Universität Osnabrück, part of the Lower Saxony state of northwestern Germany, recently inaugurated a unique collaboration program with seven universities in Costa Rica.

The Costa Rica Zentrum at Universität Osnabrück aims to promote international and intercultural academic and scholarly exchange between Costa Rica and Germany. The Costa Rica Center’s research profile and activities are geared towards innovation and cooperation.

The associates of the center come from different disciplines and fields including biology, educational studies, geography,catholic theology, psychology, literary and cultural studies, athletics, science, and economics.

The intercultural research at the Costa Rica Center is concerned wit value-based and future-oriented issues and debates in the study of society and culture. The center‘s main research fields include:

• development, education and (dual) teacher education
• values and human rights education
• history, compassion and peace
• environment, economy and sustainability
• biodiversity and biosciences
• intercultural economic psychology

The Center examines pedagogic, socio-political, cultural, religious, socio-ethical, ecological as well as economic standards in their respective contexts, drawing a comparison between Costa Rica and Germany, between Latin America and Europe.

The range of subjects allows a differentiated examination of the self-awareness, the development and the changes within the two democracies, the Republic of Costa Rica and the Federal Republic of Germany.

Based on their research areas, the Costa Rica Center’s members carry out subject-related research and cooperation projects with Costa Rica.

In the context of academic exchange, the Center organizes lecture series, workshops and study trips both in Germany and Costa Rica. Interdisciplinary summer schools in both countries enable international students to gain a varied insight not only into academic life and the academic offer abroad, but also into the professors’ theoretical and practical approaches. Particular emphasis is placed upon individual encounters and conversations. In every activity, the students and professors benefit from an intercultural dialogue within their own discipline and beyond.

Student exchanges between Germany and Costa Rica are supported by the Costa Rica Center. In cooperation with the Center for Teacher Education at Osnabrück University and the institutes of educational studies at our partner universities, internships in Costa Rica are arranged, coordinated and supervised.

Together with the International Office, the Costa Rica Center answers questions regarding the Bachelor‘s and Master‘s programs as well as the doctoral program at Osnabrück Unversity. It also offers help finding a
suitable doctoral advisor.

Detailed presentation of all research areas, projects
and activities:

www.costaricazentrum.uni-osnabrueck.de/en