When visiting the cloud forest and the Monteverde Institute the complex relationship between tourism and conservation was exposed. In the cloud forest we were able to immerse ourselves in nature while following a designated trail through one of the most biodiverse ecosystems in the world. Nature walks like this are extremely common tourist activities in…
Tag: Pitt Business
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Protecting Nature for the Future
Today we visited the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve and the Monteverde Institute. I learned how hard it can be to balance protecting the environment while also supporting tourism and the economy. While walking the Sendero Corazón del Bosque trail, I noticed that some areas were closed off or had limited access. Monteverde is one of…
Learning to Leave It Better
Across the wide varieties of companies we have visited during our time in Costa Rica, we have heard over and over again how they value sustainability. We have seen it through how they operate at the farms through avoiding pesticides and using natural resources to ward off pests. We have seen how Arenal only uses…
Canoe Rides and Cultural Connections
A lot has happened since my last blog, so let me catch you up. On Sunday, May 17th, we woke up bright and early and brought the backpacks we had packed the night before, filled with enough clothes for two days, to the meeting house. After breakfast together, we boarded a bus for a two-hour…
Hey Siri, Play “Waterfalls” by TLC
“Don’t go chasing waterfalls, please stick to the rivers and lakes your used to” – DO go chasing waterfalls and swim in the rivers, its the adventure of a lifetime. Our first full day in Iyarina Lodge was eventful and busy but I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. We started with a yummy…
Day 3 – I’m Starting to Love It Here!
Today is our first full day in Germany! We were out the door by 7:45, and I was definitely starting to feel the time change, but I was too excited to let it bother me! Today, we departed from the Konigsplatz station and took a streetcar to the University of Augsburg. I was surprised to…
Day 2 – Tired But Excited!
We finally landed in Munich and met Dr. Feick at the airport. In the airport, I was able to take out some euros to use on the trip. I was surprised to see how colorful and how much smaller their money is. I liked the material because it seemed a lot harder to rip, which…
Day 9 – Lectures at Austral
Today was a bit more lowkey than the past visits has been, with us walking over to Austral’s downtown campus to listen to some lectures. Our first lecture was about the distribution of healthcare payers in Argentina and how the distribution affects other payers and premiums as well as the extra cost it adds to…
Day 9: A Day of Rememberence
The tour of Dachau today changed my perspective on the living conditions these innocent people were forced to endure. You learn about how awful it was in school, but it does not truly do it justice. Walking through the rebuilt barracks, you can really see how little space the prisoners had. On top of that,…
Day 3: “How it’s Made” in real life
Today was our first site visit and the factory tour I was most looking forward to: BMW! We took the bus to Munich where their headquarters are located and had a guest talk to start the morning. We heard about what’s most important to BMW moving forward, including prioritizing their Neue Klasse models and providing…
May 19th – Gardening is Harder Than it Looks
Today we visited a coffee farm in Monteverde and learned about Costa Rica’s renewable energy system. The coffee farm felt a lot more genuine than Cafe Britt. There were no sample stations everywhere, the gift shop was small and had prices in colones instead of dollars, and the tour actually took us through the real…
I Want Wind Turbines in my Backyard!
During our travels from La Fortuna to Monteverde we had the chance to see one of the many ways Costa Rica produces renewable energy, with windmills. Here we learned how Costa Rica generates almost all of its electricity from renewable energy sources including hydroelectric power, geothermal energy, wind turbines, and biofuels. Also that hydroelectricity is…
Blown Away by Sustainability
During our stop at the wind turbines, I learned how much Costa Rica depends on renewable energy. There were many giant windmills spread across the mountains and the land, making it easier to understand how seriously Costa Rica takes environmental protection. Unlike many countries that still rely heavily on fossil fuels, Costa Rica generates almost…
Night Hike with Lots of Bugs!!
Today we left La Fortuna and bussed to Monteverde. It was a very long bus ride and the first half I didn’t have my phone because it was dead and had water in it so I couldn’t charge it. It made the bus trip feel even longer. We stopped at windmills on the top of…
1% Fossil Fuels and 100% Humid
Costa Rica has been setting the standard for renewable energy since the 1970s, and after today’s visit to the wind turbines near the continental divide, it is easy to see why this country takes so much pride in its energy infrastructure. The country currently generates around 13,000 kilowatts of energy through renewable sources, with roughly…
Day 9: A Look Into a Complex Past
I think it is fair to say that today was certainly one of the more emotionally engaging days of the program, especially given the content that we viewed in the second half of the day. I started the morning by grabbing breakfast with my friends Olivia, Reva, and Rachel at Merci Bakery, which I know…
Build ladder and Breaking Doors
Today started at 9:30 after having a delicious piece of shortbread, a croissant, and some Moroccan tea. We then got onto the bus and headed to our first event, where we met with ANDD. Their focus was on supporting women entrepreneurs through workshops, training, and community building. In that way, they were similar to a…
Sleepy Guys and Locksmiths
Here in Morocco, we’ve already learned a lot about supporting the growth of entrepreneurship, and our site visits today to ANDD and the women center in which they help support expanded upon this theme. ANDD is focused on supporting and expanding women entrepreneurs, specifically targeting unemployed and younger women who may have an idea or…
Day 9: Shifting Perspectives
After a delicious croissant breakfast from Merci Bakery (would recommend), we headed to UEF to learn about Buddhism. I learned the basic concepts, like Nirvana, in my previous schooling, but it was helpful to have a refresher and learn a bit more about its role in Vietnam. Many Vietnamese people do not claim any religion,…
Pitt to Uruguay
One of the most interesting things I learned during this trip so far is honestly how Argentina’s healthcare system is even still functioning with the amount of economic pressure it faces. During presentations from both the Omint Group and the administrators at Austral University, they openly admitted that they almost wake up every morning praying…