Product Description
''Sterling Evans has written a passionate yet balanced account of the history of conservation in Costa Rica. Both environmental historians and activists will gain from this book a great appreciation of the work that went into protecting Costa Rica's natural heritage, along with the work that still must be done.''--Lane Simonian, author of Defending the Land of the Jaguar: A History of Conservation in MexicoWith over 25 percent of its land set aside in national parks and other protected areas, Costa Rica is renowned worldwide as "the green republic." In this very readable history of conservation in Costa Rica, Sterling Evans 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. In Part I, he describes the development of the national park system and "the grand contradiction" that conservation occurred simultaneously with massive deforestation in unprotected areas. In Part II, he examines other aspects of Costa Rica's conservation experience, including the important roles played by environmental education and nongovernmental organizations, campesino and indigenous movements, ecotourism, and the work of the National Biodiversity Institute. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Definately worth reading!
A superior book that will interest ecotourists, conservationists and amateur naturalists wish to learn more about the green soul of this irresistible country.

For about the same price,another book that details the history of conservation in the country's diverse geographical zones (seacoasts, prairies, jungles, and volcanic highlands) is "Costa Rica: The Last Country The Gods Made."

Interested in the story behind the Natl.Parks of Costa Rica?
Sterling Evans' The Green Republic is a fascinating account of the development of the NP of Costa Rica.I've visited most of the parks in CR and after reading The Green Republic I have a greater appreciation for them and high admiration for the Costa Rican individuals and non-natives who through hard work, luck and perserverence have created a system of parks unique to Latin America and the world.

I particularly enjoyed the anecdotes about the indivuduals and also the tremendous amount of facts the book contains--facts that have a purpose as they paint a complex picture of a country struggling to do the right thing despite enormous pressures to cash in for the easy dollar.The book perhaps does read a bit dry at times, but the overall story is well told and worth the time and money.Great book!

yeah
i had to read it for an assignment, so i didn't really enjoy it.if i had to read it for fun, i probably would have enjoyed it more.it was well spoken. ... Read more

Product Description
Long characterized as an exceptional country within Latin America, Costa Rica has been hailed as a democratic oasis in a continent scorched by dictatorship and revolution; the ecological mecca of a biosphere laid waste by deforestation and urban blight; and an egalitarian, middle-class society blissfully immune to the violent class and racial conflicts that have haunted the region. Arguing that conceptions of Costa Rica as a happy anomaly downplay its rich heritage and diverse population, The Costa Rica Reader brings together texts and artwork that reveal the complexity of the country’s past and present. It characterizes Costa Rica as a site of alternatives and possibilities that undermine stereotypes about the region’s history and challenge the idea that current dilemmas facing Latin America are inevitable or insoluble.

This essential introduction to Costa Rica includes more than fifty texts related to the country’s history, culture, politics, and natural environment. Most of these newspaper accounts, histories, petitions, memoirs, poems, and essays are written by Costa Ricans. Many appear here in English for the first time. The authors are men and women, young and old, scholars, farmers, workers, and activists. The Costa Rica Reader presents a panoply of voices: eloquent working-class raconteurs from San José’s poorest barrios, English-speaking Afro-Antilleans of the Limón province, Nicaraguan immigrants, factory workers, dissident members of the intelligentsia, and indigenous people struggling to preserve their culture. With more than forty images, the collection showcases sculptures, photographs, maps, cartoons, and fliers. From the time before the arrival of the Spanish, through the rise of the coffee plantations and the Civil War of 1948, up to participation in today’s globalized world, Costa Rica’s remarkable history comes alive. The Costa Rica Reader is a necessary resource for scholars, students, and travelers alike. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

tiquicia and how it got that way
Rarely does an anthology of original documents of historical value mingled with insightful interpretative essays come together as a coherent work. Steven Palmer and Iván Molina, against those odds, have put the ball in the back of the net with just such a book.

