UGA Costa Rica

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UGA Costa Rica is one of the three international residential centers owned and operated by the University of Georgia. The largest of these centers—the other two located in Oxford, England and Cortona, Italy—UGA Costa Rica is used as a site for research, study abroad, symposia, and ecotourism. [1]

University of Georgia Public university located in Athens, Georgia, United States

The University of Georgia, also referred to as UGA or simply Georgia, is a public flagship research university with its main campus in Athens, Georgia. Founded in 1785, it is one of three schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States.

Oxford City and non-metropolitan district in England

Oxford is a university city in south central England and the county town of Oxfordshire. With a population of approximately 155,000, it is the 52nd largest city in the United Kingdom, with one of the fastest growing populations in the UK, and it remains the most ethnically diverse area in Oxfordshire county. The city is 51 miles (82 km) from London, 61 miles (98 km) from Bristol, 59 miles (95 km) from Southampton, 57 miles (92 km) from Birmingham and 24 miles (39 km) from Reading.

Cortona Comune in Tuscany, Italy

Cortona is a town and comune in the province of Arezzo, in Tuscany, Italy. It is the main cultural and artistic center of the Val di Chiana after Arezzo.

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In February 2019, the University of Georgia announced the sale of the campus to the Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE), a study abroad nonprofit organization. [2]

The Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE) is a non-profit organization promoting international education and exchange. It was founded in 1947 and is based in United States. The organization is headquartered in Portland, Maine.

Study Abroad

UGA Costa Rica's campus, located at the foot of the Monteverde Cloud Forest, is primarily a site for the University of Georgia's study abroad programs, though dozens of other American universities utilize the campus for study abroad as well. Currently UGA Costa Rica offers 23 annual programs held during the fall, spring, Maymester, and summer terms as designated by the University of Georgia. The scope of each program differs greatly as UGA Costa Rica works with over 50 UGA faculty members in 28 academic disciplines. [3]

Monteverde Place in Puntarenas, Costa Rica

Monteverde, Costa Rica is a small community in Puntarenas, Costa Rica, located in the Cordillera de Tilarán mountain range. Roughly a four-hour drive from the Central Valley, Monteverde is one of the country's major ecotourism destinations. The area is host to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve and several other natural attractions, which draw considerable numbers of tourists and naturalists.

Sustainability Initiatives

A large part of UGA Costa Rica's mission is a dedication to sustainable initiatives, evident in both the academic content and excursions of its study abroad experience and the Sustainability Report it publishes and distributes through the University of Georgia annually. [4]

Carbon Offset Program

Launched in January 2008, the Carbon Offset Program is a unique component of UGA Costa Rica's study abroad experience. In addition to offsetting carbon emissions related to the participant's international travel and the efforts to restore critical lost habitats where tropical rain forests once stood, UGA Costa Rica's Carbon Offset Program seeks to establish long-term research forests where scientists from the University of Georgia and elsewhere can study the effects of climate change; forest, soils, and wildlife ecology; sustainable silviculture and soils management techniques; and even sociological issues. [4]

Carbon offset reduction in emissions of carbon dioxide or greenhouse gases made in order to compensate for or to offset an emission made elsewhere

A carbon offset is a reduction in emissions of carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gases made in order to compensate for emissions made elsewhere.

Pájaro Campana Biological Corridor

Trees planted through UGA Costa Rica's Carbon Offset Program augment the Pájaro Campana Biological Corridor, which forms part of the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor stretching from southern Mexico through Panama. UGA Costa Rica's general manager, Fabricio Camacho, serves as the President of the Advisory Committee for this Corridor, which is recognized by the Costa Rican Government as part of the country's national biological corridor program. [4] These reforestation efforts aim to improve forest connectivity throughout the Pájaro Campana Biological Corridor, and will directly contribute to the establishment of new habitat for the three-wattled bellbird—known in Spanish as the pájaro campana, the flagship species for the corridor—and the resplendent quetzal, two migratory species greatly impacted by habitat loss in this region. [4]

The Mesoamerican Biological Corridor (MBC) is a region that consists of Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, and some southern states of Mexico. The area acts as a natural land bridge from South America to North America, which is important for species who use the bridge in migration. Due to the extensive unique habitat types, Mesoamerica contains somewhere between 7 and 10% of the world’s known species.

Mexico country in the southern portion of North America

Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and to the east by the Gulf of Mexico. Covering almost 2,000,000 square kilometres (770,000 sq mi), the nation is the fifth largest country in the Americas by total area and the 13th largest independent state in the world. With an estimated population of over 120 million people, the country is the eleventh most populous state and the most populous Spanish-speaking state in the world, while being the second most populous nation in Latin America after Brazil. Mexico is a federation comprising 31 states and Mexico City, a special federal entity that is also the capital city and its most populous city. Other metropolises in the state include Guadalajara, Monterrey, Puebla, Toluca, Tijuana and León.

