Friday, April 27, 2018 at 2:25PM 
Coming to Costa Rica, I knew that I was in for a learning experience; I expected to be educated in conservation, in environmental sustainability and on the multitude of species found here.
Friday, April 20, 2018 at 10:22AM 
In a small, unassuming scrapyard in the centre of Puerto Jimenez, six directors and a group of volunteers are working tirelessly to transform the community.
Tuesday, April 17, 2018 at 3:11PM 
Whether you’re a well-seasoned traveller or setting off on your first solo trip, you may be wondering if you’ve packed everything you will need on your Costa Rican adventure. Will you really need a sleeping bag? What about snacks? Can you leave those extra pair of socks behind?
backpacking, costarica, explore, gapyear, internship, intothewild, journalism, media, packing, suitcase, travel, volunteering in Volunteer Blog
Tuesday, April 17, 2018 at 2:39PM 
I have always loved wildlife and wanted to be involved in conservation. I came to Costa Rica for this reason, but with little idea about how the surveys would work here! After three weeks, I’m settled in at camp and completing surveys everyday – so here is a breakdown of what to expect if you decide to join Frontier in Costa Rica.
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Wednesday, April 4, 2018 at 1:00PM 
When I arrived at Camp Osita I didn’t know what to expect, however I found another set of friends (some for life) and another family.
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Wednesday, March 7, 2018 at 1:44PM 
My last week at Camp Osita is about to reach its end and I can’t believe I’m about to return to a world where howler monkeys won’t wake me up at 5AM every morning. It has made me think of the expectations I had prior to coming here and what it has actually been like.
camp, conservation, costa rica, environment, explore, gapyear, horseriding, jungle, rainforest, travel, volunteer in Volunteer Blog
Tuesday, February 9, 2016 at 5:14PM Although only two weeks into my time in Costa Rica I consider myself to have had a number of fortunate experiences. Some being the intimate sightings of all four species of primates found in the Osa Peninsula, getting close to a variety of spiders, snakes, scorpions and frogs, and spotting an Ocelot - even if this was wasted on me, as my not knowing how rare they are caused my nonchalantness and the envy of a few campmates. Meal times also have exceeded expectations After getting my head around living on rice and beans for a month, I have indulged in stuffed peppers for todays lunch, camp-made bread and wraps, and even chocolate cake made in a camp-made oven.
What I did not expect was the warm, friendly and mutually beneficial relationship with the community. As soon as I arrived in Puerto Jimenez and walked through the town, Jenna (Research manager) was recognised and people were asking how our projects were going. For our purchases in PJ, we were not exactly charged tourist prices either because people acknowledge and understand the value of wildlife conservation in the area they live. Life at the camp is a similar story. I have already in my short time seen the Frontier team not only work towards our own area of study but also offer help to locals. Just last saturday we assisted Adrian, who owns land we use for surveys, to build part of a road so he can get his quad bike across. This was useful to him because he will now more easily develop a new trail we could use for research. Adrain also often offers us to drink his iced tea when we survey near him as he shown a lot of interest in what we do.
We have also helped local landowners clear land and in return they may bring us fruit they have picked or even cook us the odd treat. We engage in small talk when we come across other hikers, sometimes they happen to tell us something we consider valuable information about wildlife they have encountered - it pays to be nice. Locals pop to our camp every now and then to invite us to their parties.
Witnessing this style of society and being part of Frontier has encouraged me to reflect on work ethic in other places in the world. And whether working for other people, either in a scientific way or just labouring, can be prompted by respect and ethics as opposed to capital.
By Nicole Huggins - Costa Rica Volunteer
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