amount of idealism, guidance, support, braveness, and patience, along with a good sense of teamwork and a lot of self-esteem. The ADIC is possibly the most successful entrepreneurial initiative on Chira Island. It is nationally recognized as one of the most representative examples of ecotourism and women entrepreneurship around Costa Rica, and it has put the island back on the map.
why women organize bringing water to Chira Diagram that shows the basic structure of the aqueduct in Chira Island. A long pipe coming from Nandayure, Guanacaste, crosses part of the Nicoya Gulf in its way to Chira. SOURCE: LA NACION, SEPTEMBER 30, 2001
nicaragua
pacific ocean
caribbean sea
For many years, the islands in the Nicoya Península were widely marginalized, almost forgotten by the governments and the people. Costa Ricans knew little about these islands, and if they knew they existed, they ignored them. Chira Island, which is the biggest island of the Península, has more than 3,000 inhabitants. During the 1990s, Chira Island began to have more presence in the media after the inauguration of the island’s high school (Liceo de Chira) in 1996, and the arrival of the aqueduct, intended to bring drinkable water to the island from the mainland, more specifically from Nandayure, Guanacaste. Besides, during the end of that decade, the Nicoya Península started to suffer the consequences of uncontrolled fishing in the gulf and contamination from melon plantations in Guanacaste, which provoked a terrible detriment in the fishing activities in the islands, resulting in poorer living conditions for the Chira residents.
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