Experience SFS Firsthand!
SFS site visits are an excellent opportunity to learn more about our programs. We typically offer one to two group visits a year and each visit includes an overview of the Center’s programs and research focus. Guests will meet our Center staff including the Center Director, faculty team, and support staff, and will head into the field to see key field sites used during the programs. Site visits are open to individuals who advise students for SFS programs which may include study abroad staff, academic advisors, and/or faculty members.
If you or one of your colleagues will be in-country and would like to arrange an individual site visit to an SFS Center, please reach out to sitevisit@fieldstudies.org for all inquiries.
Recent SITE Visits:
- Kenya (May 2024)
- Costa Rica (May 2023)
- Kenya (December 2019)
- Bhutan (May 2019)
- Costa Rica + Panama (December 2018)
- Cambodia (May 2018)
Upcoming Site Visits
PANAMA: May 12 - 17, 2025
SFS has operated in Panama for over 12 years and is embedded in the thriving Caribbean town of Bocas del Toro. As a guest of the Center for Tropical Biodiversity Studies, the sea is your backyard. Our outdoor classroom is surrounded with rich green rainforests neighboring thriving underwater ecosystems. Through a series of field excursions and disciplinary talks, site visitors will learn about the complexities of environmental, social, and economic issues in Panama.
The visit will take place the week of May 12 -17, not including travel to and from Bocas. Please submit a Site Visit Application by January 15, 2025.
Academic themes will include:
- Rainforest and marine ecology
- Impacts of climate change on a small island system
- Indigenous tourism and sustainability
- Marine protected areas, conservation and natural resource management
- Tourism impacts on ecosystems and human populations
- Ecosystem health assessments
Field Excursions will likely include:
- Mangroves forests, coral reefs, and seagrass meadows
- Indigenous Ngöbe communities
- Tropical rainforests, coastal forests, and beaches
- A visit to Indigenous owned and operated cacao farm
LODGING: Visitors will reside in our shared student dorms. Single rooms are not available.
ACCESSIBILITY: We will spend significant time in bumpy boats, on our feet in the rainforest for long periods of time, and snorkeling in the sea. Guests should feel comfortable in the open ocean, be okay with strong sun and heavy rains, hiking through a rainforest, and spending time in mangrove habitats. A swim test will be administered upon arrival – once passed, guests can participate in waterfront activities and swim in the Center pool.
APPLY: Please submit the SFS Panama Site Visit Application by January 15, 2025. Space is limited and we expect a waitlist. We welcome applications from people with no previous experience with SFS, as well as those already familiar with us but eager to learn more about SFS Panama. If there is a surplus of applications, preference will be given to applicants from institutions who have not participated in a recent SFS site visit.
A $700 participation fee includes accommodations, site-visit activities, local transportation, and most meals. Site visitors are responsible for expenses related to international travel, immunizations, and personal spending.
Please direct any questions to sitevisit@fieldstudies.org.
We look forward to welcoming you to Panama!