Study Abroad Course Costa Rica 2024

Throughout the ages from ancient Indian sacred forests to European royal hunting grounds to contemporary landscape- and community based consensus decision-making, protected area management has evolved through waves of emerging values along with the rest of society. When seen through a holistic-Integral lens, we can discern patterns, such as worldviews, previously invisible and underappreciated and can project where protected area and wildlife management may evolve.

There may be no better place than Costa Rica to both glimpse protected area evolution throughout the world as well as hold a foreign study program on this topic given the variety of protected area management regimes in such a small, easily accessible, tourist friendly country with a storied park history.

This 12-day, four-credit course (transferible to most universities) will be co-led by Jon Kohl, the executive director of the PUP Global Heritage Consortium, and Dr. Jennifer Thomsen, Director of the Parks, Tourism, and Recreation Management Program at the University of Montana. The course is open to all qualified undergrad and graduate students from any university.

You will learn about the diversity of protected area models around the world as we visit cloud forest, Caribbean lowland rainforest, coastal, and Pacific dry forest habitats across Costa Rica.

Important Course Resources

Complete Course Syllabus
PUP Study Abroad Course Costa Rica Policy Document
Emergency Prevention and Response Plan
Pre/Course Calendar (with important due dates)
General course webpage