AGP Executive Report

Sustainable Energy Education: York University’s Lassonde School of Engineering is rolling out its first course-based Master of Engineering in Sustainable Energy Systems, designed to be finished in as little as 12 months and built around applied learning with faculty and industry partners. Biodiversity Tech for Conservation: Kew’s State of the World’s Plants and Fungi 2026 report says AI and digitisation are speeding up how scientists track extinction risk, shift flowering times, and even unlock fungal DNA from specimens up to 180 years old. Local Wildlife Monitoring: Costa Rica researchers captured rare swamp eel encounters using camera traps, highlighting how better sensing can reveal hidden freshwater life. Public Health & Biosecurity: A New World screwworm outbreak is expanding in the U.S., with a new tracker website and enhanced surveillance aimed at protecting livestock, wildlife, and pets. Costa Rica Infrastructure Push: Costa Rica’s Comptroller approval clears a major legal hurdle for the San Carlos Highway central segment on Route 35, including wildlife and livestock crossings. Tourism Growth: Costa Rica reports eight straight months of tourism gains, with strong air arrivals and adventure tourism still a major draw.

Wildlife & Field Tech: Costa Rica’s underwater camera traps helped capture rare swamp eel encounters, showing how local researchers and specialized gear can reveal hard-to-see freshwater life. UN Leadership & Nuclear Policy: UN secretary-general hopeful Rafael Grossi says states won’t fund UN expansion indefinitely, framing his bid with IAEA experience amid a multilateral crisis. Local Infrastructure: Costa Rica’s San Carlos highway central segment cleared a key Comptroller approval, paving the way for the Route 35 expansion with wildlife and livestock crossings. Telecom Experience: Kölbi topped user-experience rankings, with coverage and day-to-day network stability highlighted as drivers of digital trust. Legal/Tech Business: A Costa Rican firm was selected to lead an intellectual property practice group in a global law alliance, signaling growing regional tech-legal clout. Public Health Tech: A new U.S. screwworm tracker website targets a flesh-eating parasite threat, offering maps, training, and reporting tools. STEM Culture: A Costa Rica Father’s Day essay spotlights how paternity law and DNA testing reshaped fatherhood in the country.

Costa Rica Infrastructure: The Comptroller General approved the central section of Route 35 to San Carlos, clearing a key legal hurdle for a ~30 km four-lane highway stretch (Sifón de San Ramón to La Abundancia), with bridges, wildlife crossings, and safety upgrades—still not an opening date, but a major step forward. Costa Rica Telecom & Digital Life: Kölbi topped user experience rankings again, with recognition focused on real-world connectivity for browsing, gaming, and streaming—positioning ICE’s network strategy as both broad and efficient. Mobility Tech at the Airport: Uber confirmed a pilot to let traditional taxi drivers connect through the app at Juan Santamaría (SJO), while MOPT warns the service remains unregulated and must follow existing transport rules. Ocean & Food Security Research: A global study on ocean acidification assessed impacts on seafood, highlighting risks to commercially valuable species including those in Costa Rica and pointing to adaptation needs for fisheries and aquaculture. STEM & Community: A Costa Rica-linked STEM education push and a separate wellness retreat announcement underscore how learning and wellness tourism keep expanding around the country.

Costa Rica Infrastructure: The Comptroller General approved the central section of Route 35 to San Carlos, clearing a key legal hurdle for the ~30 km, four-lane highway stretch between Sifón de San Ramón and La Abundancia. Digital Connectivity: Kölbi (ICE) topped major user-experience rankings, with reports highlighting coverage and day-to-day performance for browsing, gaming, and streaming. Mobility Tech: Uber confirmed a pilot to let traditional taxi drivers serve airport rides via the app, while MOPT warned the service still needs proper regulation. Health & Travel Tech: Travel And Tour World released its Top 50 Medical Tourism Destinations for 2026, spotlighting countries combining healthcare, affordability, and modern infrastructure. Ocean Science: A global project assessed how ocean acidification affects seafood, supporting adaptation for fisheries and aquaculture. STEM Education: A Costa Rica-linked STEM story highlights how real-world projects can steer students toward marine biology and other science careers.

