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About
Costa Rica: Magnificent, active volcanoes steam over cool
highland cloud forests. Lush jungles blanket the lowland regions and
give way to pristine beaches which unfold in startling, primitive
serenity. There are 12 distinct microclimates found in this tiny
nation, each of which creates a unique ecosystem, home to an
unparalleled biodiversity of plants and animals. The people of Costa
Rica, Ticos, are a
 diverse
group, blending indigenous, Afro-Caribbean, and European origins.
Despite its national commitment to ecological conservation and
reputation as Central America’s most stable democracy, Costa Rica
suffers from wide-spread poverty, particularly in its more remote
corners. Life in rural villages is made difficult by the country’s
weak infrastructure, limited education system, and the widespread
degradation of the environment.
The Project: Participants fly as
a group to the Costa Rican capital of San José, where they spend a
day learning about the culture and history of the country. The next
morning they travel to their home for the month, a rural town in an
area surrounded by mountains and tropical forests teeming with
exotic flora and fauna. Working with young people from the village,
past summers’ groups repaired floors and walls in a community
center, painted murals, built levees along river banks, and planted
trees with local reforestation projects. This summer’s participants
have been invited by our warm and enthusiastic friends in the
pueblos to work on municipal projects, teach English to young
children, and continue work on environmental projects in their towns
and nearby national parks. The living conditions are basic:
accommodations are in a small village house or school. Each day,
students help a local cook prepare meals. The work day is full,
starting early and including a break at noon to beat the heat.
Students spend evenings relaxing with Tico friends, visiting their
homes, playing soccer in the town square, and attending local
fiestas.
Weekends: The group spends
weekends exploring the natural wonders of Costa Rica, hiking
volcanoes, luxuriating in hot springs and mud baths, surfing and
snorkeling off deserted beaches, riding horseback, and searching for
monkeys, anteaters, toucans, and other wildlife in the nation’s
ecologically rich national parks. The program ends with a
professionally guided river rafting excursion on the Pacuare River.
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