A UVM blog Rural Lives In a Global World

Blog Assignment #3

Intel

 1. a) Intel supplies microprocessors for computer system manufacturers such as Acer, Lenovo, HP, and Dell. Intel also manufactures motherboard chipsets, network interface controllers and integrated circuits, flash memory, graphics chips, embedded processors and other devices related to communications and computing.

b)Since 1997, Intel’s presence in Costa Rica has supported the growth of the country and catalyzed Foreign Direct Investment. The operations within Costa Rica are that of Intel’s Manufacturing and Operations division and involve the assembly and testing of microchips. Intel also has a Research and Development Center and a Global Services Center in Costa Rica. 

c)Intel Costa Rica’s headquarters are located in Belén, Heredia, northwest of the capital. Intel employs more than 2,200 people in Costa Rica. Up until 2014, Intel Costa Rica was a manufacturing plant. The company decided it was too expensive to manufacture in CR and moved manufacturing to Asia. Employees in the Belén location currently, “design, prototype, test, and validate integrated circuit and software solutions.” Making it a packaging site.

2. Intel has had a major positive impact on the economy of Costa Rica, it has supported the growth of the country and catalyzed Foreign Direct Investment. It represents 60% of the country’s research and development exports, and continues to support the country’s climb up the Global Value Chain. According to intel.com, they work closely with public and private universities in Costa Rica to help them assess and adapt their curricula to emerging technologies, and to strengthen student employability. They also invest into local education. This is certainly a positive social factor, along with the workshops they host for aspiring engineers. Intel claims to be sustainable, and they have invested in many environmental initiatives, including the restoration of water into forests. While this is true, electronics are the source of a lot of waste, once they leave the country and can no longer be used.

3. The best theoretical framework to represent the presence of Intel in Costa Rica is a neo-liberal framework. 

https://www.google.com/search?q=intel+neoliberalism+costa+rica&sxsrf=APq-WBteQn6uStyT5GcJllrY0fX_28_spA:1644200375418&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjHq8Paw-z1AhXskokEHbstC2YQ_AUoAnoECAEQBA&biw=1306&bih=688&dpr=1#imgrc=WSzXnv8clVDl_M

Citations

https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/corporate-responsibility/intel-in-costa-rica.html

https://www.intc.com/about-intel

1. The material basis of the colony – was the colonial economy built on extraction (minerals, rubber, timber, ivory), agriculture (sugar, coffee, fruits, cotton), the slave trade, or something else (such as land annexation and conquest)? Who was the primary source of labor in this economy – slaves, indigenous people, indentured migrants, local residents, etc.)?

Europeans such as the Portuguese arrived in Indonesia from the 16th century seeking to monopolize spices like nutmeg, cloves, and cubeb pepper in Maluku. In 1602, the Dutch established the Dutch East India Company (VOC) and became the dominant European power by 1610. At this time, and through the 17th century, they successfully monopolized the Maluku spice trade. Of course and tragically, spurring brutal genocide of indigenous peoples to accomplish this. By 1800, the Dutch East Indies was a source of many cash crops including coffee, tea, and palm oil. The primary source of labor were Javanese peasants, indigenous people of the Indonesian island of Java. By the late 1800s wealthy Dutch businessmen set up sugar plantations, other crops such as tea and cinchona were introduced as well. There was a large rise in rubber production. There was also a mining sector present that extracted oil, coal, tin and copper. after World War II Indonesia was succeeded by the Indonesian Republic.

 2. The political and judicial basis of the colony. How did the colonizing country sustain power and order in the economic system they established? Who were the rulers? How did they enforce their rules and laws? 

In the 1600s, the Dutch East India Company (VOC) began colonizing parts of Indonesia. The VOC itself represented a new type of power in the region for many reasons. First of all,  it formed a single organization and traded across a vast area. Being the dominating state at the time, it possessed a large and strong military force. Over time, the VOC employed a bureaucracy of servants to patrol and manage its affairs in Indonesia. As a large power at the time, the VOC often forced them to accept its trading conditions. Under the governor-generalship of Jan Pieterszoon Coen and his successors, most notably Anthony van Diemen and Joan Maetsuyker layed the framework for the powerful state that it became. Coen concluded it was necessary to conquer the entire Bandanese archipelago, even if it meant exterminating the native people.Coen ordered troops to raze all the villages and force the surrender of the population. The Bandanese were killed, exiled, or sold as slaves. Coen was even viewed as a national hero in the Netherlands due to his expansion of Dutch empire. After the abolition of the VOC in 1796, the Dutch government gained control over Indonesia.

3. The ideological foundation of the colony. How did they justify their colonial presence? What good did the colonizing force think they were bringing to the people in the colonized region?

The colonization of Indonesia, which was clearly motivated by Dutch economic interests in the Spice trade, was portrayed as a “civilizing mission.” This was supported by the ideology that Indonesians were primitive and backwards and that the Dutch could civilize and modernize them. This is an archetype we can observe across many different occurrences of colonization in the past, some of these ideologies and justifications still carry into the present day. Dutch forces regularly committed atrocities on Indonesian natives. The Bandanese and Javanese people suffered a genocide. Civilians were tortured, raped, and executed. Even in the last years of colonialism, thousands of supporters of independence were jailed.