THE COSTA RICA READER'S three-part subtitle (`History, Culture, Politics') is honored along the way with an even touch. Everyone with an interest in Costa Rica as more than a tourist destination with great beaches will find between the covers of this recent collection the stuff that builds insight and understanding. This reviewer lived for sixteen years in 'tiquicia', together with its four million 'ticos', 'nicas', and assorted hangers-on. The West Virginia-sized patch of mountainous land with its sought-after beaches (I rarely found time to visit them) continues to maintain its grip on my soul. I wish this 2004 Duke University Press publication had been available about 1988. It would have rendered easier learning the lessons of tiquicia that had to come the hard, honest way.

No matter, it's here now. The editors guide us through a nuanced qualification of `Costa Rican exceptionalism', finding in the tico experience--whether lived by the indigenous groups who were not quite so few and compliant as the national mythology suggests in the face of conquest and marginalization or by the 19th century coffee lords with their debt to German mercantilism or the 1980s Nicaraguan refugee whose task it is to decide with which of her divergent constituencies to identify herself--deep continuities with the rest of Latin American experience as well as a dollop of the country's celebrated idiosyncrasies.

The seventy-odd pieces are brief, illuminating, and usually excerpted from something larger. Individually and as a collection, they leave the reader wanting more.

Which is not unlike Costa Rica itself in the experience of many sojourners there, many of whom will never go back but who at the same time never manage entirely to leave.

Read by this reviewer on a recent working week back in the land it so effectively describes, THE COSTA RICA READER would be highly recommended at twice the price.

Excellent Sociological Reading
I love sociology. This is a great reader presenting different points of view of a complex society.So you know a little about me to judge the (short) review...I've done immersion study in CR and am a master's level student in the us. US born.Also over 40.

A study at democracy through turmoil
By using variouus annotations on short stories the reader lives through many people which have helped create this nation.Events are told in first person that give realism to both their suffering and accomplishments. Interesting information about the United States influence/involement in the Central American zone and the indirect effect on Costa Ricans gives pause to think about current events. ... Read more

Product Description
From the raucous mantled howler monkeys and the charismatic white-nosed coatis to the elusive jaguar, The Mammals of Costa Rica offers authoritative accounts of the fascinating creatures of the neotropics. With more than four hundred spectacular illustrations and a wealth of detailed information drawn from firsthand observation, new research, and synthesis of the scientific literature, this book describes all of Costa Rica's readily identifiable terrestrial and freshwater mammals. The clear and entertaining text is perfectly suited to meet the needs of naturalists, students, and researchers, as well as both experienced and first-time visitors to Costa Rica and the American tropics.

The mammal descriptions include key identification features, range maps, vocalizations, local folklore and mythology, and comprehensive information about natural history and conservation. The color illustrations show not only the mammals themselves but also their tracks, foods, and skulls. Also included are illustrations of numerous other animals and plants with which the mammals have close ecological links. By presenting mammals in a broader context, The Mammals of Costa Rica provides an entry point into a general study of tropical ecology and conservation. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (12)

An exceptional guide
I own a broad range of field guides of regional faunas.This guide ranks extremely high in multiple areas.It has concise, complete information on ecology and natural history, excellent quality plates, and fascinating narratives based upon recent scientific literature.

Great mammal book
I really like this book, I have used many Costa Rican field guides extensively, and this is my favorite for mammals.The illustrations are very good, the size is right for the field, and there is a lot of useful information on natural history.The text, while not "dumbed down" in the least is very readable and approachable.The text is also more fun to read than that in most other field guides.Great book and I highly recommend it if you will be in the area.

O.K. for general natural history, but there are better field guides
O.K. for general natural history of relatively few species, but there are better field guides. More highly recommended is "A Field Guide to Neotropical Mammals".

Mammals of Costa Rica
The Mammals of Costa Rica: A Natural History and Field GuideThe best field guide because the information is concise and the size of the book is easy to carry around on field trips.

I'm glad this book is available!
I have not had a chance to examine this book in depth, but I've looked through it a few times and it has all the essential info you would expect to find, and good photos too.

