La Embajada recibe el galardón Bandera Azul Ecológica 2022.
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Die Botschaft erhält die Auszeichnung "Bandera Azul Ecológica 2022".
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The Embassy receives the award "Bandera Azul Ecológica 2022"
To read more about it click here
Though Costa Rica had the highest deforestation rate in Latin America in the 1980s, in the following decades its conservation model has enabled the country to safeguard a large part of its biodiversity. Forest cover now accounts for 52% of the nation's territory and 99% of its energy is clean and renewable.
Carlos Alvarado Quesada, who is just about to finish his term as president, is proud of Costa Rica's current track record but believes that the country can go even further. Describing the nation as "green, but not blue", he wants to replicate in marine ecosystems the conservation model that has been successfully implemented in terrestrial ecosystems. This prompted the announcement at the COP26 summit that Costa Rica would be participating in a vast new protected marine area. Governments from Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador and Panama have signed the new Declaration for the Conservation of the Marine Corridor of the Eastern Tropical Pacific. The region is home to a variety of endangered species of marine mammals, sharks and turtles.
Following this agreement, in December 2021 the president also signed a decree expanding Cocos Island National Park. This will increase the fully protected area by 27 times, from 2,034 km2 to 54,844 km2. Located 535 kilometers off the southern tip of the Nicoya Peninsula, the Cocos Marine Conservation Area is world renowned for its biological richness and endemism. This new decree, as well as the creation of the Bicentennial Seamounts Marine Management Area, will protect marine resources and ensure the protection of fragile species and ecosystems into the future.
Christian Guillermet, the Vice Minister of Multilateral Affairs, highlighted the value of ocean ecosystems for global health. He pointed out that Costa Rica, which is bordered by two oceans (the Atlantic and the Pacific) has a marine territory that is more than 10 times larger than the continental one. "This implies a source of great wealth for our country, but also represents a great responsibility," said the Vice Minister.
Regarding Ocean Diplomacy, the Foreign Ministry also highlights the value of multilateralism as the ideal way to protect the environment. During the One Planet Summit, Costa Rica, together with France and the United Kingdom, launched the High Ambition Coalition (HAC) for Nature and People, which aims to protect 30% of the planet's terrestrial and marine ecosystems by 2030. The intergovernmental initiative has the commitment of some fifty countries and the "30X30" goal sets a global target aimed at preventing species loss and protecting ecosystems that are vital for economic security and human health.
"We must protect our terrestrial and marine ecosystems," stated President Alvarado. "Part of our global commitment is to help halt the accelerating loss of species and protect vital ecosystems that underpin both our food and economic security."
Elections in Costa Rica: a new opportunity to celebrate our democracy
Costa Rica is a democratic republic which holds national and municipal elections every four years. Citizens have a choice of voting for different several political parties.
Three and a half million Costa Ricans are able to vote in the national elections on Sunday, February 6, 2022. They will elect the president along with two vice-presidents and the 57 deputies of the Legislative Assembly for 2022-2026.
Voting abroad
Costa Rica guarantees citizens their political right to vote. The TSE has provided the necessary provisions for Costa Ricans living permanently or temporarily abroad to be able to vote in the presidential elections.
In accordance with Article 187 of the Electoral Code, Costa Ricans may exercise their right to vote abroad to elect the President and Vice-Presidents of the Republic, as well as to vote in national referendums, i.e. referendum processes.
Every four years during the national elections the Costa Rican consulates worldwide become an arm of the TSE in order to allow citizens to vote abroad. For the upcoming elections, 973 voters are registered at the Consulate General of Costa Rica in Germany and will be able to vote for the President and Vice-President of the Republic.
What are the requirements to become President of Costa Rica?
Persons who wish to occupy the presidency and vice-presidencies (according to article 131 of the Constitution) have to fulfil certain requirements. They must be:
- Costa Rican by birth
- An active citizen
- Older than 30 years old
- Not be part of the Church hierarchy
In Costa Rica, in order to win the presidency, a person must obtain at least 40% of the votes. If none of the candidates obtain this percentage, the two people with the most votes go to a second round.
In addition, a person who has held the presidency of the Republic can be re-elected to the post, but for that to happen, he or she must wait eight years after the period in which he or she last held office.
What is the TSE?
The Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) in Costa Rica was one of the main institutional innovations of the Political Constitution of 1949 and has as its primary function the "organisation, direction and supervision of the acts related to suffrage." This model of electoral organisation constituted a milestone in public law not only for Costa Rica, but for all of Latin America, as the TSE has the status of the fourth branch of the State, equating it with the Executive, the Judiciary and the Legislature.
Mission and functions
Electoral administration: The TSE organises, directs and controls all acts related to suffrage.
Civil registry: The TSE issues identity cards, prepares the electoral roll and registers and certifies all acts related to civil matters, including birth, adoption, marriage, divorce, acquisition of Costa Rican nationality or death.
Jurisdictional: The TSE has the power to issue non-appealable rulings on electoral matters.
