Publications
Articles and papers by our members, students, and doctoral candidates associated with Costa Rica
Publications
- This review explores how circular economy principles are reshaping water and wastewater management for agriculture, showing how nutrient recovery, water reuse, and resource innovation can turn environmental pressure into sustainable opportunity, while also revealing the technological and institutional barriers that still slow meaningful change
Authors: Araya-Araya, Andrés; Jiménez-Cavallini, Sylvia; Wilke, Dennis; Arias-Araya, María Fernanda; Montes de Oca-Vásquez, Gabriela
Ongoing dissertations
Contexto actual de las manifestaciones literarias indígenas en Centroamérica, exclusiones e inclusiones: estudio crítico desde la epistemología, historiografía y sociología de la literatura
The current context of indigenous literary expressions in Central America: exclusions and inclusions — a critical study from the perspectives of epistemology, historiography, and the sociology of literature
- Author: Andrey Gómez Jiménez, M.A., Institute of Romance/Latin Studies
A study of the effect of human avatars on spatial learning and spatial navigation in a virtual city, taking gaze behavior into account
- Author: Tracy Sánchez Pacheco, Institute of Cognitive Science
Publications
Special Issue: “ Pineapple in Costa Rica”
- These publications examine Costa Rica’s pineapple sector through regenerative agriculture, agrochemical impacts, and community life, showing how production, sustainability, health, and local realities intersect within one of the country’s most economically and environmentally contested industries.
• Pineapple production and visions of regeneration – contrasting Costa Rican (agri)cultural paradigms
Authors: Schwarz, Luana; Janssen, Carolin; Halbe, Johannes
• Agrochemicals in Costa Rica’s pineapple industry: A review of environmental and human health impacts
Authors: Gorris, Phillip; Vargas Vargas, Maynor Alberto
• Insights into community life from the “Capital of Pineapple”
Author: Delgado-Duran, Esteban
• New approaches to govern pineapple supply chains from Costa Rica: Towards more just and sustainable production and trade?
Authors: Ortland, Michel; Schilling-Vacaflor, Almut
• Narratives from the Pineapple Republic. On national self-understanding and sustainability paradoxes in Costa Rica as detected in Adrián Jiménez Brais’ play PIÑA
Author: Schlünder, Susanne
• Commons vs. Commerce – managing water resources between pineapple production and nature conservation
Authors: Wilke, Dennis; Araya-Araya, Andrés; Arias-Araya, María Fernanda, https://doi.org/10.47633/wp43k007
- This chapter explores how crisis narratives shape vocational education research and policy, showing how the language of crisis can influence attention, legitimize reform, and frame debates about methodology, the Dual System, and international transfer processes such as those linked to Costa Rica.
Authors: Porcher, Christoph; Frommberger, Dietmar; Kraus, Katrin; Lange, Silke; Láscarez Smith, Daniel; Trampe, Kristina
- This study examines pollination efficiency in Lobelia laxiflora, showing that hummingbirds act as highly effective pollinators due to strong morphological fit, while less adapted flower visitors fail to pollinate despite visiting the flowers (Abrahamczyk et al., 2025).
Authors: Abrahamczyk, Stefan; Dürr, René; Brenes, Esteban; Maglianesi, María Alejandra.
- This edited volume examines Costa Rica’s evolving TVET system, showing how reforms, international cooperation, and emerging research perspectives are shaping vocational training, dual apprenticeship models, teaching-learning processes, and the relationship between education and employment (Rommel et al., 2025).
Authors: Rommel, Irina; Frommberger, Dietmar; Láscarez Smith, Daniel
Developmental Science in the Global South: Shared Realities and Challenges
- This article examines structural inequalities in global developmental science, arguing that research on the Global South must critically address colonial histories, migration, multiculturalism, and interventionism while developing more ethical, locally grounded theoretical and methodological frameworks.
Author: Durán-Delgado, Esteban
Being Green and Growing Together: Sustainable Community Development in Rural Regions of Costa Rica
- This conference paper examines sustainable community development in rural Costa Rica, showing how local resources, social networks, entrepreneurship, and community agency can strengthen sustainable growth while highlighting the need for better infrastructure, funding, and institutional support.
