BENN 3580 - Costa Rica: Community, Systems, and Development

This is a community engaged learning abroad course (CELA) to explore the power of community engagement in an international context. We will utilize the history, culture, and the civic issues affecting Costa Rica, including sustainability, as a living learning journey. The course is composed of weekly on-campus classes and a one week intensive in-country experience in Costa Rica over spring break in March. This is a collaboration between The Lowell Bennion Community Service Center, Learning Abroad, the Department of Political Science, Undergraduate Studies, and the Monteverde Institute. Central to the course is the interdisciplinary and collaborative nature of community-based experiential learning. We will consider and discuss civic leadership, environmental sustainability, community health, and collective impact to better understand people, systems, and places away from home.