Description

The CIEE study abroad program in Monteverde, Costa Rica focusing on Sustainability and the Environment is designed for students interested in learning and studying about sound tropical conservation and sustainable development to ensure future biodiversity and human welfare. Students study the intersection of humans and their impact on natural systems and how environmental issues influence economics and society. This is done through coursework and an internship in the Monteverde region, as well as visits to national parks throughout Costa Rica.

Academic Program
The CIEE Study Center in Monteverde has a long tradition of high academic quality in the natural sciences. The Sustainability and the Environment program is open to environmental studies/science and related majors who have completed three courses related to environmental studies, including environmental science, conservation-related courses, policy and management, and/or sustainable development.

The program integrates lectures, field experience, student group work, lab exercises, an internship, and interactions with community members. Emphasis is placed on hands-on field observation of conservation and development projects throughout Costa Rica and parts of Nicaragua, as well as human-nature interactions and their application to the conservation of nature and socioeconomic development.

Academic Culture
The Sustainability and the Environment program incorporates extensive experiential components. The required courses combine classroom-based academics with broad practical experience. Professors prepare the students in the classroom and accompany students on field trips. Given the number of projects and visits required for this course, students should expect an intense, yet rewarding semester. The Spanish language courses are offered by the Centro Panamericano de Idiomas. There are nine levels of Spanish offered, with no more than four students per instructor.

Highlights

Culture
Cultural Activities and Field Trips
Students interact with a variety of sectors of Costa Rican society including residents and business people of the capital city, members of rural communities and border towns, and even indigents of landfill shantytowns. They visit communities of indigenous groups, such as the BriBri of the Talamanca mountains, the illegal squatter settlements of the mangrove swamps along the Pacific coast, and the Afro-Caribe people of Cahuita. Visits are made to two Nicaraguan locations where students meet the survivors of civil war, local farmers, and business people striving for the socioeconomic development that their neighbors in Costa Rica enjoy.

The program gives students a chance to see development projects from an insider's vantage point. Projects include a proposed hydroelectric dam, large-scale agri-business plantations of African oil palm, pineapple, banana, and sugar cane, and industrial livestock farms. They also visit small-scale agro-forestry projects for cacao and coffee production, hydroponic greenhouses, and subsistence farms of mixed crops and livestock. If they want, students can eat the products they learn about!

The semester is filled with opportunities to experience nature, learn about conservation initiatives, and meet the activists behind them. There are excursions to national parks and private reserves spanning diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Students visit grassroots conservation organizations, such as the Monteverde Conservation League, to learn about how conservation on a shoe-string is accomplished and how environmentalism can foster economic development. Some of the rare and endangered ecosystems that the students are lucky to experience include Monteverde's cloud forest, the Sierpe mangroves, and the Indio Maiz Reserve of Nicaragua. In addition, students visit important cultural sites, participate in local holidays, learn to cook Costa Rican food, and attend family events and community functions.

Degree Level

Bachelors Degree (Undergraduate)

Subject Areas

Cost in US$:

Please check the CIEE website for current program

Program Fees Include:

The CIEE fees include tuition, scientific equipment and lab fees, housing, all meals, local transportation, optional on-site airport meet and greet, full-time leadership and support, orientation, cultural activities, local excursions, field trips, national park entry fees, outdoor camping equipment, comprehensive student handbook, pre-departure advising, and a CIEE iNext travel card, which provides insurance and other travel benefits.

Experience Required

yes

• Overall GPA 2.75
• 3 semesters of college-level Spanish environmental studies courses
• Some college-level Spanish language recommended

This Program is open to

Worldwide Participants.

Typical Living Arrangements

• Home-stays

Participants Travel

Independently

Application Process Involves

• Letters of Reference
• Transcript
• Written Application
• Other

CIEE's Mission Statement

Since 1947, the Council on International Educational Exchange, known as CIEE, has been in pursuit of its mission, "to help people gain understanding, acquire knowledge, and develop skills for living in a globally interdependent and culturally diverse world. Our services to young people studying, working, teaching, and traveling abroad are more important than ever.

Year Founded

1947