Authors: Schmeiduch, Lena; Betzler, Shirin; Avendaño Leadem, Daniel; Bruno Nuñez, Orlando; Schlotterbeck, Lea; Müller, Karsten
- This chapter examines cross-cutting educational tasks, showing how democracy, Europe, and human rights education create new expectations for teachers, professionalization, and school development while raising questions about feasibility, cooperation, and the changing role of education in social transformation.
Authors: Prues, Peter; Kunze, Ingrid; Langer, Saskia; Müller-Using, Susanne; Nakamura, Yoshiro
Ecología Integral: Aproximaciones desde el Intercambio Alemán-Latinoamericano
Integral Ecology: Perspectives from the German-Latin American Exchange
- Esta publicación es resultado de dos seminarios internacionales organizados entre Alemania y América Latina, en colaboración con la Universidad de Osnabrück, la Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile y el Instituto Ecuménico de Ciencias de la Religión de la Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica, y que explora la necesidad de una transformación ecológica a través de disciplinas como la teología, la ética, las ciencias sociales y la pedagogía, enfocándose en la “ecología integral” como camino hacia una vida plena para todas las personas y seres vivos.
This publication is the result of two international seminars organized jointly by Germany and Latin America, in collaboration with the University of Osnabrück, the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, and the Ecumenical Institute of Religious Sciences at the National University of Costa Rica. It explores the need for ecological transformation through disciplines such as theology, ethics, the social sciences, and pedagogy, focusing on “integral ecology” as a path toward a fulfilling life for all people and living beings.
Authors: Eckholt, Margit; Muñoz Pérez, Enrique; Rubio, Roberto G.; Scherz Take, Tomás.
Dissertations
Representaciones del Futuro en las Narrativas Centroamericanas Contemporáneas (1985-2016)
Representations of the Future in Contemporary Central American Narratives (1985–2016)
- This dissertation analyzes representations of the future in contemporary Central American speculative fiction (1985–2016). It argues that future-oriented characters, spaces, and temporalities converge around economic concerns. Examining works from Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Nicaragua, it develops a model linking fiction, futurity, and economics. The study shows that these texts explore globalization, neoliberalism, dystopian futures, and resistance, presenting economics as a key site of political and cultural imagination. Ultimately, it redefines contemporary Central American literature as future-oriented and postglobal, challenging established critical paradigms and opening new directions for research.
Autor: Chaves Fernández, Mauricio
Publications
Theology of creation and spirituality of creation in the age of the “Great Transformation”
- Author: Margit Eckholt
- This article examines the early institutionalization of TVET research in Costa Rica, showing that research activity has grown since 2020 but remains fragmented, underfunded, and weakly coordinated, requiring stronger policy support, institutional collaboration, and research infrastructure.
Authors: Rommel, Irina; Angles, Enrique; Frommberger, Dietrich
- This article examines Costa Rica’s VET system through the CoRiVET project, showing how vocational teacher education and VET research at UTN can strengthen teacher professionalization, curriculum development, pedagogy, didactics, and research institutionalization.
Authors: Rommel, Irina; Goncharova, Anastasia, Frommberger, Dietrich
The Significance of Exams and Certificates in Vocational Education and Training (VET) in Costa Rica
- This article examines how vocational education, final examinations, and certificates are perceived in Costa Rica, showing how weak social acceptance, limited employer involvement, and labour-market dynamics continue to restrict the status and practical value of VET qualifications.
Author: Hunink, Claudia
- This article examines how local entrepreneurship and producer-consumer networks can support sustainability transitions in rural Costa Rica, showing how innovation, community collaboration, and place-based development can strengthen regional economies while improving social and environmental resilience.
Authors: Avendaño Leadem, Daniel; Schmeiduch, Lena; Nuñez, Orlando Bruno; Betzler, Shirin
- This article examines how TVET teachers in Costa Rica enter the profession by comparing academic and alternative pathways, while highlighting the challenges created by institutional diversity, uneven standards, and the ongoing need for stronger professionalization.
