CRINI is a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide foreign students with academic experiences which incorporate the environment, culture, and folklore of Costa Rican people and communities; offer students the opportunity to work with social and humanitarian projects; and allow them to practice and improve their Spanish language skills.
We are currently expanding the program to incorporate intensive Spanish language courses. In addition to the formal classes that each student receives during his/her stay, we also offer opportunities to interact with Costa Rican society in order to increase language and cultural learning. Examples of these opportunities include supervised interviews and lectures and conversations with community members and organizations, in addition to other academic activities. Our language program focuses on providing students with the opportunity to experience and analyze significant aspects of Costa Rican society and development, all while learning a second language. These experiences allow students to describe and analyze topics including, but not limited to: Costa Rican culture, food, music, tourism, national symbols, and sense of community while gaining a complete understanding of Costa Rican society, development, and history.
We provide foreign students, especially from the United States, with the opportunity to compare important issues in Costa Rica, where we cooperate with many different organizations and institutions, with their own experiences in the United States.
WHERE WE WORK
Most of our internships are located in the northwest province of Guanacaste. However, we do offer projects in other parts of the country, depending upon the interests of the intern and needs of different host organizations and institutions.
Guanacaste is located in the Northwest of Costa Rica. It is an area well known for its natural beauty and multitude of recreational and cultural activities. In Guanacaste, you can visit national parks, volcanoes, hot springs, pristine beaches, and observe wildlife including sea turtles and monkeys, and view the marine life and coral reefs in crystal clear water.
Why Guanacaste?
Guanacaste is a region of great contradictions and with many communities in need of basic assistance for many social and environmental problems.
Guanacaste is one of the most visited regions of Costa Rica, and because of this has experienced rapid and unplanned growth and development, especially in coastal areas. However, this development has not brought benefits for all residents and communities. It fact, it has resulted in many social and environmental problems including an increase in the cost of living, environmental contamination, habitat destruction, major socio-economic disparities, and a lack of basic services (including health care, education, and water) for many communities . We work with both coastal and rural community organizations and institutions to help find solutions the myriad of social and environmental problems that Guanacaste is currently confronting.
