This reinforced concrete school building was completed in a mountainous area at the end of 2018. social development costs generated through fair trade ^* were used in the construction of this school building.

Costa Rica, a Central American country where Zensho began trading fair trade coffee in 2012, is a coffee-producing nation that is proactive in environmentally friendly agriculture, with individual producers possessing high production techniques despite being small-scale. However, in recent years, due to the effects of climate change, the growing environment has deteriorated, with "worsening water shortages" and "spread of coffee rust damage," and production has decreased, with the harvest period shortened by about a month.

Zensho is cooperating with coffee producers to support their production by providing support in areas such as human resource development and adapting to changes in growing environments, sharing knowledge and offering continuous assistance.

Shortly after starting this initiative, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck near the production area. Children living in the production area were forced to avoid the heavily damaged school facilities and attend classes in temporary school buildings.

Therefore, in 2016, when the producers' lives had stabilized, Zensho consulted with them and embarked on rebuilding the school building using social development costs.

This initiative, which connects the future of children, has generated considerable attention, attracting support and investment from the Costa Rican government and the Inter-American Development Bank, and has brought Japan and Costa Rica closer together, with construction managers, parents, and producers saying things like, "It would be great if the children who graduate from this high school in the future go on to attend universities in Japan."

Based on blueprints created using social development costs at the end of 2018, five school buildings, including the "Learning Building" and the "Technical Education Building," were completed. Approximately 70 junior and senior high school students are enjoying a safe and comfortable learning environment, with bright classrooms, open learning spaces next to connecting corridors, and meals in a hygienic cafeteria.

Zensho will be on-site to observe what kind of future these young people will create.