"Ecovillage Style Living" in the Rich Coast

Studying abroad at the School for Field Studies in Atenas, Costa Rica during the spring semester of 2008 allowed me an early glimpse into the frontiers of "ecovillage style living," without knowing anything about it at the time. Although the campus I was a part of is not recognized as an official Ecovillage, there were many daily rituals and practices related to certain fundamentals encompassing the essential concept. First off the property was previously an old farm. So all of the orange and mango groves were left intact and are still maintained. The fruit is used to eat, make orange juice and is also sold to the local community at a low, affordable price. It is maintained by using an all natural herbicide made from molasses. It is 100% environmentally friendly! We used this herbicide as well as planted and maintained the organic garden which provided food for our own personal consumption. It was also interesting to note that many people in the neighborhood grew there own food or raised there own livestock for personal consumption as well. The electricity was from hydroelectric sources and mostly used at night because of all the sunlight Costa Rica gets during the day. Fluorescent light bulbs were used to promote energy efficiency when electricity ws being used. The center decided to forgo hot water heating systems so consequently the showers, where we cleaned ourselves with organic/environmentally safe products, were always cold. The centers location at the top of the hill allowed for breezes to pass through consistently, a sort of 'passive cooling system'. The professors and workers mostly lived either on campus or in the neighborhood. So there was no need for a car to get there. To leave one would take the bus or call the cab, both of which are common means of transportation because many Costa Ricans in Atenas either own one car or don't have a car. Students all lived in one house with multiple bedrooms, bathrooms, a common area, classroom and an outside patio with chairs and hammocks. Recycling was huge. Everything like glass, paper, cardboard, tin foil, containers, plastic, batteries and more were all collected for reuse. Food was eaten in the main house. Wasted food was composted and later used as fertilizer. Dishes were cleaned by a "Pandilla" system where a different group each week would do the washing by hand, while another group cleaned the bathroom, and another grouped planned a community event. It was structured so that each week a group would do a different task. Meetings and other classes were held in the outdoor classroom. The campus itself is full of various plants that attract multiple forms of wildlife. Butterflies, monkeys, snakes, tarantulas, bats, birds and even a sloth were seen throughout my stay at this campus. Many of these critters were common place.

Living here taught me the value of team work and group cooperation. It shows that with structured, well planned systems, sustainable concepts can be initiated and can work. It requires work but with the help of the group, its gets accomplished quickly. There was surprisingly minimal conflict between members of the group (30 of us) despite everyone being very unique. Although there is much room for improvement to make the SFS center even more efficient and environmentally sound, it has done a relatively good job so far and continues to strive in doing so on its current budget. Although it is not in an urban setting it still provides an example of how ecovillage dynamics can work. It would be interesting to see how it all pans out 10 years from now......
http://www.fieldstudies.org/pages/147_center_for_sustainable_development_costa_rica.cfm