Sources:

• M.C. Ricklefs: A History of Modern Indonesia since c.1200
•  H. Dick, e.a.: The Emergence of a National Economy. An Economic History of Indonesia, 1800-2000
• Wim Ravesteijn, “Between Globalization and Localization: The Case of Dutch Civil Engineering in Indonesia, 1800–1950,” Comparative Technology Transfer and Society, 5#1 (2007) pp. 32–64, quote p 32
• Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopedia. “Javanese”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Jun. 2015, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Javanese-people. Accessed 27 January 2022.

(1)Cocoa

Cocoa is a significant contribution to the economy and cultural identity of Costa Rica. Cocoa pods grow on trees, where they must be harvested by hand. The journey from pod to chocolate is a detailed process. The  beans have to be scooped out and placed in fermentation boxes, where fruit flies come to eat the sugar on the seeds, and in doing so, carry yeast from the environment. Fermentation occurs for 4-6 days. The beans are eventually dried out and roasted. They are then ground and conched either using specialized equipment, or smaller grinders in the case of smaller farmers. Many farms on the Osa peninsula emphasized the practice of sustainable agriculture. The strategy called “Multi-agency Cocoa Platform for Latin America and the Caribbean Cocoa 2030-2050” was established in 2020 to prioritize adaptation to climate change and the establishment of optimal agricultural practices. There is mostly focus on exports to the markets of the United States and the European Union. Of course, chocolate is sold in local supermarkets and is very popular for tourists when they visit the domestic farms. Farms like the Osa Cocoa Chocolate Factory sell much of their product to tourists at the location of the farm. 

The Universe Of Cocoa Production In Costa Rica https://thecostaricanews.com/the-universe-of-cocoa-production-in-costa-rica/

https://www.britannica.com/place/Osa-Peninsula

(2) Tapa de dulce 

The production of tapa de dulce begins the day before sugar is harvested. In some cases the sugar is processed through an old hand-crank press, passed down the family through generations. Sugary cane liquid is extracted and boiled in a huge pan heated by fire. It is evaporated and eventually poured into conical molds, which are cooled, at which time the tops are cut off making them tapas (“lids”).  Outside of its traditional production in the family setting, it is almost completely a mechanized process. The traditional drink of “Agua Dulce” is made by cutting or scraping off a bit of the tapa and gently dissolving it in boiling water or hot milk. It is then sold in “sodas”, Costa Rican supermarkets or the Pulpería (corner store). It can also be purchased online at… http://costaricasuperstore.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1087

http://www.ticoshopping.com/Crude-Sugar-Tapa-de-dulce-21-2-oz.

http://eyeoncostarica.blogspot.com/2011/10/costa-ricas-answer-to-brown-sugartapa.html

https://news.co.cr/the-making-of-tapa-de-dulce-a-costa-rican-family-tradition/10584/

(3) Palm oil

Palm oil is derived from seed clusters that grow on palm trees. It can be harvested 12 months of the year. Palm oil accounts for a large percent of Costa Rica’s exports. Once the palm fruit is harvested, it is trucked out to the port town of Golfito, where it will be processed into refined, bleached, and deodorized (RBD) palm oil. Farmers have the choice of a contract with Palma Tica. While this can provide stable income and financial assistance, it also prevents growers from selling to other businesses that might pay more for their palm.  In Costa Rica, palm oil is a valuable product that accounts for over $125 million of the country’s export economy. Palm oil farming on the Osa Peninsula does not cause deforestation, unlike in other regions of the world, because it is farmed in areas that were cleared for agriculture long ago.

(4)Vanilla 

The vanilla grown in Costa Rica is a Vanilla planifolia. Vanilla vine grows on a host tree, and if unattended, can grow up to 30 meters and reach the tops of forests. Manual pollination of the vanilla plant is done with a very small stick and takes a great amount of time and precision. Vanilla is sold to tourists at domestic farms on the peninsula. I had a bit of difficulty trying to find if it is shipped to markets elsewhere, as this is true for other parts of Costa Rica. One farm on the Osa, Villa Vanilla, has products available for shipping on their website. 

(5) Skin balms/coconut oil

Skin balms, with the main ingredient being coconut oil, are a commodity in the Osa peninsula. Brands like “Osalicious” utilize the natural resources of the Osa including coconut oil, beeswax and cocoa butter to make products. These resources are used to  create lip balms, massage balms, beeswax candles, and even natural and biodegradable sticky surf wax. While many shops are located in downtown Puerto Jimenez, some businesses have gained popularity in the U.S and European markets. Coconut oil on the Osa peninsula is extracted from the kernel or meat of mature coconuts. It is made by pressing fresh coconut meat or dried coconut meat called copra. Virgin coconut oil uses fresh meat, while refined coconut oil typically uses copra. The oil is also used to make soaps and is sold in shops like “rainforest solutions” located in puntarenas.

http://livinglifeincostarica.blogspot.com/2010/07/coconut-oil-in-costa-rica.html

https://site.osalicious.com/

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