All Content: Costa Rica

WOLA: Promoting Human Rights, Democracy, and Social Justice

Video
As the year winds to a close, we hope you will enjoy this video about how WOLA works with partners in the region to advance human rights in Latin America. If you have not done so, we hope you will consider making a donation to WOLA to support our continued efforts. Your support makes a difference.

Guatemalan mining raises human rights concerns

The Global Development and Environment Institute (GDAE) at Tufts University has just released a study that examines a controversial gold mining project in Guatemala
Publication
The issues raised in the study have implications for extractive industry projects and for human rights and social justice activists who follow these projects.

Joy Olson Speaks at the 2011 WOLA Human Rights Awards

Video
WOLA's Executive Director, Joy Olson, gives the opening address at WOLA's 2011 Human Rights Awards Ceremony and Benefit Gala.

WOLA's 2011 Human Rights Awards

Video
On September 13, 2011, WOLA honored Gael Garcia Bernal, Ambulante, and CEDECO for promoting human rights and telling stories that make a difference. Check out this video about the amazing work of our honorees.

Climate Smart Agriculture in Latin America: A Sustainable Development Alternative

Video
Jonathan Castro, of the Educational Corporation for Costa Rican Development (CEDECO), speaks with WOLA’s Vicki Gass about how small-scale, alternative agriculture can become a powerful tool for climate change mitigation and poverty reduction.

Press Availabilities with Recipients of WOLA’s 2011 Human Rights Award — Actor Gael García Bernal, Ambulante, and CEDECO

Press Conference and Awards Gala on September 13th to Highlight "Migration and Development: Stories that Make a Difference"
News
Washington, D.C. - On September 13, 2011, the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) will be hosting a press conference preceding its 2011 Human Rights Awards gala. This year, the theme of the gala is Migration and Development: Stories that Make a Difference.

WOLA/IDB Mapping Study of International Cooperation for Citizen Security in Central America

Publication
Looking at the region from 2009 to June 2011, the study identifies 423 projects being implemented and 30 additional projects still in the design phase.

Report Back from Central America's Security Conference

A conversation with Geoff Thale and Adriana Beltrán
Publication
WOLA Program Director Geoff Thale and Senior Associate Adriana Beltran were recently in Guatemala City, where Central America's presidents and international donors were discussing responses to Central America's severe citizen security challenges.

WOLA and IDB Release Most Comprehensive Study To Date on International Aid for Citizen Security in Central America

WOLA urges Central American governments and International Donors to use study as a tool for coordinating efforts
News
Details the international community's support for citizen security in Central America.

Civil Society Declaration to Central American Governments, SICA, and International Donor Community

Publication
The recommendations are the result of a day-long civil society forum on citizen security in Central America that achieved broad-based consensus.

Regional Leaders Meet in Guatemala to Discuss Central American Security Strategy

WOLA will be in attendance and urges leaders to consider a comprehensive approach to insecurity
News
Adriana Beltrán and Geoff Thale are coordinating with civil society experts from Central America to ensure that the viewpoints and experiences of those working on the ground in violence prevention and citizen security are taken into account in the new regional plan.

The Crisis of Crime and Violence in Central America: More than just Drugs and Gangs

Commentary by Program Director Geoff Thale
Analysis & Commentary
This week the "International Conference in Support of the Central American Security Strategy" will bring together Central American presidents and officials from multi-lateral banks and donor governments, including Hilary Clinton for the U.S. Attendees will debate a security strategy for the region, but how will leaders frame the issue?

Tackling Urban Violence in Latin America

WOLA Releases Report Comparing Innovative Approaches to Citizen Security
News
Today, as the Organization of American States (OAS) 41st General Assembly focuses on “Citizen Security in the Americas,” WOLA released a new report on innovative approaches to reduce urban violence.

OAS General Assembly to Emphasize Citizen Security Amidst Mounting Crime and Violence

WOLA will be in attendance in San Salvador
News
The upcoming OAS General Assembly, has as its theme “Citizen Security in the Americas,” a key issue given the alarming levels of violence in the region.

Agroecology and climate change in Central America

A conversation with Francisco Fonseca of CEDECO
Publication
WOLA Rights and Development Senior Associate Vicki Gass talks with Francisco Fonseca of CEDECO, the Educational Corporation for Costa Rican Development, about his organization's work encouraging small farmers' adoption of sustainable methods.

A First Look at the 2012 U.S. Foreign Aid Request

The foreign aid budget—which accounts for most aid to the region—is being cut deeply.
Analysis & Commentary
As the Obama administration seeks to close the huge U.S. deficit without raising taxes, cutting defense or reducing entitlements, programs like foreign assistance are likely to suffer.

Central American Civil Society Demands Participation in Formation of Regional Security Strategy

Inclusion Would Ensure an Integral Approach
News
Groups believe they can make important contributions to the citizen security strategy that would allow the region to overcome its tendency to concentrate efforts and resources on repressive actions that have been demonstrated to be ineffective and counterproductive.

Civil Society Urges "Friends of Central America" to Include Civil Society in Definition of Regional Security Strategies

Publication
The statement from NGOs and civil society groups in Central America and the United States details citizen security strategies in Central America and stresses the need for donor coordination and consultation with civil society groups from the initial stages of the planning process.

Economic Security or Border Security: Immigration and the New Congress

Article by Vicki Gass featured in The Huffington Post
Analysis & Commentary
Increasingly, advocates worldwide are pushing governments to recognize that in order to address migration issues, it is essential to confront the underlying causes that push people to seek better opportunities abroad

Waiting for Change

Publication
Waiting for Change documents the complexities and disappointments of the Obama Administration’s relations with Latin America in its first year. The report identifies an underlying trend toward greater militarization of U.S. foreign policy which spans Democratic and Republican administrations alike.