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Contents contributed and discussions participated by Katie Feikema

Katie Feikema

GENERAL ASSEMBLY CONCLUDES ANNUAL DEBATE ON LAW OF THE SEA ADOPTING TWO TEXTS BOLSTERIN... - 0 views

  • GENERAL ASSEMBLY CONCLUDES ANNUAL DEBATE ON LAW OF THE SEA ADOPTING TWO TEXTS BOLSTERING UNITED NATIONS REGIME GOVERNING OCEAN SPACE, ITS RESOURCES, USES.
  • States News Service 
  • deep concern at the serious adverse impacts on the marine environment and biodiversity,
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  • the links between the health of the world's oceans and sustainable human development,
  • the essential need for cooperation, including through capacity-building and transfer of marine technology, to ensure that all States, especially developing countries, small islands and coastal African States, were able to implement the Convention and to benefit from the sustainable development of the oceans and seas
  • omnibus resolution on oceans and the law of the sea, reiterating,
  • the Assembly called upon all States that had not done so to apply widely, in accordance with international law, the precautionary and ecosystem approaches to the conservation, management and exploitation of fish stock.
  • fish stocks in many parts of the world were overfished
  • particular concern that illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing constituted a serious threat to fish stocks and marine habitats, to the detriment of sustainable fisheries, as well as food security and the economies of many States, particularly in developing countries. It urged States "to exercise effective controls over their nationals [a] in order to deter and prevent them form engaging in" illegal fishing activities.
  • topics central to the debate were the protection of the world's deep waters, their biological diversity and fishing stocks, as well as international capacity-building in marine science and ocean affairs.
  • Least developed countries and the small island developing States, the success of capacity-building, and related transparency, depended to a large extent on international cooperation. That was true for Costa Rica. He urged promoting cooperation among all countries, including South-South cooperation, saying that for its part, Costa Rica had implemented national measures for the sustainable use of its marine resources. In July 2009, Costa Rica created two new management categories to sustainably use its marine wealth, designed to protect ecosystems.
  • Through a broad consultation process, Costa Rica last year had adopted a national strategy for managing marine and coastal resources, which established policies for integrating conservation efforts with socioeconomic development.
  • The Secretary-General's report was clear in showing that oceans and coastal ecosystems played a key role in mitigating the impacts of climate change, and he called on United Nations bodies to cooperate in the promotion of capacity in that regard.
  • he reiterated the importance of using scientific criteria in conservation management decisions. It was vital to ensure more information exchange on fish stocks and to implement the precautionary principle. He urged sanctions be carried out in the practice of shark finning, and in the transhipment of sharks on the high seas.
  • cooperation was important in identifying coastal marine areas' vulnerability to climate change.
  • referred to the importance of regional seas agreements and conventions in protecting and preserving the marine environment, and such schemes had proven useful in helping countries enforce multilateral treaties on such protection.
  • the draft resolution
  • Source Citation"GENERAL ASSEMBLY CONCLUDES ANNUAL DEBATE ON LAW OF THE SEA ADOPTING TWO TEXTS BOLSTERING UNITED NATIONS REGIME GOVERNING OCEAN SPACE, ITS RESOURCES, USES." States News Service 7 Dec. 2010. Student Edition. Web. 13 Apr. 2011.
  • Document URLhttp://find.galegroup.com/gtx/infomark.do?&contentSet=IAC-Documents&type=retrieve&tabID=T004&prodId=STOM&docId=CJ243758226&source=gale&srcprod=STOM&userGroupName=lom_accessmich&version=1.0
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    What are the effects of Costa Rica's ecological conservation, on their people, economy, environment, and food?  Source: Highlighted Summary: This article is discussing the United Nations law of the sea. It tells about the concerns they have for the low number of fish and other sea life. They are also pushing for this law in order for there to be a support system or larger more developed nations along with the newer smaller developing nations. Reflection: I think that what the United Nations was doing was a good idea. We always put a lot of pressure on protecting the earth, but less is done for the seas. Costa Rica is strongly green on land, and they seem to have been and still are taking steps to protect the sea. They are also protecting a good source of food for their country. Questions: 1) Does this article cover enough on green food sources to cover that section of our research question? 2) Should we rethink the "green" food part of our research question? 
Katie Feikema

