The Green Republic A Conservation History of Costa Rica

About this book

Explores the establishment of the country's national park system as a response to the rapid destruction of its tropical ecosystems due to the expansion of export-related agriculture. Drawing on interviews with key players in the conservation movement, as well as archival research, Evans traces the emergence of a conservation ethic among Costa Ricans and the tangible forms it has taken.

Contents

Preface; Acknowledgments; Introduction Part I. Costa Rica's History of Conservation 1.A Legacy of Scientific Thought and Tropical Research; 2.The Environmental Problem; 3. The Conservationist Response; 4.The Development of National Parks and Other Protected Areas; 5. Conservation Continued: The Oduber Years; 6.Conservation through Crisis: Carazo and the Economy; 7. Crisis Continued: The Monge Administration; 8. Restructuring and Decentralizing ConservationPart II. Building a Green Republic 9. Environmental Education: Framework for the Future; 10. The Nongovernmental Approach; 11. Oro Verde! Ecotourism for Economic Growth; 12. The National Biodiversity InstituteConclusion. "Picking Up the Gauntlet" Appendix 1. List of Acronyms; Appendix 2. The Presidents of the Republic of Costa Rica, 1928-1998; Appendix 3. The History of Controversy at Santa Rosa--A Besieged National Park; Appendix 4. Anonymous Poem Regarding the Palo Verde National Park Controversy, Summer 1981; Appendix 5. The National Conservation Strategy for Sustainable Development; Appendix 6. Indigenous Population of Costa Rica by Region and Group; Notes; Bibliography; Index

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