On March 18th, 2020, Costa Rica declared a state of emergency and closed its borders to international visitors. Days later, the beaches and national parks also closed to the public. As a result of these factors, tourism (the economic driver of our coastal community), all but ground to a halt. That put many of our community members in a very tenuous position as businesses shut down, and many workers saw their hours greatly reduced or found themselves laid off indefinitely.

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In the second term of 2020, Fundación SOMOS’ efforts and resources were largely directed toward mitigating the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in the communities within Costa Ballena. The short-term response was to provide food security through emergency aid and assistance. That transitioned into working alongside community organizations to reopen the main driver of tourism in our community: the Marino Ballena National Park. As government aid (Bono Proteger) became available for many, Fundación SOMOS transitioned to supporting sustainable socioeconomic efforts to reduce dependency on emergency efforts starting with the reopening of the Marino Ballena National Park.

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On July 3rd, 2020, the Marino Ballena National Park was able to open its first point of entry — the Punta Uvita entrance (the Whale Tail). It was a collaborative effort between ACOSA (Conservation Area of OSA), ADI Uvita (Development Association of Uvita), ASADA (Water Association), ASOGUIBA (Tour Operator and Tour Guide Associations), ASOTU (Association of Tour Operators in the Marino Ballena National Park), Costa Ballena TV, the park administration, and local community leaders. Fundación SOMOS contributed $3,000 USD towards the opening of this popular entry point. 

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On August 22nd, 2020, the Marino Ballena National Park was able to open its second point of entry — the Colonia entrance. Bolstered by the success of the Punta Uvita entrance reopening campaign in June and a pledge by Fundación SOMOS to match funds 2-to-1, the Costa Ballena community of residents, businesses, and organizations worked together to contribute: $1104.12 USD collected by the ADI Uvita $2,000 USD from Fundación SOMOS Over 4500 hours of labor by volunteers to clean, fix, build, and paint the area and structures (both existing and new) to comply with the new Covid-19 health and safety requirements.

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Additionally, SOMOS contributed to ADI Uvita with the donation of a special printer for printing PVC ID cards, USD $1,000 of initial capital, and the purchase of supplies for the implementation of the membership program for free entry into the Marino Ballena National Park for Costa Rican Nationals and Foreign Residents.

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Finally, SOMOS facilitated negotiations with the administration of the Marino Ballena National Park that resulted in the extension of its opening hours during Holy Week and the end of the year, adding three additional operation hours each day with this pilot plan. The plan served as support for the Marino Ballena National Park to extend the park's opening hours from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., beginning in December 2021 to help bolster the local economy and job creation.