It certainly is worth the price and I'm glad we bought it! ... Read more

Product Description
In "What Happen" the people of Costa Rica's Talamanca Coast talk about everything important to them - how they came from the islands of the Caribbean to the unpopulated shores where they founded the communities of Cahuita and Old Harbour (Puerto Viejo); the survival skills, values and customs that sustained them; shipwrecks, snake doctors, cricket, and cocoa farming; and the uncertain future of their communities as tourism develops on the lovely coast that is their home. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Know the cultural history BEFORE visiting Eastern Costa Rica.
Planning a trip to the carribean coast of Costa Rica, I bought this book. I've long felt interacting with "locals" is best done with a knoweldge of their culture and history. This book was fascinating and it gave REAL insight that added a depth and perspective to my interactions with the people of the Talamanca region. I was treated with more intimate, friendly, respectful cordiality than the "mainstream tourists". It is NOT a specific tourist-oriented guide! BUT when people are sensitive to "outsiders", I find knowing the background is extremely advantageous. ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from The Geographical Review, published by American Geographical Society on October 1, 1999. The length of the article is 1435 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: THE GREEN REPUBLIC: A Conservation History of Costa Rica.(Review) (book review)
Author: Jamie Foster
Publication: The Geographical Review (Refereed)
Date: October 1, 1999
Publisher: American Geographical Society
Volume: 89Issue: 4Page: 607

Article Type: Book Review

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Product Description
Chapters: Birds of Costa Rica, Fauna of Costa Rica, Flora of Costa Rica, Carica Papaya, List of Birds of Costa Rica, Panicum Virgatum, King Vulture, Boa Constrictor, List of Mammals of Costa Rica, Loggerhead Sea Turtle, Sharp-Shinned Hawk, Wood Thrush, House Wren, Lesser Goldfinch, Resplendent Quetzal, Palm Warbler, Pine Warbler, Great Tinamou, Hermit Warbler, Variable Seedeater, Thicket Tinamou, Emerald Toucanet, White-Tailed Hawk, Uncaria Tomentosa, Tropical Gnatcatcher, Bay-Breasted Warbler, Bothriechis Schlegelii, Tiny Hawk, Slaty-Breasted Tinamou, Ruptiliocarpon, Hoja Santa, Yellow-Headed Caracara, Blue-Headed Parrot, Green Hermit, Turquoise-Browed Motmot, Mealy Amazon, Parachromis Managuensis, Southern Beardless Tyrannulet, Hoffmann's Two-Toed Sloth, Common Potoo, Oilbird, Ornate Hawk-Eagle, Stripe-Throated Hermit, Violet-Headed Hummingbird, Great Curassow, Purple-Throated Mountain-Gem, Highland Tinamou, Ruddy Pigeon, Montezuma Oropendola, White-Tailed Trogon, Bothriechis Lateralis, White-Tipped Dove, American Pygmy Kingfisher, Northern Potoo, Neotropic Cormorant, Clidemia Hirta, Plain Chachalaca, Green Violetear, Chestnut-Mandibled Toucan, White-Flanked Antwren, Barred Antshrike, Black-Headed Saltator, Monstera Deliciosa, Golden-Olive Woodpecker, Brown Jay, White-Necked Jacobin, Solanum Mammosum, Clay-Colored Thrush, Cyathea Delgadii, Rufous-Tailed Hummingbird, Mussurana, Green-And-Rufous Kingfisher, Piper Aduncum, Plain-Brown Woodcreeper, Fiery-Billed Aracari, Tayra, Green Honeycreeper, White-Fronted Nunbird, White-Eared Ground-Sparrow, Commelina Erecta, Sesuvium Portulacastrum, Short-Billed Pigeon, Crested Oropendola, Bixa Orellana, Southern Rough-Winged Swallow, Rufous-Breasted Wren, Magnificent Hummingbird, White-Lined Tanager, Nicaraguan Grackle, Yellow-Headed Blackbird, Prevost's Ground-Sparrow, Savanna Hawk, Tillandsia Ionantha, Inca Dove, Brown-Throated Sloth, Blue-Throated Toucanet, Plain-Capped Starthroat, ...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=2305016 ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Not What I was looking for
This book would make a great textbook for those already familiar with Costa Rican birds, fauna, and flora.I called Amazon to get a better description of this book, but they were unable to provide additional information.I think I paid $14.14 for the book.It is more like an encyclopedia with scientific names and URLs and hyperlinks to Wikipedia.The book is 1147 pages of black and white text.There are no pictures.I think that for my husband and me the pocket guides are more than sufficient although we would like just a little more information, just not this much.If you want a book where you can look up more information, then this is one of those textbooks.I also purchased the Birds of Costa Rica, which contains a brief description of the bird, where it's found, and color pictures on the opposite page.That is what I was expecting with this book.I do not recommend this book for travellers.It's just too heavy, and has no pictures.I am returning it.Definitely not what I anticipated.I just wish there had been a review I could have read prior to the purchase. ... Read more

