SMA offers students the chance to get hands-on experience in wildlife rescue and rehabilitation, while learning about conservation issues in the lush rainforests of Costa Rica. Students will have the chance to make a tangible impact on the environment and its inhabitants, while building lasting connections with the wildlife and with each other. This study abroad program is not only a chance to explore and learn, but to contribute to the greater good of our planet and its wildlife.
This course will be an unforgettable experience for those who are interested in working hands-on with wildlife, learn about conservation issues, and gain skills for developing practical solutions for these issues, while applying the basics in biology and ecology immersed in the biodiverse rainforests of Costa Rica. This will be an enriching action oriented course for students who want to explore Costa Rica, while working first hand on the field of marine conservation with professional biologists and conservationists, and getting to know the wonderful wildlife of the ocean.
This is a basic introductory course for students over 16 years old interested in the fields of biology, zoology, marine science and conservation science. There are no prerequisites for this program,and students do not need to be enrolled in school to apply.
The course has a duration of two-weeks and takes place at Solo Mundo´s headquarters at Kids Saving the Rainforest (KSTR), in Quepos, Costa Rica. KSTR has a wildlife sanctuary and wildlife rescue center, where students will experience some of the practical portions of the courses, like wildlife management, animal welfare, how a wildlife rescue center and wildlife sanctuary function, wildlife rehabilitation/release and wildlife care/management in captivity with conservation goals.
The KSTR organization has a partnership with a local marine conservation organization that works on protecting our local marine environment, involving our local community and teaching about marine conservation. They also run a coral restoration project. At this marine conservation organization students will experience some of the practical portions of the courses, related to marine conservation and ecology, which include activities like obtaining snorkeling techniques, species identification and survey. KSTR works with different local conservation organizations, like the Manuel Antonio National Park and a local sea turtle conservation project, and also our own wildlife rescue center where we will do the other laboratory practices also related to marine wildlife management, animal welfare and behavior observations. Students will gain working knowledge on how other conservation organizations work and how each has their own different conservation techniques and goals depending on the conservation issues at hand, while integrating basic marine ecology and biology concepts.
