We have arrived at our final field station, Las Cruces Biological Station, in southern Costa Rica. The station is located in Coto Brus county approximately 10 kilometers from Panama. The air is crisp and remarkably cooler than our last two destinations, and was a much needed change. As mentioned in my last post the station is located in one of the most deforested counties in Costa Rica, making it an important biological hotspot for the area. For the next two weeks we will be conducting our research projects and traveling to nearby preserves and communities.
Teresa and I will be assessing the impact of Las Cruces Biological Station on the biodiversity, conservation, and the socioeconomic state of the area. The land surrounding a biological reserve is an important component of long term sustainable development. National parks, wildlife preserves, and research stations are important, but if they become isolated from other protected areas the goals of preserving biodiversity and sustainable development will be difficult to accomplish. Another component of sustainable development is the surrounding community. The strength of conservation efforts comes from the community. After informally speaking with several Costa Ricans I get the impression that they have great pride for their country and value conservation.
Through surveys of the staff at Las Cruces we hope to gather information about different peoples impressions of wildlife abundance, economic changes, and relations with other communities, specifically indigenous groups. The surveys will be passed out to the staff and statistical analysis will be conducted. Surveys will allow us to gather information from a lot of different people, but we are limited with the information we can gather. Along with surveys we will conduct in depth interviews will key staff members. These interviews will be loosely structured allowing the interviewee to speak freely and provide information we are not expecting. The analysis will look at whether there is a difference between people that live close to the station and have been in the area for a long time and with people that are new to the area or came to the station for this job.
Biodiversity, forest health, and wildlife abundance can all be measured through field research and lab analysis. These are important indicators of conservation efforts. However, in order to have long term sustainability you must include the people that have the most influence and that will be the most effected by the health of ecosystems. Social analysis can shed light on the barriers to environmental protection, justice issues with conservation efforts, and the strength behind empowering a community.