E A C H M O R N I N G , A MUG OF LOCALLY GROWN CAFÉ CON LECHE IN HAND, Justin Welch (MS ’06) and Sofia Arce Flores (MS ’06) step
outside their offices and into a rain cloud. Actually, they walk into the sort of postcard worthy scene that Costa Rica’s ecotourism hinges upon. The University of Georgia’s Costa Rica Campus, elevation 3,600 feet, is set within the lush San Luis Valley, a place literally drenched with natural beauty as well as copious amounts of rain. · Farmers drive yoked oxen on the rugged road intersecting the campus’ long drive, and horses bearing tin buckets of fresh milk pass en route to the nearby dairy factory in Monteverde. In this authentic agrarian setting, Welch and Arce Flores prepare for the weekly onslaught of students, artists, naturalists, language instructors, horticulturalists, agronomists, researchers, botanists and ecotourists who live and work at the rustic campus. Groups from Oregon, Washington and Idaho recently arrived for study. A toucan calls, and a hummingbird zips behind Arce Flores in vivid illustration of why so many who come loathe leaving. · “A huge aspect of the research station is its setting within a rural environment, and how that shapes the natural environment and all consequential studies,” says Welch. · Fabricio Camacho Céspedes is a full time resident of San Luis and also the station’s general manager. In tandem, Costa Ricans and the national government have instituted programs to promote sustainable agronomy and ecotourism. At San Luis, sustainable development underscores every UGA program offering.
PUTTING LEADERSHIP INTO P R A C T I C E In 2005, while serving as a graduate student representative in the department of ecology, Welch was selected to participate in the Future Leaders Development Training program sponsored by the Graduate School. Water resources management, Welch’s area of focus, took him to San Luis where he studied the Upper Ro Guacimal Watershed. He currently participates in research and outreach programs with local schools and institutions. He also coordinated data collection for a biological corridor in the Monteverde region. On a practical level, Welch analyzed water use and management for the research station itself. “Although Monteverde stands out as a prized jewel among Costa Rica’s
many places of natural beauty, the region faces complex challenges in protecting its natural resources from the exploding ecotourism,” says Welch. “For me, this scenario provides a valuable opportunity to learn how to work with communities within their unique cultural, historical and economic development contexts, in order to address local water resource management issues.” Arce Flores and Welch are mutually invested in the practice, education and implementation of sound conservation, and work closely with the throngs of students and researchers drawn to San Luis annually. The couple met two years ago as graduate students in the conservation ecology and sustainable development program
-------------------------San Luis is a microcosm of positive advances in green practices exemplified by Costa Rica as a whole. Costa Rica is a model for a world increasingly
concerned
with
conservation. Many Costa Rican farmers have adopted pesticidefree and no-burn practices. The outside world now associates the small country with organically produced exports such as coffee. While the word “organic” is often used in reference to Costa Rican agri-products, Sofia Arce Flores and Justin Welch caution that it is a sometimes politicized buzzword with varying meanings. Each country has strictly enacted and varying regulations as to what actually constitutes “organic” produce.
at UGA. They studied water resource policy and sustainable practices, and now put their knowledge into practice in their adopted home. For Welch, a native Tennessean, San Luis life and work here is much like inhabiting a National Geographic special and he’s still marveling at his good fortune. Arce
Graduate School Magazine
WINTER 2007
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