Recycled roads. - 0 views

  • Recycled roads.(Out Of The Box)(Costa Rican portion of Pan-American Highway)(Brief Article). Latin Trade 11.9 (Sept 2003): p59(1). (149 words) 
  • The Pan-American Highway,
  • the jugular vein of road trade and tourism in the Americas. But decades of torrential rains have degraded the Costa Rican portion the highway, leaving a 240-kilometer strip in much need of rehabilitation.
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  • Traditional repair methods, such as repaving the entire strip of road, are expensive and time consuming.
  • Like a slow-moving train, the recycler heats old asphalt, combines it with new material, and lays it back out as a higher quality road.
  • Costa Rica is recycling its old road into a new one.
  • "The recycling technique we currently use in Costa Rica saves us about 30% in costs," says Steven Lee, the principal pavement engineer for Trow Engineering.
  • which is enforcing environmental consciousness to protect its tourism industry, especially liked the recycling method because it uses fewer resources than traditional repaving.
  • the Costa Rican government,
  • Source Citation"Recycled roads." Latin Trade 11.9 (2003): 59. Academic OneFile. Web. 11 Apr. 2011.
  • Document URLhttp://find.galegroup.com/gtx/infomark.do?&contentSet=IAC-Documents&type=retrieve&tabID=T003&prodId=AONE&docId=A109178276&source=gale&srcprod=AONE&userGroupName=lom_accessmich&version=1.0
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    SOURCE: highlighted SUMMARY: This article is talking about the cost effective way that Costa Rica was approaching the re-construction of their portion of the Pan-American Highway. Instead of ripping it all up and using all new materials to build a new section; they recycled the road they had and added new asphalt to the mix. This saved them close to 30% on cost to repair.  REFLECTION: I have seen large chunks of old roads sitting in piles in junk yards, as I drove by on new roads. I like what Costa Rica is doing because it saves money by recycling, and it also saves time and space by not having to dispose of the old roads. I am not surprised by what they are doing, because they are such a green country already, and this is just another way to be an even better country.  QUESTIONS:  - Do they do this for their other roads, or just for the Pan-American? - Did other countries follow their lead and do this too?
Katie Feikema

THE GREEN REPUBLIC: A CONSERVATION HISTORY OF COSTA RICA.(Review)(Brief Article). - 0 views

  • The conservation of nature is a socio-historical phenomenon that expresses the awareness and ethical values of those who propose to carry it out
  • easy to read book. The Green Republic is about the establishment of Costa Rica's internationally recognized system of protected areas
  • Like all social processes, however, the history of natural resource conservation in Costa Rica is riddled with paradox, passion, and self-interest as well as dedication and commitment.
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  • the greatest paradox of all is that this nation continues to have one of the world's highest rates of deforestation while simultaneously possessing an immense system of conservation areas in relation to its size, with 25 percent of the country under some form of protection.
  • and other contradictions in both the governmental arena and civil society.
  • Cuello, Cesar. "THE GREEN REPUBLIC: A CONSERVATION HISTORY OF COSTA RICA." Environment 42.1 (2000): 43. Student Edition. Web. 10 Mar. 2011.
  • http://find.galegroup.com/gtx/infomark.do?&contentSet=IAC-Documents&type=retrieve&tabID=T002&prodId=STOM&docId=A59121194&source=gale&srcprod=STOM&userGroupName=lom_accessmich&version=1.0
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    Summary: This article tells about a book that was written about the ecological conservation in Costa Rica.  Reflection: I found it interesting that this article tells us about the social aspect that any new process goes through. While most articles tell of all the good that has been done, this one tells of the less shining aspects of the process. We are also told of the slightly hypocritical deforestation that is going on in Costa Rica even though they are so in favor of saving the environment.  Questions: 1) When will they begin to protect their forests as much as the rest of their environment? 2) How much would their economy suffer if they stopped the logging? 3) Have they cut down on the amount of logging since the book was written.
Katie Feikema