Costa Rica Infrastructure: The Comptroller General approved the central section of the long-delayed Route 35 highway to San Carlos, clearing the way for China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) to proceed on nearly 30 km between Sifón de San Ramón and La Abundancia—an important link for San José access to La Fortuna, Arenal and the Northern Zone. Digital Mobility: Uber is piloting airport taxi integration at Juan Santamaría (SJO), letting users request traditional taxis through the app, while the transport ministry warns the service is still unregulated. Telecom Experience: Kölbi (ICE) is again topping Costa Rica user-experience rankings in global assessments focused on real-world connectivity and consistency. Ocean & Food Tech Research: A global study on ocean acidification is assessing how changing seawater chemistry affects seafood—highlighting risks for species important to Costa Rica’s fisheries and aquaculture. STEM & Local Talent: A Costa Rica-linked STEM story spotlights how hands-on marine biology projects and supportive teachers can steer students toward marine science careers. Wellness Tourism: Nosara is set to host Vedic Meditation retreats and a learn-to-meditate course this December, reinforcing Costa Rica’s wellness-travel momentum.

Tourism & Infrastructure: Costa Rica is leaning hard on two growth engines—tourism and transport upgrades—with ICT reporting 1,390,842 air arrivals from January to May 2026 (+9.4% year over year) and a major push to expand capacity for visitors. Road Connectivity: The Comptroller General approved the central section of Route 35 to San Carlos, clearing a key legal hurdle so the government can move ahead with CHEC on nearly 30 km of four-lane highway work (Sifón de San Ramón to La Abundancia). Telecom Experience: Kölbi says it’s again topping user experience rankings, citing stable coverage and efficiency improvements that reduce battery drain. Mobility Tech: Uber is piloting a plan to let traditional taxi drivers serve airport rides via the app, while MOPT warns the service is still unregulated. Ocean & Food Security: A global research effort is assessing how ocean acidification affects seafood, including locally important Costa Rican species. Local Science: In northern Costa Rica, researchers documented “vulture bees” that feed on decaying animal tissue, adding new detail to stingless bee diets. Business Tech Expansion: AVI-SPL expanded its Costa Rica operations to support workplace transformation with more local resources.

Costa Rica–focused IP leadership: A Costa Rican law firm has been tapped to lead the Intellectual Property practice group inside a global alliance of independent firms, aiming to coordinate cross-border trademarks, anti-counterfeiting, and patent protection for multinationals. Mobility tech at SJO: Uber is piloting a way to let traditional taxi drivers serve airport rides through the Uber app, while Costa Rica’s transport ministry warns the service is still unregulated and must follow existing transport rules. Workplace transformation in Costa Rica: AVI-SPL says it’s expanding in Costa Rica (plus Australia and Switzerland) to support workplace transformation with more local staff and operational resources. Science for food security: An international research effort on ocean acidification highlights how changing seawater chemistry can affect commercially important seafood, including species relevant to Costa Rica’s fisheries and aquaculture. Local research spotlight: Costa Rica researchers documented “vulture bees” (necrophagous stingless bees) in the San Juan–La Selva corridor, showing carrion-based diets and flexible behavior. Books & culture: Librería Lehmann, founded in 1896, is closing permanently after 130 years in San José, with a liquidation sale and some reserved for donations.

Costa Rica Tech & Policy: Costa Rica President Laura Fernández hit back after criticism tied to remarks about Nicaragua, stressing the country has no diplomatic ties and warning against “railing” at a neighbor while still calling for properly registered Nicaraguan workers. Mobility Tech: Uber is piloting a way to let traditional taxi drivers serve airport trips from San José (SJO), though MOPT says it’s still unregulated and subject to existing transport rules. Ocean & Food Security: An IAEA-backed global study looks at how ocean acidification affects seafood, with Costa Rica’s pargo snapper highlighted as researchers assess growth and survival impacts to support fisheries and aquaculture resilience. Local Research: Costa Rica researchers documented rare “vulture bees” in the San Juan–La Selva corridor, showing stingless bees can use carrion and decaying animal tissue as part of their diet. Business & Work Tech: AVI-SPL expanded its presence in Costa Rica, adding local resources to support workplace transformation initiatives. Science & Climate Extremes: New work on capuchin monkeys in Costa Rica links severe drought conditions to major social behavior shifts, underscoring how climate extremes are reshaping wildlife life.

