Are you Interested in taking a UBC history course and tying the learning to a working position in an NGO?
Explore the environmental and ecological history of Costa Rica in an international comparative context, including the history of forest conservation initiatives, national parks, the Amazon, and animal protection, while also completing your History or IR major seminar requirement and gaining amazing experience working with community partners in Costa Rica.
International Service Learning:
Take History 403J, and then relate your learning in an intensive 12-week placement with a community-based organization in Costa Rica. Apply soon! The deadline is February 25th.
HIST 403J Ecologial and Environmental History of Costa Rica in Transnational Perspective
Taught by Dr. Steven Lee, 3/6 credits
HIST 403J will give students an in depth look at the ecological and environmental history of Costa Rica through a transnational perspective. The course will explore the history of human interaction with, and challenges to, that ecology, as well as state and NGO efforts to preserve it in Costa Rica. Specific topics include the emergence and impact of plantation economies of coffee and bananas on local the ecology; the growth of efforts to protect bio-diversity in the country; the successes and failures associated those efforts; the origins and history of national parks, reserves, and conservation regions; recent critiques of sustainable development in the region; the history and challenges of eco-tourism, including human interaction with animals; and the role that protected areas play in reducing poverty in the country. In examining these topics the course will take a broadly comparative and international perspective. Students will relate their classroom learning to the “real- world” through an international service learning placement in Costa Rica. Students’ field placements will be organized and facilitated by staff at UBC’s Office of Regional and International Community Engagement. This unique course also includes a pre-departure learning program (in addition to course seminars) from January –April to ensure students are prepared to live and work in new contexts and with community based organizations.
Admission to this course requires a successful interview and admission to the ISL program. Apply here before the February 25, 2018 deadline. For more information visit HIST 403J Info