Formation in democracy: The Institute for Training and Studies in Democracy (Instituto de Formación y Estudios en Democracia) is a specialised unit of the TSE that focuses on the promotion of democratic values and active citizenship. It also provides support to the education system, electoral training to political parties and promotes research on elections and democracy.
International prizes awarded to Costa Rica
October 2021: The Earthshot Award
Costa Rica was honored with the prestigious Earthshot Award in the Protect and Restore Nature category for its successful conservation model and policy of paying citizens to protect forests and restore ecosystems. Designed to protect the planet and encourage change over the next 10 years, the award is given by the UK's Royal Foundation to winners whose solutions substantially help the environment.
Costa Rica will use the prize of more than US$1 million to develop marine conservation and counteract the impacts of climate change.
"This award is an opportunity to strengthen conservation in our national treasure, Cocos Island, and the waters of the Pacific and Caribbean," said Minister of Environment and Energy Andrea Meza. "The time has come to replicate in the sea what has been done on land."
December 2020: UN Global Climate Action Award
Costa Rica was one of the winning countries in the UN Global Climate Action Awards in the category of Financing for Climate Friendly Investment for the Payments for Environmental Services (PES) Program. This is a financial mechanism that promotes forest ecosystem conservation.
December 2020: World Bank project
In 2020, Costa Rica signed an agreement that will allow it to receive $60 million over five years in recognition of the forest protection and emissions reductions made by thousands of families, communities and public entities. The agreement will particularly benefit women's and youth groups engaged in conservation actions and key populations such as indigenous groups.
November 2020: Green Climate Fund
The Green Climate Fund (GCF) finances climate change mitigation and adaptation projects and, in 2020, they agreed to grant Costa Rica a total of $54 million in recognition of 14.7 million metric tons of carbon dioxide captured in 2014 and 2015 by the country's forests.
October 2019: The Global Ocean Refuge Award
Cocos Island National Park was awarded the distinguished international Blue Park Award by the U.S. Marine Conservation Institute. This recognition is due to Costa Rica´s management of the marine protected area, as well as the Cocos Island National Park´s environmental protection efforts and its commitment to biodiversity conservation.
September 2019: Champions of the Earth Award
The United Nations' highest environmental honor was given to Costa Rica in the category of Political Leadership. This was in recognition of its role in the protection of nature and its commitment to ambitious policies to combat climate change. The country has been particularly lauded for its National Decarbonization Plan to achieve a zero emissions economy by 2050.
September 2019: Montreal Protocol International Award
This distinction rewards the country's work in the prevention of illicit trafficking of substances that deplete the ozone layer, specifically for the actions carried out in 2014 with the seizure of 400 cylinders containing the refrigerant R-22 of the HCFC family (an ozone-depleting substance).
May 2019: Global Sustainability Forum (GSF) Award.
This is an initiative of the United Nations and companies of the Business Council for Sustainable Development. The honor is traditionally bestowed upon private companies in recognition of their efforts in sustainable practice, but in 2019 it was awarded to a country for the first time.
COP26: Costa Rica co-heads an ambitious alliance against fossil fuels
At the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow, 11 national and subnational governments led by Costa Rica and Denmark announced the launch of the Beyond Oil & Gas Alliance (BOGA). This represents their commitment to ending future oil and gas production and exploration within their borders.
Six nations have joined the alliance as core members including Ireland, Greenland, France, Sweden, Quebec and Wales. Portugal, New Zealand and the state of California will also join as associate members and Italy, the European Union’s second biggest oil producer, will join as a “friend” of the coalition.
The BOGA was hailed as an important step by climate campaigners as it is the first such international coalition of governments who are determined to set an end date for their oil and gas exploration and extraction activities. This is in alignment with the objective of the 2015 Paris Agreement to limit global warming to below 2 degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial levels.
The coalition describes its key aims as elevating the issue of phasing out oil and gas production in international climate dialogues, mobilising action and commitments and creating an international community of practice on this issue.
Andrea Meza, Costa Rica's environment and energy minister, has highlighted the urgent need to halt new exploitation licences and gradually mark the end of fossil fuel production. "Every dollar that we invest in a new fossil fuel projects is a dollar less that we invest in renewables, in clean transport and for the conservation for nature… it’s about how to really leverage momentum to start this conversation,” Meza said during a press conference in Glasgow.
For Costa Rica, the issue of banning oil exploration and exploitation is nothing new and when it comes to environmental sustainability, few countries rival the nation in terms of concrete action and ambition.
The country has adopted a plan to achieve total decarbonisation and a zero net emissions economy by 2050. It has also restored large areas of rainforest after suffering one of the highest rates of deforestation in the world in the 1970s and 1980s.
Despite the country´s small size, Costa Ricans have also played an important role in developing international environmental policy. One of the most notable figures is Christiana Figueres who is an internationally recognized leader on global climate change and an architect of the 2015 Paris Agreement.
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