Panama Republic in Central America

Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Central America, bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The capital and largest city is Panama City, whose metropolitan area is home to nearly half the country's 4 million people.

UGA Costa Rica's partners in the Carbon Offset program include the Fundación Conservacionista Costarricense (FCC), the Tropical Science Center (CCT), the Monteverde Conservation League (MCL), and the Costa Rican government's System of Conservation Areas (SINAC) and Ministry of Environment (MINAET), among others. Faculty and Administration from the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources and the Odum School of Ecology, both at the University of Georgia, provide administrative and technical guidance for the UGA Costa Rica Carbon Offset Program. [4]

Campus

The UGA Costa Rica campus sits at the head of the San Luis Valley adjacent to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve. Though 155 acres in size, only about 10% of the property contains built structures of any kind, leaving the majority of the campus situated in a web of federally protected but privately owned natural forests. [5] A series of 360° photographs were uploaded to the UGA Costa Rica official website on February 8, 2011 providing 19 high-definition panoramic images of the campus grounds. The site reports that an interactive map is soon to follow. [6]

Altogether the campus comprises 36,000 square feet (3,300 m2) of built space, which was designed almost exclusively by the University of Georgia's College of Environment & Design. [5]

Academic Facilities

Student Union

This building serves as the UGA Costa Rica campus' central gathering space. With a large veranda overlooking the main stretch of campus, the Student Union houses the cafeteria, library, computer lab, a series of academic offices, as well as the reception area for the Ecolodge San Luis. [5]

Natural Science Wet Laboratory

Built in 2004, a climate-controlled laboratory has been designed for short-, mid- and long-term scientific research. [5]

Open Air Classrooms

Renovated in 2006, these open-air classrooms are used for lectures, seminars, slide presentations, and a variety of hands-on activities. [5]

Indoor Classroom

Completed in July 2007, the Chachalaca indoor classroom represents the newest of UGA Costa Rica's academic facilities. This classroom includes IT equipment for class presentations with mounted and movable whiteboards. [5]

Student Recreation Center

The Recreation Center is an open-air space designated for larger social functions. The building was completed in 2007 and includes a fireplace as well as ping pong and foosball tables. [5]

Residential Facilities

UGA Costa Rica's Residential Facilities include housing for the students, faculty, researchers, resident naturalists, and a variety of interns. [5]

Cabinas

Nestled among the trees, the cabinas are the primary residential area for faculty teaching on study abroad programs, and serve also as the lodging suites for tourists staying at the Ecolodge San Luis. These twelve rooms sleep one to four people. [5]

Bungalows

The student bungalows are the primary residences for study abroad program participants. Sixteen rooms in four separate buildings sleep four people each, utilizing two bunk beds per room. Each bungalow contains a private bathroom, two desks, and ample closet space. A covered veranda rings each of the bungalow buildings. [5]

Resident Faculty House

The Resident Faculty House provides private space for long-term faculty or researchers. It is a located a short walk from the Student Union and sits immediately adjacent to the San Luis Botanical Garden. [7]

Casitas

Five casitas are available for use by volunteer staff and graduate researchers. [7]

San Luis Botanical Garden

The Monteverde region is home to more than 2,500 species of plants, including 420 species of orchids and 700 species of trees. [8] The San Luis Botanical Garden displays a small but diverse sample of Monteverde's botanical diversity.

The San Luis Botanical Garden was designed in the summer of 2003 when six UGA landscape architecture students spent a week developing the garden's master plan under the tutelage of Gregg Coyle from UGA's College of Environment & Design. [5] The result is a five-acre sustainable design featuring numerous native plants identified by photo-metal labels provided by the State Botanical Garden of Georgia. [5]

Hiking Trails

The UGA Costa Rica campus currently has 2.5 kilometers of walking trails that wind throughout its 155-acre property, the longest of which being the Camino Real trail. [5]

Notes

  1. UGA Office of International Education home page: http://uga.edu/oie/
  2. "UGA Foundation approves sale of Costa Rica campus". UGA Today. 2019-02-25. Retrieved 2019-03-20.
  3. UGA Costa Rica Study Abroad Programs page: http://www.externalaffairs.uga.edu/costa_rica/index.php/site/programs/-/students
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 UGA Costa Rica Carbon Offset Program page: http://www.externalaffairs.uga.edu/costa_rica/index.php/site/sustainability_initiatives_detail/uga_costa_rica_carbon_offset_program/campus
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 UGA Costa Rica Campus web page: http://www.externalaffairs.uga.edu/costa_rica/index.php/site/amenities/-/campus
  6. UGA Costa Rica home page: http://www.ugacostarica.com
  7. 1 2 San Luis Botanical Garden: http://www.externalaffairs.uga.edu/costa_rica/index.php/site/amenities_detail/san_luis_botanical_garden/campus
  8. Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve website: http://www.monteverdeinfo.com/

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