Product Description
Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: The Costa Rican Civil War was the bloodiest event in 20th century Costa Rican history. It lasted for 44 days (from March 12 to April 24, 1948), during which approximately 2,000 people are believed to have died. The conflict was precipitated by the vote of the Costa Rican Legislature, dominated by pro-government representatives, to annul the results of the presidential election of 1948, alleging that the triumph of opposition candidate Otilio Ulate had been achieved by fraud. This caused a rebel army under commander José Figueres to rise up against the government of President Teodoro Picado, which it quickly defeated. After the war, Figueres ruled for a year and a half as head of a provisional government junta which abolished the military and oversaw the election of the Assembly that produced the new Costa Rican Constitution of 1949. The junta then stepped down and handed power to Ulate. Costa Rica has not experienced any significant political violence since then. In the 1940s, the Costa Rican political scene came to be dominated by Rafael Ángel Calderón, a medical doctor who served as President of Costa Rica from 1940 to 1944. The Constitution forbade consecutive reelection, so Calderón's National Republican Party had fielded as its candidate for the 1944 elections law professor Teodoro Picado, who was widely perceived as a weak figure controlled by Calderón. At the time Costa Rica had a long history of electoral fraud, and Picado was elected as president under questionable circumstances that led to considerable tensions during his tenure. The Picado administration resorted several times to the use of military force in order to keep the peace, and pro-Calderón elements within the military institution would often become involved in street vio... More: http://booksllc.net/?id=2872747 ... Read more

Product Description
Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Chapters: Battles Involving Costa Rica, Wars Involving Costa Rica, Costa Rican Civil War, Second Battle of Rivas, Battle of Santa Rosa, Campaign of 1856-1857. Excerpt: The Costa Rican Civil War was the bloodiest event in 20th century Costa Rican history. It lasted for 44 days (from March 12 to April 24, 1948), during which approximately 2,000 people are believed to have died. The conflict was precipitated by the vote of the Costa Rican Legislature, dominated by pro-government representatives, to annul the results of the presidential election of 1948, alleging that the triumph of opposition candidate Otilio Ulate had been achieved by fraud. This caused a rebel army under commander José Figueres to rise up against the government of President Teodoro Picado, which it quickly defeated. After the war, Figueres ruled for a year and a half as head of a provisional government junta which abolished the military and oversaw the election of the Assembly that produced the new Costa Rican Constitution of 1949. The junta then stepped down and handed power to Ulate. Costa Rica has not experienced any significant political violence since then. In the 1940s, the Costa Rican political scene came to be dominated by Rafael Ángel Calderón, a medical doctor who served as President of Costa Rica from 1940 to 1944. The Constitution forbade consecutive reelection, so Calderón's National Republican Party had fielded as its candidate for the 1944 elections law professor Teodoro Picado, who was widely perceived as a weak figure controlled by Calderón. At the time Costa Rica had a long history of electoral fraud, and Picado was elected as president under questionable circumstances that led to considerable tensions during his tenure. The Picado administration resorted several tim... More: http://booksllc.net/?id=2872747 ... Read more

