Cash for nature protection: hotelier's offer to Principe islanders

Cash for nature protection: hotelier's offer to Principe islanders

The initiative is the brainchild of tech entrepreneur Mark Shuttleworth, who for over a decade has been promoting a model of exclusive ecotourism aimed at an ultra-wealthy foreign clientele. The dividend scheme, which Shuttleworth's charitable organisation pays out individually to locals, aims to encourage them to preserve their natural environment -- a mountainous volcanic island, bordered by pristine beaches and whose tropical forest is home …