UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Nora Tietjens explored a different type of classroom when she and a group of fellow Penn State students traveled to the tropics over spring break as part of the embedded course “Environmental Resource Management 499: Costa Rica Sustainable Agriculture and Natural Resources,” offered in the College of Agricultural Sciences.
The group was hosted by EARTH University, a nonprofit institution focusing on agricultural sciences in Limón, Costa Rica, which enrolls students from 41 countries. It has hosted Penn State environmental resource management students since 2007.
For Tietjens, of Huntingdon, a sophomore majoring in food science, this course meant not only traveling to a new country, but also flying on an airplane for the first time.
“Coming from never leaving the country to visiting EARTH University — and being able to meet and talk with students my age who are studying the same kinds of subjects — was incredible, and definitely a culture shock,” she said.
Flying for the first time opens opportunities for students such as Tietjens to learn on a global scale, explained course instructor Tammy Shannon.
“Understanding other countries’ cultures and customs, and their environment and natural resource issues, offers students a chance to see the world from different perspectives through the people themselves,” Shannon said.
During the semester, students in this embedded course learn about topics such as climate change and sustainable farming, and during spring break they employ their knowledge alongside small-scale farmers from Costa Rica. This opportunity not only allows them to experience another culture, but also to see how agricultural methods differ from those practiced in the United States.