Moving on from week 1 which was heavily focused on getting to know our research station and the surrounding, bountiful biodiversity, we began learning about the green history of Costa Rica. Through in-class lectures, research presentations, and local plantations we’ve been able to understand the country’s history, but let me tell you – there are connections between cash and the environment beyond the color green.
Pineapples and bananas
As I’ve already mentioned, Costa Rica is a place where biodiversity can thrive. The warm, humid climate that exists year-round creates incredibly fertile conditions for forest growth and provides wildlife with ample food and shelter. We’ve learned that species diversity is highest in regions closest to the equator, a phenomenon referred to as the latitudinal diversity gradient. A climate like this also creates the perfect environment for agriculture, so how does this agriculture get implemented?
Some places choose to work with the environment, in harmony with natural systems. On Monday and Tuesday, we had the opportunity to visit two local farms – one pineapple and one banana. Compared to the unyielding fields of pineapples grown by companies like Dole and Del Monte, (oops, not a name drop!) both of these plantations were refreshing to visit and show ingenuity and care in the face of industrial agriculture!
After driving through rural Sarapiqui on Monday morning, we spent a few hours at Finca Paraíso Orgánico – a 33-hectare pineapple plantation that is 100% certified organic. The hours were spent on the back of a tractor as we learned all about pineapple and the practices of the farm! I learned how pineapple can be cultivated from the pineapple you’d find at your local grocery store, how to judge the quality and ripeness of a pineapple, and ways that you can use ecological principles to protect your crops (as opposed to using pesticides/herbicides). I found it super interesting that the plantation uses bacteria from the surrounding forest to protect pests that would otherwise damage the crops!
The only reason that this farm is considered 100% certified organic as opposed to 100% organic is that they have to apply ethylene gas to the crops in order to actually grow the fruit. Pineapple plants only fruit under stress, and the ethylene acts as a signal to concentrate the plant’s energy into fruiting! At home and on small scales, you can initiate this process by placing apples close to the plant and letting the apple ripen – this is a natural source of ethylene!
We had plenty of opportunities to taste the fruits at various levels of ripeness thanks to our guide’s quick work with his trusty machete, and I’ve never had so much pineapple in my life! The tour concluded with celebratory pina coladas and pineapple snacks, and I’m sure you can imagine how excited we were to indulge in some chilly beverages.
The following day was a tour at Cultural Banana Tours, a family run banana farm and polyculture! This day was similarly interactive – we got to cut a bunch of bananas, chop down a “tree” (bananas don’t come from a tree but rather an herb!), replant the herb, and cook plantains! This farm had a very wholesome air about it. They used no pesticides and relied on ecological solutions to typical agricultural problems. Call it companion planting, intercropping, or trap cropping, but you can cultivate certain plants at the end of a row of crops in order to deter pests! At the end of the visit, Wendy and I had the chance to help make patacones – flattened, fried plantains, for the rest of the class. Along with empanadas and banana bread, we couldn’t have had a better meal.
Being an ecotourist
As I mentioned earlier, there are many connections between cash and the environment other than the color green. Here in Costa Rica, ecotourism is a large part of people’s livelihoods and the country’s GDP. We got to experience ecotourism firsthand at Tortuguero National Park, Tirimbina Chocolate and Bat Tours, Baldi Hot Springs, and Rancho Margot.
This part of the trip has moved very quickly because of how active we are! It seems that we load up on the bus every morning for a bus ride in length anywhere between 45 minutes to 6 hours!
Tortuguero National Park is a beautiful protected land on the eastern coast of the country. The park itself is like a flooded forest which meant that the only way we could get through was by boat! We all loaded up on a large canoe-like boat just large enough for all 26 of us to fit, and we headed off onto a winding river! The boat was quite low to the water, and my intrusive thoughts about being snatched by a crocodile or caiman were, well, intrusive! These subsided as I became immersed in the non-threatening wildlife all around me – basilisk lizards, iguanas, anhinga (a cormorant), and river otters just to name a few! We made our way into brackish waters where sea water from the Caribbean Sea met with the freshwater from the river. After eventually arriving at the town of Tortuguero, we all sprinted across the beach and into the Caribbean Sea! The water was so warm, and it was tempting to stay out on the beach all day. The town was full of shops offering art, smoothies, clothing, and other souvenirs, and the shops seemed very much geared towards visitors.
The chocolate tour at Tirimbina the next day was delicious! We sampled chocolate at varying stages, starting with the slimy seed straight from the cacao fruit and ending with pieces of milk and dark chocolate – the cacao nibs are still on my mind for sure! After all the chocolate, we had a bat tour at the same place and got quite close to six different species of bats.
We said goodbye to La Selva the next morning as we motored off to Rancho Margot, a sustainable ecolodge which we just left this morning! We stopped by Baldi Hot Springs on the way to the ranch and soaked in the geothermal-powered hot waters all day (thank you to Mount Arenal, an active volcano!). Over the course of a packed few days, we also traversed through a forest via hanging bridges, swam in the pools of the La Fortuna waterfall, and got a tour of Rancho Margot’s sustainable agriculture and facilities.
While our bunking quarters were tightly packed, it was such an inviting place to be for three days! I was amazed by the sense of community and how everyone who works, volunteers, and visits the lodge was being sustained and nourished by holistic practices. Rancho Margot’s meals (which are delicious) are prepared with food produced at the farm, and I loved getting to see the immense variety of crops that they grow! A family of three dogs follow you around if you ask them nicely, and we ended our time at the ranch with a soccer game!! Even Dr. Wasserman joined in on the game and scored two goals for his team (let the record show that his team still lost though!)
Project update
Izzie and I are partners for the group research project, and we made a lot of progress this week! We had to submit our final proposal and give a presentation about our project to the rest of the class, and we both seem to be feeling pretty confident as we begin interviewing local workers and researching on our topic. We had very different initial projects, but we were able to mold them together in a way that really grew each project! We are investigating to what degree various Costa Rican research stations are equipped to deal with both abiotic and biotic consequences of climate change – will floods occur more regularly? What about snake bites? How will these changes affect different populations? In investigating these questions, we hope to provide guidance on how infrastructural needs may change over time in order to protect the quality of public health!
Wrapping up
We left Rancho Margot today and drove 6 hours to Manuel Antonio National Park where we are finishing our ecotourism segment of the trip. Costa Rica has so much to offer in terms of the natural environment, and it is cool to be in a place that finds so much purpose in it. Almost 30% of the land here is protected land, and that has been readily apparent as we’ve started traveling around the country. What is also clear, however, is that ecotourism creates a feedback loop that causes reliance on income generated by those coming from abroad. In-class lectures this week taught me about how Costa Rica’s economic history was shaped by global forces, particularly those of the global North, but I also learned that there has been strong governmental work in order to protect the environment and provide high quality health services – some of this funding is undoubtedly brought in by ecotourism.
I’ve been experiencing the ups and downs of ecotourism, but I am fortunate to have the opportunity to think critically, discuss the good and the bad, and better understand the experiences of tourism and those who provide the experiences – I’m sure that I will use this opportunity one day to better the quality of global health.
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