Green Initiatives

Sustainability Statement

CIS Abroad is dedicated to promoting and enacting sustainability initiatives. We believe that by doing our part in educating our participants and employees on green measures we can help keep the Earth around us clean. Therefore, we are delighted to announce that CIS Abroad has formed a sustainability committee known as “Green Flags.” We are joining many other organizations in the education abroad field who are working to prioritize sustainability and climate action in our operations and programming abroad. Learn more about it here!

Living Green

Recycling

According to the Ministry of Health, Costa Rica’s recycling rate has increased by 469% between 2015 to 2017. The country’s “pay to throw” program – which charges residents as per the garbage weight they generate – is the main driving force behind this achievement. Although the country still has some waste challenges to address, these figures show the country is heading in the right direction. Homestays and the Veritas campus have containers available to separate waste (plastics, paper, organics).

Shopping

Farmers markets and the Feria Verde de Aranjuez are great places to purchase organic products. Supermarkets encourage shoppers to bring their own reusable bags by adding a fee for plastic bags.

Water Consumption

Taking shorter showers at home and closing the faucet while doing dishes or brushing your teeth can help conserve water, an essential resource, without compromising personal hygiene. Turning off lights and disconnecting electronic devices while they’re not in use helps with conserving energy. By integrating these sustainable habits into daily life, residents and visitors alike can play a vital role in preserving Costa Rica’s natural beauty and fostering a greener future for the city.

Public Transportation

The country supports the switch of light-duty petroleum vehicles to zero-emission vehicles such as those that run on electricity. The country is on its way to transform their public transport system to an eco-friendly system.

• Costa Rica has one of the world’s most diverse and protected ecosystems. Costa Rican citizens and tourists can enjoy the beauty of their natural environment, stimulating the intrinsic motivation of society to work to preserve it for the benefit of future generations.
• The protected areas of Costa Rica account for more than 25% of the country's landmass. This is the largest percentage of protected areas for any country in the world. Costa Rica is 98% free of deforestation. Reducing deforestation also serves to lower the country’s carbon footprint, mitigating climate change.
• The central axis of Costa Rica’s decarbonization plan is to maintain an upward curve of economic growth and, at the same time, generate a slowdown in the use of polluting fossil fuels. Strategies deployed by Costa Rica to achieve this objective include instituting clean public transport services; building smart and resilient cities; deploying a rational waste management system; promoting and supporting sustainable agriculture, and improving country-wide logistic systems.
• The Costa Rican economy has transformed to a green economy that drives tourism, promoting sustainability initiatives across the country. The government has prioritized sustainability through the enactment of green policies and laws. For instance, since 1997 Costa Rica has collected 3.5% tax on fossil fuels, generating $26.4 million per year.
  
•  The country has developed multi-use public and private buildings under high-efficiency standards and low-emission processes. Costa Rica generates ~99% of its electricity from renewable sources, this includes hydro, geothermal, wind, and solar power. Due to the significant investments made in recent years, the majority (67.5%) of Costa Rica’s energy is hydroelectric.