Authors: Rommel, Irina; Vargas Méndez, Monserrat; Láscarez Smith, Daniel
Dissertations
Caregiving in Contexts of Poverty and Migration in Three Ecosocial Settings in Costa Rica
- This dissertation examines how caregiving networks and contextual conditions interact in low-income and migrant families across three ecosocial settings in Costa Rica, showing that institutional frameworks, livelihood strategies, social cohesion, and settlement patterns shape distinct caregiving arrangements and childrearing environments.
Author: Durán Delgado, Esteban
Master's and Bachelor's Theses
Persuasive technologies in online short food supply chains: Examining the effects of nudging and boosting to promote sustainable consumption [master's thesist].
Author: Bruno Núñez, Orlando
Sustainable community development in the Costa Rican regions Dota and Turrialba – a qualitative interview study [master's thesis].
Author: Schlotterbeck, Lena
Unlocking Rural Potential Exploring cooperation between local government, entrepreneurs, and external institutions in Costa Rica [bachelor's thesis].
Author: Jösten, J.
Publications
This article presents an inter- and transdisciplinary approach to socioecological conflicts in Costa Rica, showing how pineapple production affects biodiversity and how collaborative research, education, and local engagement can support conservation, sustainable land use, and community development (Gorris et al., 2023).
Authors: Gorris, Philipp; Wilke, Dennis; Halbe, Johannes
This Element examines feeding as a culturally diverse foundation of social relationship formation, showing how embodied practices of giving, receiving, and sharing food shape children’s emotional worlds while challenging Western-centered assumptions in developmental science and childcare interventions (Funk et al., 2023).
Authors: Funk, Lauren; Scheidecker, Geraldine; Chapin, Brielle L.; Schmidt, William J.; Ouardani, Chadia E.; Chaudhary, Nandita.
Gender Gap in Parental Leave Intentions: Evidence from 37 Countries
Summary: This study examines parental-leave intentions across 37 countries, showing that women consistently plan longer leave than men and that policy context, political representation, and individual gender attitudes shape the gender gap in intended caregiving.
Authors: Olsson et al. (2023); more than 130+ authors listed
Teacher Qualification Demands in Costa Rican TVET: First Results of the Project CoRiVET
This article examines TVET teacher qualification in Costa Rica, showing that stronger pedagogical and didactic preparation is urgently needed to align technical instruction with labour-market demands and to strengthen the vocational education system through curriculum reform and professional development (Rommel & Vargas Méndez, 2023).
Authors: Rommel, Inken; Vargas Méndez, María Adriana
This article compares caregiver-infant interaction in urban San José and rural Bribri families, showing that culturally distinct caregiving patterns challenge Western middle-class assumptions and call for early childhood theories and interventions that recognize locally grounded relational practices (Schmidt et al., 2023).
Authors: Schmidt, Wiebke Johanna; Keller, Heidi; Rosabal Coto, Mariano.
Feeding, food, and attachment: An underestimated relationship?
This article examines how feeding practices shape attachment in urban middle-class families in San José, showing that breastfeeding and multiple feeding arrangements influence different attachment patterns and challenging attachment theory’s assumption that feeding plays only a minor relational role (Schmidt et al., 2023).
Authors: Schmidt, Wiebke Johanna; Keller, Heidi; Rosabal-Coto, Mariano; Fallas Gamboa, Karina; Solís Guillén, Carolina; Durán Delgado, Esteban
Dissertations
This dissertation examines how business organizations politically shaped Costa Rica’s TVET system between 1980 and 2021, showing how employers influenced reforms, dual apprenticeship debates, and modernization efforts in relation to broader economic transformation, labor-market needs, and changing business subjectivities (Láscarez Smith, 2023)
Author: Láscarez Smith, Daniel
This dissertation examines how deep learning can complement scientific models, showing that neural networks can improve meteorological and epidemiological dynamical systems by increasing predictive accuracy, refining spatial forecasts, and integrating missing dynamics into existing scientific modeling frameworks (Rojas Campos, 2023).
