Location
Four hours southwest of San Jose and just two kilometers from the Pacific Ocean, the program is located in the tropical rainforest on land owned by Pitzer College. The reserve, known as the Firestone Center for Restoration Ecology, provides an ongoing setting for the study of both tropical and human ecology in one of Costa Rica’s most beautiful mountainous areas. With Hacienda Baru, a nature reserve of 800 acres to the west, the ecologically significant Osa Peninsula to the south, and Manuel Antonio National Park to the north, you have ready access to a variety of tropical ecosystems and rich biodiversity. To view a slideshow of the Firestone Center for Restoration Ecology, click here.
Intensive Spanish
This 80-hour course in intermediate or advanced Spanish is taught in Alajuela near San Jose through the Instituto de Cultura y Lengua Costarricense. As part of an integrated approach to the teaching of language and culture, you will also participate in a homestay with a Costa Rican family, receive lectures on Costa Rican culture, and take study trips in the San Jose area.
The Core Course
Spanish in the Community
Conducted on site at the Firestone Center, this course provides you with the structures, vocabulary, cultural context and discipline-specific content to receive lectures and conduct interviews in Spanish around the themes of human and tropical ecology. It also serves as the core course for deepening your understanding of Costa Rican culture and facilitating integration into local communities through living with local families.
Foundations of Tropical Ecology
Using the Firestone Center as a biological field station, the course provides a field-intensive exploration of the terrestrial and marine ecology of the Neotropical region, with an emphasis on Costa Rica. The course covers physical geography, biodiversity theory, and practical methods of data collection and analysis. Field and laboratory work focuses on the terrestrial, estuarine and marine ecosystems of southwestern Costa Rica, with additional visits to contrasting ecosystems. The two primary goals of the course are (a) to provide you with a foundation in the physical geography of the tropics, an understanding of the patterns of tropical biodiversity and their underlying ecological theory, and a basis for the critical assessment of conservation and restoration ecology options; and (b) to provide hands-on experience with the identification of key groups of tropical organisms and the techniques used to quantify them. The course is taught on site by faculty from the Joint Science Department of the Claremont Colleges and satisfies the natural science graduation requirement at Pitzer College. More information is available at Firestone Center for Restoration Ecology Reserve and Field Station.
Environment, People and Restoration
This course is designed to take advantage of the rich and varied cultural and ecological resources available at the Firestone Center and its neighboring communities. Topics include: Rock Art Conservation and Management, Art and Ecology, Protected Areas and People, Agroecology, Tropical Restoration Ecology Theory and Practice, and Environmental Policy. Each topic combines theoretical considerations, case studies, methodologies, and fieldwork, and makes extensive use of the Center’s resources. Through the study of human ecology, you gain a greater understanding of critical interactions between humans and the natural world. The course is taught on site by faculty from Pitzer and the Claremont Colleges.
Study Trips
A wide range of study trips to enhance the curriculum is an important part of the educational program. Destinations change from semester to semester but possible trips include:
Panama’s Volcan Baru National Park
A World Heritage site that sits on the border of Panama and Costa Rica. On a clear day at the summit of the highest point in this park, you can see both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, the only place in the world this is possible.
Manuel Antonio National Park
This park encompasses one of the most biodiverse areas in the world with a combination of rain forest, beaches and coral reefs.
Poás Volcano National Park
The park includes numerous waterfalls, thermal hot springs and primary cloud forests.
Marina Ballena Park
Indigenous Boruca Community
One-day visit to museum and community for a traditional meal.
Directed Independent Research Project
You may focus on one aspect of human or tropical ecology to study in greater depth through an independent research project or internship.
Family Stays
Costa Rican host family stays provide a window into the culture as the families include you in their daily lives and introduce you to relatives from a variety of age groups and back-grounds. Through discussions with your family, you begin to give a human face to important issues and ideas covered in your courses. Often relationships developed with host family members turn into friendships that last long past the end of the program.
You will have two main family stays. The first will be near the capital city of San Jose for one month while you study Spanish intensively. Your second family stay will be with a rural farming family in one of the small communities near the Center for the remainder of the semester. Homes are usually smaller with simple amenities and less chance for privacy.
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