Written by: Julie Duthey, Group Programs and Partnerships Manager

For the past couple of months, I have been working on very special project: establishing a connection between the Cabécar community of Nimari-Ñak, in the region of Turrialba (introduced to me by OBCR Instructor Orlando Zamora) and the students of First Nations communities from the Northwest Territories of Canada.

This group of students came to Costa Rica for a series of eco-tourism workshops at United World College (UWC) Costa Rica. They wanted to meet a local indigenous community and work with them on a service project.

We asked the local schoolteacher what his community needed and we provided the necessary tools and materials to give second life to the village’s small school. We picked a beautiful color for the school’s desks and canteen tables, and trekked our group to meet the Cabécar school kids, who were waiting for us when we arrived.

The Canadian students came from the cold territories and showed so much courage and strength in adapting to the tropical weather, breaking the ice with the shy Cabécar children by starting a soccer game upon their arrival. Shortly after, we started getting to work. All the local kids spontaneously joined in, sanding tables and then meticulously painting each one of them. It was so moving to watch them work side-by-side with the Canadians, communicating despite their language barrier, and understanding that by working together, they could improve their community.

Eager to learn more about Cabécar traditions, beliefs, and way of life, we sat down with the school’s principal. He patiently answered our curious questions after dinner on our last evening. That same night, our students shared that this community “felt like home away from home.” They explained to us that despite living so far from this community and in a such drastically different environment, our Canadian students could relate to the Cabécar way of life and felt like they had so much in common.

My colleagues, OBCR instructors Diego Chinchilla and Luis Zamora, did a fantastic job leading the activities and serving as cultural bridges between both sets of students, translating questions and answers, inviting everyone to express themselves and be an active part of this ambitious project.

On our last day, we took our group on a whitewater rafting adventure, where they worked as a team through the challenging the rapids of Rio Pejibaye, while filling the valley with laughter.

This project proved to me once again how easy it is to work when you love what you do. How attached I am to my adoptive country in Costa Rica. How much I admire and respect the people I am lucky enough to work with. How little difference there is between humans whether they come from the cold or grew up in the tropics. How there is still so much to learn from each one of them, each one of you, and that trust is always earned and never given.

I hope this will give you a little insight into our time there—pictures don’t do the experience justice.

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