{"id":42692,"date":"2024-10-21t14:06:50","date_gmt":"2024-10-21t14:06:50","guid":{"rendered":"\/\/www.getitdoneaz.com\/?p=42692"},"modified":"2024-10-21t17:11:27","modified_gmt":"2024-10-21t17:11:27","slug":"coffee-traditions-costa-rica","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"\/\/www.getitdoneaz.com\/story\/coffee-traditions-costa-rica\/","title":{"rendered":"essay | finca rivera: preserving coffee traditions in costa rica amid urbanization"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

editor\u2019s note: <\/strong>this interview was conducted in spanish and translated to english for this article, and as such, the quotes used in this story were translated so that they make the most sense to english speakers and may not be word-for-word.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

“my name is ignacio vargas s\u00e1nchez. i am costa rican […] and i\u2019m dedicated to coffee farming, a tradition passed down through my family and one that i enjoy,” my dad said proudly when i asked him to introduce himself. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

coffee culture is a foundational part of our family tradition and who i am. i grew up in a large, close-knit family, where more than 50 aunts, uncles, and cousins would gather once a year in an activity to collect coffee and honor our family\u2019s coffee-growing roots. the fun began when about 30 of us squeezed into the back of a toyota dyna pickup truck, packed tightly together, and laughed and teased each other as we headed to the coffee farm. yes, i know. really unsafe, but also a lot of fun. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

once we got to the coffee farm, we would attempt to collect coffee for a couple of hours, only to realize how hard and labor-intensive it was. i would rapidly give up my dedication to focus on what was naturally most important to 7-year-old me: playing and running around the farm with my cousins. the activity would then transform into enjoying a costa rican breakfast under the trees\u2019 shade, while we teased each other about who had most likely done the worst job at collecting coffee cherries. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"my
my family in the back of the dyna pickup truck, ready to head out to the coffee farm. (maria jose vargas)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n
\n
\"my
my uncle and i collect coffee during one of our family gatherings. (maria jose vargas)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

among all the family activities i grew up with, this one was always one of my favorites, and hearing my dad introduce himself as a coffee farmer by tradition, reminds me of it. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

urbanization and coffee growing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

in recent decades, costa rica has undergone a large urban and commercial development in the central valley, where cement structures have replaced coffee plantations, a key economic activity since the 1800s. according to <\/span>the state of the nation report in 2018<\/span><\/a>, just in the past few decades, the urbanized area in the central valley has increased by 65%. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

at the same time, one major climate change threat in cities is heat stress due to the heat island effect, where structures such as buildings, roads, and sidewalks raise temperatures in urban areas as they absorb and release high heat levels. a study in the costa rican central valley shows that coffee farms can reduce surface temperatures by more than 20\u00b0c<\/a> (the equivalent of a 36\u00b0f change) compared to fully urbanized areas.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

rapid and massive urbanization also threatens the habitats of many urban wildlife species. in costa rica, <\/span>a study<\/span><\/a> conducted by the university of costa rica and the national autonomous university of mexico (unam) links the decline of coffee farms in the central valley to extinction threats due to habitat reduction for the endemic bird cabanis\u2019s ground sparrow (<\/span>melozone cabanisi<\/span><\/i>).<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

la valencia \u2013 the neighborhood where my family\u2019s farm is located \u2013 in santo domingo, heredia, is no exception to urbanization trends. my dad, ignacio, was born and raised in santo domingo, an area in the central valley of costa rica. he remembers the days when he would go to collect coffee in la valencia. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cas soon as we went on school vacation, we would go to collect coffee because our vacation coincided with coffee harvesting season. my whole family would walk to the farm together, filled with incredible joy, carrying lunches prepared in the morning to enjoy in the coffee fields, where we would spend the entire day,\u201d he said, filled with nostalgia. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cin the past, it was common to see that area (la valencia) bustling during coffee harvests, with many people walking through the streets to collect coffee from the various farms […] large groups of people would walk along streets that were once made of gravel. at that time, vehicular traffic was very rare\u2014only an occasional car. you would mostly see ox carts used for transporting coffee. depending on their financial situation, people would either use an ox cart or a car, though cars were very scarce.” <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

today, the same streets my dad used to walk through are full of supermarkets, factories, and commercial offices. i can see a mcdonald\u2019s on the corner and the latest neighborhood acquisition is the first dunkin\u2019 donuts in the country, for which hundreds of people lined up on opening day. \u201ctoday, the same number of people travel those streets, but in vehicles, heading to work at the various industries around the area,\u201d my dad said. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n