the protection of the tiger; Posada Amazonas, a 24-room lodge in the Amazon rainforest in Peru which donates 60% of its profits to the local community in exchange for preserving the environment; and the Fort Apache Historical Site in Arizona, USA which highlights Native American history and provides employment for the Apache reservation.   UNDP - EQUATOR INITIATIVE FINALIST Finalist - August 2002 Posada Amazonas In Peru, a partnership between a private enterprise, Rainforest Expeditions, and local indigenous people provides a model for how ecotourism can be used to solve problems of biodiversity loss and poverty in the developing world.   TO DO! 2005 With POSADA AMAZONAS, an eco-tourism concept was realised that one can rarely find elsewhere. A private entrepreneur conjoins with an indigenous rural community to enhance the idea of nature preservation. And this becomes a case in point that shows that personal business interests can be linked to the requirements of a participative tourism model.   RESPONSIBLE TRAVEL Highly Commended 2006 The First Choice Responsible Tourism Awards are the largest of their kind in the world and are a collaboration between on-line travel agent responsibletravel.com who organise the Awards; UK media partners The Times and Geographical Magazine; supporters Conservation International; and The World Travel Market who host the presentation event.