Already internationally recognized for their focus on sustainability, Costa Rica has continued to break many barriers in this field in recent years thanks in no small part to their bold initiatives. As a country that contains an incredible five percent of the planet’s biodiversity, the Tico’s devotion to taking care of the Earth is quite impressive. Adding to the importance of these impressive acts is the well-documented fact that many countries push this issue to the metaphorical back burner of their priorities as they transition from being a developing country to a developed one. For many, infrastructure, efficiency, and profitability top sit at the top of the totem pole of priorities and in turn many environmental initiatives never truly make a difference. Not in Costa Rica.

Though the country has numerous objectives and initiatives in place to work towards accomplishing these goals, I would like to highlight a couple that stuck out to me as an outsider to Costa Rica. As one of the most surprising initiatives in my eyes, the Certification of Sustainable Tourism (CST) program has made strides in improving the environmental impacts of an industry not often associated with promoting sustainability. The CST promotes sustainability by rewarding and recognizing entrepreneurs who utilize sustainable practices. To determine the amount of recognition and rewards, the CST first certifies the firms then grades them on a scale of one to five, with five being the most sustainable. The National Forestry Financing Fund, an implementor of one of Costa Rica’s other sustainability initiatives known as Payment for Environmental Services (PES), pays landowners to plant trees instead of cutting them down. This has been very successful as more than half the country is now forested compared to thirty years ago when only one-fifth of the country was forested.

Although neither of the aforementioned initiatives directly relate to the banana or coffee industry, both play an important role in Costa Rica’s plans for increasing the country’s sustainability in the future. In fact, the two industries play a particularly large role in one of the country’s boldest objectives: becoming the world’s first carbon neutral country. To accomplish this goal, Costa Rica’s CO₂ emissions cannot be greater than its CO₂ inputs. As a whole, agriculture accounts for about 37% of the country’s CO₂ emissions amplifying the importance of the banana and coffee industries’ role in this goal, especially since they are two of Costa Rica’s largest agricultural industries. Luckily, massive banana and pineapple producer Dole is working towards a carbon neutral supply chain by working with the National Forestry Financing Fund and the Ministry of Environment and Energy. In the coffee industry, a company by the name of Coopedota recently became the world’s first carbon neutral coffee producer. With the great strides being made by these two companies, hopefully more will follow suit.

After researching Costa Rica’s impressive accomplishments with sustainability, my excitement for the Plus3 trip has only grown. However, the Ticos’ attention to sustainability is not the only thing that has me excited to travel. After reading through our itinerary, two things specifically jump out at me: the Tortuga Island excursion and dancing lessons. As someone who has never left the United States, I am looking forward to immersing myself in another country’s culture and those two pieces of our trip seem like a great way to do this. Plus, nothing can beat coming back home and being able to show off my new dance moves!