Working in Town: Playa Grande and the Effects of Ecotourism
2008 Ford Scholars Project Description
| Project Director: | Judith Nichols |
| Department: | English |
| Dates: | 8 weeks to be completed between May 26 – August 1, 2008 |
| Location: | Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY, and Playa Grade, Costa Rica |
| Number of Students: | 1 |
Description of the Project:
When I lived in Costa Rica twenty years ago, Playa Grande was an almost empty beach. On recent research trips to the area this past summer, I became interested in imagining how a town emerging suddenly forms an identity amidst the dynamics of precipitous growth. I found myself looking for insight by talking with American expatriates who have invested in the area, Nicaraguans who serve and provide manual labor for little cost, and long-time resident Costa Ricans who travel from Matapalo by bus to work in Playa Grande.
This coming summer, I plan to do library research in Poughkeepsie, as well as field research in Playa Grande. Collecting and transcribing oral histories of people who work in Playa Grande will constitute a large part of the work for a Ford Scholar. Part of what a Ford Scholar and I will be doing is visiting ecotourism sites in the area of Playa Grande in order to speak with operators and tour guides about their lives.
My own research makes use of the assumption that storytelling may be a useful way to honor the multiplicity of vision present in a town like Playa Grande. American investment and the internally driven tourist industry seem to be creating a hybrid space where culturally distinct populations are thrown together with urgency and some shared purpose. I’m imagining that the life stories and critiques produced by people in the emerging town of Playa Grande will vary based on different subjects’ relationship to development.
Anticipated Summer Activities:
I plan to spend at least three weeks conducting interviews with subjects who have centered their lives and work in Playa Grande. I have a Mellon Grant and a Faculty Research Grant that will cover the cost of my travel and accommodation in Costa Rica. A Ford Scholar would help me conduct interviews, and could also conduct interviews independently during the early portion of the summer.
One idea I have for scheduling time with a Ford Scholar would include a plan to connect with local artisans as a means to hearing stories in a context of on-going enterprise. I would propose that the Ford Scholar and I study pottery-making, for example, during one of the weeks we are in Playa Grande. We would work with a Pre-Colombian potter who offers lessons in town. Artisans in Playa Grande seem to me natural reservoirs of memory. Many of the artisans learn their trades from a parent or grandparent. Last summer I discovered that artisans were willing to talk with me for long periods of time while at work. While in the area last summer, I did informal interviews while observing the work of a potter, a painter, and a jewelry maker.
The work with artists would be useful both in terms of collecting narratives but also in terms of testing possible pedagogical approaches which might be employed with a larger group of students when I participate in leading an ecotourism course in 2009. If the Ford Scholar were willing, we would test out this method as a way of laying the groundwork for a possible approach to interviewing subjects with a sense of reciprocity.
While in Costa Rica, the Ford Scholar and I would be involved in locating resources that might make Playa Grande a useful study site for a Vassar run trip. We might spend time at the nearby La Paz Community School in Flamingo Beach, observing how a secondary school incorporates an innovative curriculum based in exploring environmental and cultural tensions implicit for communities when population growth from ecotourism is the central sources of economic vitality. I have contacted administrators La Paz Community School about a possible visit in late May and they are willing to invite us for a day of interviews and talk about possible future collaboration.
Playa Grande is on a mangrove and is a source of interest to visiting tourists. Small boat owners work both as naturalist guides and “taxi drivers” shuttling people across a small inlet to a larger town, Tamarindo. Beginning to forge relationships with the boat men through taking their guided tours and speaking with them about their lives would provide another possible focus for our work in Playa Grande and a possible approach for students interesting in conducting field work on a Vassar run study trip.
Preferred Student Qualifications/Skills:
A Spanish-speaking student would be ideal for this position. Ideally the student will have some experience with directing interviews and conducting independent library research. Additionally, a student who identifies herself/himself as a writer or who is interested in becoming a writer as one part of what he/she does would be a bonus.
Anticipated Follow-up Teaching/Professional Activity for the Student:
Upon returning from Costa Rica, the Ford Scholar and I will spend time with transcription, writing and research. I will continue to mentor the Ford Scholar as s/he finishes an essay of his/her own, an essay that will grow out of library and field research. The student may also choose to base his/her senior thesis work on our work and I would be more than willing to serve as a thesis advisor as well.