The Bríbri are an indigenous group in Costa Rica with an estimated population of 11,500. They are called Costa Rica's "hidden people"; their isolation from society allows them to retain Bribri culture, ethnicity, and religion. But Bribri culture is under threat. It's only been in recent decades that economic necessity has led the historically isolated community into developed areas of Talamanca, the province in which they live. This contact has exposed them to an unprecedented amount of information — and not all of it is welcomed.
With Western-style education and the Internet taking over traditional learning processes in many parts of Costa Rica, the Indigenous people of the Cabécar nation, in Talamanca province, have expressed concern about threats to Cabecar culture and language, including their broad cosmovision. The Cabecar women have a huge concern about the entry of the Internet into their territory and its role as a colonizer of their culture and the threat to their cosmovision.
Please visit often as The College of Native Caribbean Heritage is currently in its infancy. In time, this institution of learning will grow.. With participation from the public to help us, this invaluable and much-needed educational program will expand.
The Okama Suei is a digital application platform designed and built from the knowledge of indigenous women in Costa Rica. Created by Sulá Batsú and the Cabécar de Alto Pacuare Women's Association, it is designed to strengthen and defend the worldview and culture of indigenous women through the exchange of knowledge between people of different ages.