Global Volunteers Service Programs are managed by on-site staff who live in the communities we serve. Most are nationals who were either born or raised in the host country. Your Costa Rica Service Program team leader is Country Manager Nia Salas. Nia joined the Global Volunteers staff in December of 2007. She has an MBA from the University of Costa Rica and a Bachelors Degree in Administration from the same university. She also studied at the Institute Francais in Paris, France, where she studied Marketing Communication. Prior to joining Global Volunteers Nia worked with a number of international and national firms in San Jose. Besides Spanish and English, she is also fluent in French. As a native Costa Rican Nia brings a valuable perspective to the Global Volunteers program in Monteverde and she provides volunteers with good background information on the culture and traditions of Costa Rica.

All our County Managers must achieve an established level of performance in order to continue leading Global Volunteers teams. They have served on one or more volunteer teams, and each year are required to complete our intensive two-week training seminar in Minnesota. They are experienced in managing diverse groups of people, and are formally evaluated by each volunteer team.

You'll receive Service Program and contact information from your Costa Rica Country Manager approximately four weeks before your Service Program begins.