Costa Rica

Striving for a more sustainable future

Costa Rica, my dream destination due to the combination of its rolling mountains, vast rainforest, incredible biodiversity, and unwavering focus on sustainability. This unique geography is preserved by the country's culture that aims to limit human impact.

Where?

Costa Rica is a small country situated between Nicaragua (N) and Panama (S) in Central America and is home to 5.094 million people and a disproportionately high 5% of the world's biodiversity. This country of 51,000 km (meaning it is 4.8 times smaller than the UK) houses some of the most beautiful landscapes and ecosystems in the world. Not only does it have a gorgeous land-based rainforest but a vibrant and diverse underwater world in the Pacific Ocean (W) and the Caribbean Sea (E).

Climate

As Costa Rica sits between 8 and 11 degrees north of the equator you would expect a moderate tropical climate, however, due to the huge string of mountains that cut through the country, Costa Rica has an array of microclimates, many of which are unexpected. The Chirripo, one of Cost Rica's larger mountains (3,821m), can be cold and icy. However, on the Pacific side of this country at the same elevation, we would be fairly toasty due to this sitting in a rain shadow. To compare, the average country temperature is 24 degrees centigrade but up in the peaks, it may only reach 12 degrees centigrade.

Interestingly there are only 2 seasons: summer and winter, but also a wet (May - November) and dry season (December - April). Temperatures in the winter can plummet fairly low with an average of about 8 degrees centigrade.

In the winter months, a tunnel of cold wind comes from North America, channeled through its mountains meaning Costa Rica is one of the only countries, this close to the equator, that gets polar air. During the wet season, rain ranges from 1500mm - 4800 mm with on average 2977.81 mm of rainfall. This rainfall appears in tropical downpours, usually beginning in the early afternoon, throughout the rainy season.

Relief

Costa Rica relief map

There are mountain ranges across the length of Costa Rica as well as many volcanoes. The 2 main mountain ranges are the Cordillera Volcanica Central which runs from the North East to the center and the Cordillera de Talamanca from south east to the center - meeting in the middle.

Cordillera Volcanica Central can be separated into 3 sub ranges and is known for its volcanoes, 6 of which are currently active and form part of the southern part of the continental divide.

Cordillera de Talamanca is along the border with Panama and is home to the country's biggest peak Mount Chirripo.

Land use

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1

Rainforest

28 thousand squared kilometers in 2016, which has been steadily increasing since the 80s

2

Permanent meadow and pastures

twelve thousand squared kilometers in 2016 which has been slowly decreasing

3

Arable land and permanent crops

5.6 thousand square kilometers in 2016

4

Other

this is where urban areas sit and it only accounts for 5.6 thousand squared kilometers of land use. Even though it makes up such a small amount of land 80% of the country's population live in urban areas.

Culture

Costa Rica is a melting pot of so many cultures, with a rich indigenous culture, and Spanish being adopted due to colonization. There are many other traditions prevalent too making Costa Rica rich and diverse in food and festivals.

Costa Rica is one of the happiest places on earth it ranks 1st on the Happy Planet Index (HPI) which uses three measures: life expectancy (80.4 years), well-being (7.00/10), and ecological footprint (2.65) giving Costa Rica an HPI score of 62.1 (HPI)

Overall wellbeing

The country's HDI is 8.09 making it a country with very high human development and ranking 58th in the world. (UN)

The GDP for Costa Rica is 61.52 billion USD and a GNI of 12,076 USD. With the majority of the workforce in services. mostly in tourism. Therefore one of the best things for this economy is to attract visitors and therefore boost the leisure sector whilst preserving the natural beauty and resources of the country.

HOW?

To arrive in a timely manner I would travel by Plane to San Jose International Airport. However, to keep sustainability in mind I would make sure to offset my carbon emissions as best I can. I would do this by walking to my job in my local town and not taking unnecessary car journeys for convenience and comfort.

Why?

Costa Rica is at the forefront of sustainability and eco-tourism with roughly 25% of its land being protected by National Parks or being privately owned. However, the country hasn't always been like this. In the 1980s Costa Rica had one of the highest deforestation rates in the world with only 1/3 of its original rainforest remaining. With National focussed efforts, there has been a 54% rise in rainforest coverage, thereby protecting 5% of the world's Biodiversity. Costa Rica achieved this by switching from large-scale agriculture and industry to preserving its natural landscape and eco-tourism. Eco Tourism is now one of the largest factors in the economy, responsible for about 10% of employment and almost 2/3 of the 3 million tourists now visit for eco-tourism.

Sloth an animal native to Costa Rica's rainforests (taken in London Zoo although I hope to see one in the wild)

All of this has been possible due to the government schemes. Some of these include:

Military - There hasn't been a military in Costa Rica since 1949 and the money that was once channeled into this sector is now being invested into education and preservation of culture and landscape. This investment has resulted in the mean years of schooling increasing to 12 years.

Land Preservation Scheme - Another more direct Government scheme is paying landowners to preserve their natural land instead of selling it off for the financial gain of logging or agriculture. The paid areas of preservation are areas of rich biodiversity and sources of clean water, protecting the integrity of the country's limited clean water supply.

Energy Supply - The country also almost completely relies on renewable energy. In 2017 Costa Rica was able to run for 300 days straight on renewables, giving me hope that more developed nations like the UK could strive to come somewhere close to this figure soon.

Sustainability is very important to me and always has been, so to be able to see a country prioritize this gives me hope for the rest of the world.

As a scuba diver, I have personally experienced the impact of neglecting the beautiful underwater ecosystem. There is nothing more depressing to observe than dead coral and populations depleting. Visiting a location my parents once described as beautiful and vibrant and experiencing it has become a dumping ground for tourist rubbish, devastates me. So seeing the efforts the Costa Rican government has made to protect Cocos Island, by making it a national park, makes my heart swell. Off the coast of the island, you can see over 300 species of fish, scalloped hammerheads, whale sharks, and manta rays.

Costa Rica is also home to the Tortuguero National Park which has one of the largest green turtle breeding colonies (my favorite underwater animal). I hope one day to visit and help with the conservation attempts. I was supposed to do a similar project in Mexico in 2020 but failed to be able to attend due to covid.

Cocos Island is located off the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica

Seeing a country not put rapid economic growth in front of the natural beauty of the world is the main reason I hope to visit Costa Rica and introduce it to future generations.

Sloth an animal native to Costa Rica's rainforests (taken in London Zoo although I hope to see one in the wild)