Costa Rica
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Fall 2018 Best-in-Show
BPF Costa Rica
.Surfer Kids Use Boards to Build their Village
.* Kids that use the arts to address needs in their local, national, or global communities are considered for the “Best in Show” award. Preference is given to collaborative group efforts that encourage many kids to take on civic leadership roles.
Exciting changes are happening in Venado, Costa Rica, as a result of high school age kids’ arts initiatives. This 300-person fishing village that had once been unprepared to keep up with the times, is slowly building a surf tourism industry, from which the proceeds directly support community programs. These steps toward modernization are happening with the help of the Clara Vista Foundation. The Clara Vista Foundation’s mission is “to empower leaders in rural Costa Rica with the tools and confidence they need to be agents of change in their communities.”¹ Among the projects in Venado, high school age kids are learning to shape and design surfboards. Then, by renting the boards to tourists, they help support computer education classes, an environmental awareness initiative, mentor and leadership programs, local daycare, arts programs, and a range of other services that help enable villagers of this small town to take steps forward.
¹http://claravista.org/
Surfboard rentals help support a range of public programs in Venado, Costa Rica