COSTA RICA GETS $56 MILLION FOR CONSERVATION. - 0 views

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    What are the effects of Costa Rica's ecological conservation, on the country? Summary: This article tells of the financial aid and support that Costa Rica is receiving from other countries and organizations, to aid their conservation efforts. It also tells that some countries, including the US, are buying back debts, so that Costa Rica can have more resources to increase their protected areas.  Reflection: I think it is very cool to see that other countries including the US is willing to chip in and help a country that is striving to protect it's environment and natural resources. It is amazing that so much of Costa Rica is protected and they are almost up to meeting the U.N.'s goal for protected areas. The economy is being helped by all the donations, because of all the protected areas they already have. There is still stuff to do though especially for their waters.  Questions: 1) When are they going to start concentrating on the water's protection? 2) How far will they go past the U.N.'s goals for protected areas? 3) Will other countries begin to follow Costa Rica's great example?
Katie Feikema

ENVIRONMENT-COSTA RICA: TOURISM TURNS INTO GREEN GOLD. - 2 views

  • The success of eco-tourism is bringing about a change in the attitudes of rural communities in Costa Rica
  • begun to see the natural beauty surrounding them in a new light, and hopes for development have begun to encourage civil society and businesses to organize, while boosting conservation efforts and investment in green-friendly projects.
  • has begun to have an impact on the economy of this Central American nation of 3.5 million, which not only provides abundant natural beauty, but enjoys the advantage of being one of the safest and most politically stable countries in Latin America.
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  • "We know that although there is still much to be done, tourism is an activity that can generate economic resources," Mayor Juan Flix Matute told IPS.
  • in recent years, lodges and inns promoting eco-tourism have begun to crop up in the tropical rainforest surrounding the town.
  • "We want to protect nature while promoting development in the area," the president of the local chamber of tourism, William Rodr[inverted exclamation mark]guez, told IPS.
  • The members of the local chamber of tourism are interested in making sustainable use of the area's historical heritage and biological wealth.
  • "We know nature is our livelihood, and that is why our mentality now is to take care of it. This is how businesses in the region see things today," said Rodr[inverted exclamation mark]guez, who pointed out that eco-tourism already provided steady jobs for 1,500 local residents.
  • In Sarapiqu[inverted exclamation mark], a chamber of tourism has been set up, local attractions are marketed over the Internet, and part of the tourism revenues are used to offer English and computer courses to the local community.
  • Tourism activity grew nine percent last year, compared to an average of between three and four percent worldwide,
  • Tourism is the main foreign exchange-earner in Costa Rica's services sector, with more than one million arrivals by foreign visitors last year, and $339 million in revenues in the first quarter of this year alone.
  • The biological wealth of the surrounding rainforest has also become a magnet for scientific projects set up by international organizations.
  • Visitors to the museum can see traditional graves of Huetar indigenous people, and can stay at a special villa designed to reproduce the lifestyle of local Indians in the 15th century, before the Spanish arrived.
  • "The money generated by this institute will be reinvested in the research carried out by the center," Knockaert explained.
  • Other scientific organizations are also active in the area, with their research centers open to the general public.
  • Among the attractions marketed on the local community's Internet website (www.sarapiquirainforest.com) are whitewater rafting, birdwatching, horseback riding, nature walks, tours of a butterfly garden and banana plantations, and an aerial tram, on which visitors can "fly through the rainforest canopy."
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    Research Question: What effect does Costa Rica's ecological conservation have on it's environment and economy? Source: Munoz, N. "ENVIRONMENT-COSTA RICA: TOURISM TURNS INTO GREEN GOLD." Environment Bulletin (2000): ITEM00151001. General OneFile. Web. 16 Feb. 2011. Summery: this article tells of the environment pulling in tourism and bringing to the economy. Reflection: The different things offered to tourists sounds amazing and like something that will be worth seeing for a long time. I don't think this resource will die. Questions: 1) how do they plan to expand this resource to bring in more economic growth? 2) Will the tourism business begin to ruin the environment?  
Katie Feikema