Authors: Rojas Campos, Rodolfo Adrián.
Cultural Attachment Theory: How children form relationships in three cultural contexts in Costa Rica
This dissertation examines attachment development in three cultural contexts in Costa Rica, showing that caregiving networks, attachment figures, and attachment mechanisms vary substantially across urban and rural settings, challenging Western-centered assumptions about secure relationships and early child development (Schmidt, 2023)
Authors: Schmidt, Wiebke Johanna.
2022
This study examines grandmaternal caregiving in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, showing that co-residing grandmothers often become central caregivers and attachment figures, while non-co-residing grandmothers remain important but more limited contributors within broader family caregiving networks (Schmidt et al., 2022).
Authors: Schmidt, Wiebke Johanna; Keller, Heidi; Rosabal-Coto, Mariano
2021
Development in context: What we need to know to assess children’s attachment relationships
This article examines caregiving arrangements across three cultural groups in Costa Rica, showing that attachment networks and concepts of attachment figures vary significantly by context and highlighting the need for culturally sensitive approaches in attachment research (Schmidt et al., 2021).
Authors: Schmidt, Wiebke Johanna; Keller, Heidi; Rosabal Coto, Mariano
2020
This study compares young children’s learning environments in Bribri and Guanacastecan families in Costa Rica, showing that cultural context and caregivers’ formal education shape whether early socialization emphasizes proximal caregiving, interdependence, and body contact or more distal, independence-oriented interaction (Aschemeyer et al., 2020).
Authors: Aschemeyer, Frederike; Rosabal-Coto, Mariano; Storm, Sina; Keller, Heidi
Costa Rica: Vocational Education and Training in Transition
This chapter analyzes the transformation of vocational education and training in Costa Rica, showing how qualification frameworks, social dialogue, and dual training approaches open new development opportunities while significant challenges in governance, social partnership, and workplace learning remain (Láscarez Smith & Baumann, 2020).
Authors: Láscarez Smith, Daniel; Baumann, Fabienne-Agnes
2019
This publication examines Pentecostalism in Guatemala and Central America, showing how its rapid growth challenges the Catholic Church pastorally, socially, and ecumenically, while calling for renewed dialogue, pastoral closeness, and stronger attention to lived religious practice (Eckholt, 2019).
Author: Eckholt, Margit.
This study examines biology student teachers’ mental maps of biodiversity in Germany and Costa Rica, showing generally informed but culturally biased perceptions, including a strong focus on Brazil, overestimation of threatened species, and differences between global and localized environmental perspectives (Fiebelkorn & Menzel, 2019).
Authors: Fiebelkorn, Falk; Menzel, Susanne
2018
This report examines Costa Rica’s vocational education reforms, highlighting growing political attention to dual training, national qualification standards, teacher preparation, and workplace learning, while identifying persistent challenges in governance, employer participation, and institutionalized VET research (Baumann & Láscarez Smith, 2018).
Authors: Baumann, Fabienne-Agnes; Láscarez Smith, Daniel
This article analyzes dreams and spatial construction in Fernando Contreras Castro’s short fiction, showing how urban space, nature, and the Anthropocene reveal tensions between modernization, ecological crisis, national identity, and Central American literary globalization (Chaves Fernández, 2018).
Author: Chaves Fernández, Mauricio.
Transcultural Convergences in the Caribbean and Central America
This volume examines transcultural relations between the Caribbean and Central America, challenging their mutual historical neglect and proposing transarea studies as a way to understand shared histories, cultural crossings, colonial legacies, and regional interconnections (Chaves et al., 2018).
Authors: Chaves Fernández, Mauricio; Mackenbach, Werner; Pérez Brignoli, Héctor
This chapter examines Environmental Humanities as a framework for Hispanic Studies, showing how Anacristina Rossi’s La loca de Gandoca connects ecological conflict, tourism development, power narratives, and environmental justice in Costa Rica’s Caribbean region (Schlünder, 2018).
Author: Schlünder, Susanne