Protecting livelihoods and biodiversity in Costa Rica
Costa Rica is known as a biodiversity hotspot and has invested heavily in environmental protection over the past two decades. While this small Central American country is internationally recognized as a world leader in sustainability placing environmental concerns at the core of its policies, Costa Rica struggles with persistent social and ecological conflicts that are difficult to resolve. These conflicts are characterized mainly by competition between various sectors, in particular tourism and natural resources, that together guarantee the country’s economic prosperity. It struggles with the trade-offs between biodiversity protection and economic development, increasingly to the detriment of the former.
The four-year project, Transformative research and capacity building to protect livelihoods and biodiversity in Costa Rica (LiveDiverseCR), is a collaboration of the Institute of Environmental Systems Research, Osnabrück University and the Vice Rectory of Research & Extension, Universidad Técnica Nacional (UTN) with funding from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). The two are co-developing inter- and transdisciplinary approaches in research and education that address the complex social-ecological issues in Costa Rica with a focus on the Gulf of Nicoya on the Pacific coast as a case study.
The Convention on Biological Diversity
The International Convention on Biological Diversity highlights the complexity in developing strategies for biodiversity protection. It involves consideration of traditional knowledge, education and awareness raising and the involvement of stakeholders. The Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES, 2019) calls out for transformative changes to halt the steady decline in biodiversity and ecosystem services. Inter- and transdisciplinary research can play a key role here to involve stakeholders in the generation of holistic knowledge and the implementation of actions to restore and protect biodiversity.
Against this background, the overall aim of the proposed project is to develop inter- and transdisciplinary approaches in research and education to solve these complex social-ecological conflicts, using the Gulf of Nicoya as a case study. This will be achieved through, on the one hand, joint inter- and transdisciplinary research on sustainability innovation and transformation, on the other, the implementation of capacity building activities in the academic sector including the development of new inter- and transdisciplinary courses and leadership skills.