Inhabitants of Agua Blanca have taken control of the tourism industry upon which they depend – and have prospered as a result
About 10 kilometres from Ecuador’s southern coast, down a deserted road spotted with towering cacti, lies Agua Blanca, a town of 300 people – and 3,000 goats, whose lively bleating (and occasional appearance) punctures the tranquillity.
But this hot, sleepy town is more than it appears at first. It has been transformed by a popular initiative that has seen its inhabitants take control of the tourism industry upon which they depend – and prosper, self-sufficiently, as a result.
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