Day one!

Our learning adventure in Costa Rica began with all students arriving early this morning and catching a bus across town to the hotel that we're calling home for the next few days. After introductions and some orientation sessions, we enjoyed lunch in our open- air classroom on the roof of the hotel (view out towards the city pictured above). After lunch we enjoyed (yes, enjoyed!) a statistics lesson delivered by Dr. Diana Lieberman -- getting some practice in anticipation of collecting data in many settings this coming month. In the evening we went out on the town in small groups to local restaurants -- a good start!

Costa Rica Bound!

Preparations are underway for this year's California State University Costa Rica field course! Thirteen students from different CSU campuses ranging from Sonoma to Monterey Bay to Los Angeles will be converging next week in San Jose (CR), where we'll spend several days discussing local culture, customs, and scientific issues. From there we'll head south to explore sustainability issues in the coffee highlands of Tarrazú, and then on to the small farming village of Mastatal to do fieldwork linking forest condition to biological diversity. After that it's on to the coast, and then the cloud forests of Monteverde -- all in all, a schedule teeming with adventure and learning -- be sure to check back here for updates. Pura Vida!