I am beyond excited to start my journey to Costa Rica! I am an avid coffee drinker so one of the things I look forward to most is trying the coffee and examining the supply chain processes in this industry. Since coffee is such a large aspect of Tico culture, I anticipate learning a lot about the Costa Rican culture and Latin American culture as a whole, which I am also very excited about!

I was surprised to learn that Costa Rica is consistently ranked in the top ten countries for being environmentally sustainable. After doing further research, I learned that nearly 80% of Costa Rica’s power comes from the renewable resource: hydroelectric power. In addition to Costa Rica using renewable resources for power, they are also working to sustain the ecotourism industry. Roughly 25% of Costa Rica is covered by protected National Parks which attract tourists from all around the world. Not only does the protected land entice tourists to come and visit but the land also gives farmers an opportunity to grow their coffee farms.

Learning that Costa Rica was among the top sustainable countries in the world surprised me which changed my perception of Costa Rica. I did not previously consider Costa Rica to be a well developed country but I learned that I was incorrect. I now believe that Costa Rica could compete economically with other European countries of similar size. In addition I believe that this title gives Costa Rica additional prestige when compared to other Latin American countries.