Our Sustainability Project
Our own path to sustainable living began in 2008 when we said goodbye to the stress and pace of life in the "outside world" and came to the Sacred Valley to live and work in harmony with our environment.
We strongly believe that eco-friendliness need not mean lack of comfort, style or well-being though. (To give just one example, Peruvian wines are now of such good quality that we confidently exclude imported, air mile-laden European wines from our wine list, knowing that our guests will be delighted with the alternatives on offer.) We therefore invite you to enjoy a guilt-free, thoroughly pampered stay at Casa Colibri!
Our aims are to have minimal impact on the environment while making a real contribution to our host community...
Practical steps to meet these aims?
People » Involvement of our local community in the construction, maintenance and running of the lodge, services and activities. » As experienced professional language teachers we run English language courses for local young people to help them improve their job prospects.
Materials » Use of locally sourced, renewable building materials, including sun-dried adobe bricks, stone and re-used wood throughout the lodge.
Water » Careful control of water consumption, including reusing "grey" water for irrigation, shower flow reduction valves and use of septic and filtration tanks to avoid polluting the river.
Green Areas » Application of permaculture principles including organically composted fertilizer in all our gardens and no artificial pesticides or herbicides. » Promotion of native plant species in combination with universal species to provide optimal conditions for insect and bird life. » We have laid out our green areas with reduced lawns and grass to allow for extensive shrub and flower beds.
Environment » No use of harsh bleach-based detergents or cleaning materials.
Carbon Footprint » Energy efficient lighting throughout. » To help reduce deforestation and wood burning in our area there are no fireplaces in Casa Colibri. The thick adobe walls provide effective insulation.