Costa Rica's citizens of conservation: in their newly adopted homes, enclaves of foreig... - 0 views

  • Historically, Costa Rica has been ecofriendly. It has set aside a higher percentage of land as national parks than any other nation in the Americas. Government programs assist landowners with reforestation, helping to bring land back to its natural state.
  • a number of examples exist where foreigners have become agents of change who add to the richness of Costa Rican fife. The Costa Rican government hopes to encourage such balanced exchanges.
  • Out of the Kyoto Protocols and through the World Bank, Costa Rica was selected to sell carbon credits. "They are paying people to produce oxygen,"
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  • Several times a year, they bring groups of university student volunteers to work in this small Costa Rican community. Last year, the volunteers renovated the school by painting it, sanding and varnishing the desks and chairs, and repairing windows. They also helped build an organic garden and learned about the value of growing their own foods.
  • The group also had a dream to create a library to serve the schools in the four communities of the Valle de Diamante. This past February the library opened right next to the freshly renovated school in La Florida.
  • The library, which serves the four community schools, will enhance the quality of education and create long-lasting opportunities for the areas children.
  • Villages are looking for a new ways to sustain themselves and their culture. This library, along with new skills related to farming organically, composting, using bio-fuels and alternative energy, and rehabilitating and reforesting land will bring greater financial abundance to the communities.
  • Their dream is to create a sustainable environment and a balanced ecology benefiting their region and the entire planet.
  • I see my role as making them aware of what's available through national programs and then facilitating the implementation." When he leaves after two years, the community will be more aware of the resources available to them and more able to fight for their own development.
  • Over time, Ewing's interest in cattle was replaced with an enthusiasm for the natural world of the Costa Rican forest. Little by little, he began thinking of the hacienda as a nature preserve.
  • Ewing allowed other parts of the hacienda to regenerate naturally. The rich, fertile, volcanic soil of the region, along with the vast seed bank of the primary forest and the average 150 inches of yearly rainfall, brought rapid reforestation.
  • In August of 1995, President José María Figueres signed a decree designating Hacienda Barú as a National Wildlife Refuge. The forest continues to regenerate.
  • Hacienda Barú's story is one of enormous success, and it is not just an ecological success, as spectacular as that is. Perhaps more importantly, the experience of Hacienda Barú has pioneered a way for others to follow.
  • Hacienda Barti National Wildlife Refuge. The densely forested 830 acres belie its previous incarnation as a cattle ranch and rice farm.
  • Source Citation"Costa Rica's citizens of conservation: in their newly adopted homes, enclaves of foreigners support their local communities by using sustainable methods to preserve the land and the environment." Americas [English Edition] July-Aug. 2010: 22+. Academic OneFile. Web. 16 Feb. 2011.
    • Katie Feikema
       
      Reflection: I think that what these people did in Costa Rica seems to have been very beneficial to them and the native Costa Ricans. Through the experience they are able to serve and get close to nature which can be a very relaxing and rewarding experience. They are also able to improve the education, environment, and quality of life for the Costa Ricans. They are teaching them a bit about how to farm better as well wich will be a great asset to the natives as they build up their economy through better agriculture.Questions:1) I wonder how the natives feel about what American's are doing there. Do they give their full support? Or are they skeptical?    2) Is the impact they have made becoming more noticeable in the economy as well as the environment?3) Do they plan to slowly back out of the leadership positions and teach the natives how to carry on for themselves? 
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    Research Question: What effect does Costa Rica's ecological conservation have on it's environment and economy? Source: "Costa Rica's citizens of conservation: in their newly adopted homes, enclaves of foreigners support their local communities by using sustainable methods to preserve the land and the environment." Americas [English Edition] July-Aug. 2010: 22+. Academic OneFile. Web. 16 Feb. 2011. Summary: This article is about the success and help that people, not native to Costa Rica, have been able to bring to their "adopted land" in Costa Rica. They tell about what got them interested, what they did and how it has helped the country of Costa Rica. 
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