Pre-Trip Impressions



We are hours away from departing to Costa Rica and I could not be more excited!  This will be the farthest I've ventured out of the U.S. so there's a lot of nervous excitement surrounding this trip.  I think I'm looking forward most to learning about a new culture as well as experiencing adventuring on a different terrain than Louisiana.  Also, to be able to see the different ways they conserve energy and live off of the land are very interesting to me. I'm hoping to gain a new appreciation for saving energy compared to our American way of things.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Day 4: Country Branding

When two countries are negotiating a trade agreement having a well developed and well perceived country brand can be of significant importance.  Knowing what I know now about Costa Rica, it will definitely influence my decision on product selection in the future consumer purchases. If the brand is able to become fully developed into, almost a household name, and is perceived by everyone the same way we perceive it, this will ultimately increase sales on Costa Rica products which will of course increase the amount of importing the other country will have to participate in. Furthermore, this type of information would definitely come into play when negotiating a trade agreement with other countries. If a brand is strong enough, it very well could make a significant impact on trade agreement negotiations to be settled or passed over. If i were to develop a state brand for Louisiana, it would be Louisiana Lagniappe!  Aside from a lack of white sand beaches, Louisiana can offer a tourist
Read more

Day 5: Free Trade Zone and Sustainability

The free trade zone fits into Costa Rica's sustainable development by doing a number of things.  The trade agreement gives a minimum employment level as well as a minimum required investment level to companies trying to apply for the Free Trade Zone status.  They also require the company to make a 1% Environmental Guarantee Deposit of their total investment in the company's Costa Rican location.   As you can see, the Costa Rican government might not collect taxes from these companies, but they do see some sort of income that can be used towards their environmental practices.  The fact that they require companies to hire so many local Costa Riacans to work in these free zone companies also benefits in the sustainability fight by giving its people the chance to make a decent living and afford better sustainability practices all while keeping the cash flow generation within the company via sales taxes paid.  Since the people of these nice new jobs can afford more, they'll mo
Read more

Day 7: Preserving Local Culture & Its Effect on the Economy

There are many different examples of businesses and organizations that work to protect Louisiana's culture. One of which being Randol's Seafood Restaurant located in Lafayette, Louisiana.  For 35 years, they've been providing an inside look into the life of our Cajun ancestors.  The cuisine offered is custonary to the Cajun culture which runs deep in the Acadiana area.  The restaurant also offers live entertainment that displays  the music that's been the sound of the Cajun culture for generations and generations.  They value added to the local economy by this restaurant is the fact that the restaurant had created jobs for the surrounding locals as well as the booking of the local talent.  The restaurant brings in tourists as well as providing jobs which helps stimulate the economy in itself. Another example of a business trying to preserve our local culture is Acadian Village.  What they've done is replicated a Cajun community through the use of the old houses
Read more