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John Elkington

John Elkington

A world authority on corporate responsibility and sustainable development.

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Warm Memories of the Termas Baños de Puritama

John Elkington · 7 November 2014 · Leave a Comment

Driving into San Pedro de Atacama
Driving into San Pedro de Atacama
Beyond San Pedro, en route to the hot springs
Beyond San Pedro, en route to the hot springs
They mean what they say - this was probably the bumpiest track I have ever been on.
They mean what they say – this was probably the bumpiest track I have ever been on
This is all you can see of the hot springs as you drive in - they're way below
This is all you can see of the hot springs as you drive in – they’re way below
Going down - the green is a giveaway
Going down – the green is a giveaway
The path in
The path in
Continued
Continued
Continued again
Continued again
Deeper in
Deeper in
Little fish swim in the hot waters
Little fish swim in the hot waters
Colorful algae at the water's edge
Colorful algae at the water’s edge
Cascade without Fernando ...
Cascade without Fernando …
... and with
… and with
Looked like a mongoose - or cobra - head to me
Looked like a mongoose – or cobra – head to me
Roof
Roof
Photovoltaic array with cross, the modern and the traditional
Photovoltaic array with cross, the modern and the traditiona
The view from the front door of my temporary home
The view from the front door of my temporary home

Fernando, Tere and I were driven out of San Pedro this morning to some hot springs around 45 minutes away. The Termas Baños de Puritama are at somewhat higher altitude, over 3,400 metres, so I busily chewed coca leaves at one point where I was feeling the effects of the climb – though they were nothing to complain about.

The series of pools formed by the hot springs are invisible from above, from where you can only see a jagged, linear rent in the earth. Having driven through cactus-dotted hills en route, the idea that there were would be verdant growth here seemed far-fetched.

The track in is probably the bumpiest track I have been on in two decades, but as we walked in it felt as though people had been there for quite a while. And they had: there were reconstituted stone ruins to show where their huts had been.

I read later that the Atacameño people used the waters for medicinal purposes – and they are now recommended for a range of complains, including stress and fatigue. No wonder I felt I was in heaven, though one had to keep a wary eye out for biting insects rather like horseflies.

Fabriola, our guide, walked us in and ensured we had a wonderful lunch. Before that, Fernando and I savoured several of the pools. They proved to be remarkably warm and the cascades give you a thorough massage, if you tuck yourself in underneath them. Disconcerting, though, to feel the earth (or at least the pond floor under your feet) move.

Nice to see little fish swimming around in the hot water, alongside a range of birds ducking in and out of the pampas grass and lunch tables. Plus a number of brilliant blue dragonflies – which I was told are called helicópteras in Spanish. When I looked them up later, I found a more common term is libélulas, or (more exotically) caballitos del diablo.

Was also fascinated by the hot spring algae. Recalled planning to write a novel decades ago based on the work I was doing as Editor of Biotechnology Bulletin. And intriguing, too, that Paula, our guide around the Valle de la Luna yesterday, was once a marine biologist who researched red algae for commercial applications. There’s something bubbling up in my mind here.

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Introduction

I began this blog with an entry reporting on a visit to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution on Cape Cod, on 30 September 2003. The blog element of the website has gone through several iterations since, with much of the older material still available.

Like so many things in my life, blog entries blur the boundaries between the personal and the professional. As explained on this site’s Home Page, the website and the blog are part platform for ongoing projects, part autobiography, and part accountability mechanism.

In addition, my blogs have appeared on many sites such as: Chinadialogue, CSRWire, Fast Company, GreenBiz, Guardian Sustainable Business, and the Harvard Business Review.

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John Elkington is a world authority on corporate responsibility and sustainable development. He is currently Founding Partner and Executive Chairman of Volans, a future-focused business working at the intersection of the sustainability, entrepreneurship and innovation movements.

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john@johnelkington.com  |  +44 203 701 7550 | Twitter: @volansjohn

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