Product Description
Chapters: Pre-Columbian History of Costa Rica. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 88. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: The pre-Columbian history of Costa Rica extends from the establishment of the first settlers until the arrival of Christopher Columbus to the Americas. Archaeological evidence allows us to date the arrival of the first humans to Costa Rica to between 7,000 and 10,000 B.C. By the second millennium B.C. sedentary farming communities already existed. Between 300 B.C. and A.D. 300 many communities moved from a tribal, clan-centric organization kinship-based, rarely hierarchical and dependent on self-sustenance to a hierarchical one, with caciques (chiefs), religious leaders or shamans, artisan specialists and so on. This social organization arose from the need to organize manufacture and trade, manage relations with other communities and plan offensive and defensive activities. These groups established broader territorial divisions to produce more food and control wider sources of raw materials. From the ninth century certain villages grew in size, and the latter-period chiefdoms of the sixteenth century came to develop greater social hierarchies and major improvements in infrastructure. The presence of humans in the Americas was a much later phenomenon than on other continents. The first humans are barely dated to around 40,000 to 50,000 B.C., and some even suggest a later date. In any case, the concentration of ice over the continents during the last Ice Age caused the oceans to recede by about 120 meters (400 feet), allowing groups of hunters from northeast Asia to move eastward in pursuit of great herds of animals. The traveled to North America and settled there in several waves, and over the course of several millennia and through successive generations, the desce...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=19312150 ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from NotiCen: Central American & Caribbean Affairs, published by Latin American Data Base/Latin American Institute on November 4, 2004. The length of the article is 1462 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: MYTHS SHATTERED, A CORRUPT COSTA RICA RETHINKS HISTORY.
Publication: NotiCen: Central American & Caribbean Affairs (Newsletter)
Date: November 4, 2004
Publisher: Latin American Data Base/Latin American Institute


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Customer Reviews (1)

Unremarkable Article
The article mentions some of the impact triggered in 2004 by the resignation from the World Economic Forum (under accusations of corruption) of Jose Maria Figueres, ex-president of Costa Rica. As the third Costa Rican ex-president since 1990 to embarrass the nation related to corruption (Rafael Angel Calderon and Miguel Angel Rodriquez being the others) the article asserts that Costa Rica's reputation for good government was all but destroyed and the people disillusioned. There was very little to learn from this article. ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Proceso, published by CISA Comunicacion e Informacion, S.A. de C.V. on March 9, 1997. The length of the article is 1928 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Endeudados, sin público, los equipos costarricenses sobreviven con la exportación de jugadores. (historia y situación económica del fútbol en Costa Rica)(TT: In debt, without spectatorship, the Costa Rican teams survive by exporting players) (TA: Costa Rican soccer's economica situation and history)
Author: Jorge Boccanera
Publication: Proceso (Magazine/Journal)
Date: March 9, 1997
Publisher: CISA Comunicacion e Informacion, S.A. de C.V.
Issue: n1062Page: p74(2)

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Customer Reviews (1)

fascinating insight
This is a fascinating work describing the distribution and ecology if Costa Rican birds as known in 1964.I suspect that much of the information remains relevant today, though of course some of the nomenclature is unfamiliar to today's birders (it helps to have a current checklist with scientific names as a cross-reference).

As an unrepentant bibliophile I like to have the book itself, but anyone simply wanting access to the information from this work can obtain a PDF version from the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), as long as they aren't deterred by the size of the download (94MB).[...] ... Read more

Product Description
This book describes general aspects of the geography, climate and history of Golfito, and then discusses its biodiversity, beginning with aquatic organisms and environments (sea, rivers and mangroves). It continues with the complex terrestrial vegetation of the Golfito National Wildlife Refuge, and contains several chapters on various groups of insects. The book concludes with terrestrial vertebrates (amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals). The final chapter discusses the conservation problems facing the Osa Conservation Area. ... Read more

Product Description
Costa Rica - History of Costa Rica, Geography ofCosta Rica,Politics of Costa Rica, Pérez Zeledón Canton, Economy ofCosta Rica, Tourism in Costa Rica, Demographics of CostaRica, Chibchan languages, Culture of Costa Rica, Calypsomusic, Education in Costa Rica, José Figueres Ferrer,CostaRican Civil War, Cocos Island, Óscar Arias, Wildlife ofCosta Rica, Central American Squirrel Monkey, CentralAmerican Spanish, Costa Rican cuisine ... Read more