FROM OBSCURITY TO The most beautiful island in the world
OT all destinations are made equal and this is the reason people from all over the world flock to one of the Philippines’ gems, El Nido, Palawan. Japanese divers discovered the island in 1979 and entered into a joint venture with a Filipino group to form Ten Knots Philippines, which engaged in the business of operating dive boat tours and selected El Nido as a development site on the basis of its diverse and exotic marine life, varied diving opportunities, unique and scenic landscape, secluded pockets of white-sand beaches and lush wilderness.
Ten Knots’ first resort in Miniloc Island opened in 1981 under the name “El Nido Resorts,” which offered all-inclusive packages allowing guests to fully experience nature through sightseeing, island hopping and other low impact activities.
El Nido is famous for its limestone cliffs found exclusively in this area of the Philippines. It is said to be located at the center of the coral triangle, which is home to the most diverse ecosystem in the world. What makes the islands more unique, however, is the natural wonder that has survived the transition and transformation of tourism around the world. It is a destination that continues to develop yet at the same time preserves its lush biodiversity through sustainable practices.
The Asian Conservation Company and World Wildlife Fund initiated ecological developments in the early 1980s and the Ayala Group has continued these efforts since its acquisition of Ten Knots in 2013. Ayala, being one of the prime movers of sustainable practices in the Philippines, ensured that the programs not only continued but were further enhanced through its quadruple bottom line framework focused on environmental stewardship, community engagement, organizational development, and economical operations.
Since the opening of Miniloc, a community with predominantly agricultural livelihood, El Nido has become a tourist municipality with majority of its residents engaged in the tourism and hospitality supply chain. For almost four decades, Ten Knots has strived to maintain a balance between achieving tourism development goals while conserving El Nido’s delicate environment and meeting the needs of the local community.
With the help of Ayala Foundation, notable activities have included provision of employment opportunities, patronage of local resources, and cultural conservation. El Nido Resorts has a team dedicated solely to the management and enhancement of sustainable programs for both the community and the environment.
These programs are cascaded and integrated both into the daily and long-term operations of the group making it a lifestyle for each and every one who is part of the organization. In fact, the company makes it a point that 90 percent of employees are locally hired, and hospitality needs, whether raw food materials or handicrafts, are derived from local suppliers.
For instance, Ten Knots works with the women weavers of Barangay Sibaltan in El Nido, Palawan, and leverages their weaving talents in producing beautiful buri bags and other buri products for the resorts. These hand-woven buri bags are provided for guests to use during their stay at the resort and constantly receive praise both for the workmanship and functionality. Visitors are even given opportunities for community interaction by personally visiting these local artisans.
Ten Knots has also partnered with two nearby fishing communities in order to provide guests with authentic fishing experiences and interaction with these local fisherfolk villages. The local fishermen use their own boats and hook-and-line gear, which allows guests to have firsthand experience of local fishing practices. These endeavors continue to help the locals of El Nido to augment their income by way of guests’ fees and gratuities while providing a memorable community experience for our guests.
In the area of environmental stewardship, the BE G.R.E.E.N. (Guard, Respect, Education, El Nido) program was designed to train all resort employees and local partners about ecological waste
management, water, energy, and bio-diversity conservation, and environmental legislation. Nature interpretation training is also provided to ensure that every guest experience is enhanced by knowing about El Nido’s natural, social and cultural features.
Since 1998, Ten Knots has developed three more island resorts — Apulit, Lagen and Pangulasian — all of which imbibe the same operational principles of environmental consciousness and protection. As El Nido Resorts continue to expand, Ten Knots continues to ensure that environmental efforts are not only fostered but further strengthened.
In 2014, Lio Beach, the first master-planned tourism estate in the Philippines, was launched using the island resort practices as a benchmark. Lio continues to grow as an integrated resort community. It is home to a number of boutique hotels, commercial and retail spaces. Despite the rapid development, Ten Knots continues to ensure that none of El Nido’s main and natural attractions are explored. Only 55 percent of the 325-hectare estate will be developed and the remaining land will be retained as nature reserve sites. A portion of these sites will also be earmarked as part of Ayala Land’s Carbon Neutrality program ensuring that these continue to be properly monitored and preserved.
MAINTAINING A BALANCE BETWEEN TOURISM DEVELOPMENT, SAFEGUARDING THE ENVIRONMENT AND MEETING THE NEEDS OF THE LOCAL COMMUNITY WILL HELP PRESERVE AN ISLAND LIKE EL NIDO.