Costa Rica Tech & Society: President Laura Fernández pushed back after harsh criticism over remarks that praised Nicaragua’s Ortega-Murillo dictatorship, stressing Costa Rica has no diplomatic ties and won’t “rail” at a neighbor. Mobility Tech: Uber is piloting an option to request traditional airport taxis from San José (SJO), while MOPT warns the service is still unregulated. Climate & Wildlife Science: A global study coordinated across 14 countries assessed how ocean acidification affects seafood, aiming to help fisheries and aquaculture adapt. Local Research: Costa Rica researchers documented rare “vulture bees” in the San Juan–La Selva corridor, showing stingless bees can use carrion and decaying animal tissue. Tech in Public Services: Adrian school district approved a five-year lease for autonomous robotic cleaning machines to cut custodial shortfalls. Regulation & Online Gambling: Netherlands’ regulator fined Costa Rica-based Chestoption €3.1M for unlicensed access, including crypto payments and weak age checks. Marine Conservation: West African nations are urging early protection for the Eastern Atlantic under the new high-seas treaty.

AI & Work: A new book argues AI is making some jobs more tedious, using machine translation first and then squeezing human translators for speed and lower pay. Costa Rica Research: In Sarapiquí, Costa Rica researchers documented “vulture bees” that eat carrion, revealing stingless bees with far more flexible diets than expected. Semiconductors: Intel’s fab roadmap hinges on two deadlines for 14A customer decisions and a U.S. manufacturing credit that only covers projects starting before end-2026. Climate & Nature: London Climate Action Week spotlights how coastal wetlands and clean-energy innovation can cut emissions while strengthening natural resilience. Local Tech/Business: Astrix opened a second Global Center of Excellence in Kosovo, building on its Costa Rica delivery center to support European life-sciences clients. Crypto Swaps: ELLIPAL and N.exchange integrated in-wallet self-custodial routing for token swaps and cross-chain transfers. Regulation: Netherlands’ gambling regulator fined Costa Rica-based Chestoption €3.1M for unlicensed online gambling. Health Tech: A low-cost indigenous point-of-care HPV test in India cleared key validation standards, aiming to expand cervical cancer screening access. Local Culture: Librería Lehmann in San José closed permanently after 130 years, citing economic and market shifts.

Self-Custody Crypto Swaps: ELLIPAL and N.exchange announced an in-wallet integration for centralized swap routing and a new decentralized cross-chain protocol, keeping private keys on the user’s hardware and avoiding third-party exchange accounts during swaps. Local Business & Culture: Costa Rica’s historic Librería Lehmann will close permanently after 130 years, citing economic, technological, and publishing-market shifts; a liquidation sale with discounts up to 70% starts as the bookstore winds down. Life Sciences & Climate Tech: A new AI-driven study using eight million digitized plant specimens finds flowering times are shifting about 2.5 days per decade, disrupting plant-pollinator relationships and raising conservation stakes. Health Tech: An indigenous point-of-care HPV test (Truenat HR-HPV-Plus) reports strong validation results, aiming to expand cervical cancer screening in low-resource settings. Biotech/Research Funding: The Holodomor Legacy Initiative announced 13 international grants to support next-generation genocide research. Pharma Delivery Expansion: Astrix opened a second Global Center of Excellence in Kosovo, building on its Costa Rica operations to support growing European life-sciences demand.

Wildlife Tech in Action: The Sea Turtle Conservancy’s “Tour de Turtles” kicks off on World Sea Turtle Day, using satellite telemetry to let people track 10 endangered leatherbacks in real time as they swim from Panama across the Caribbean. AI for Biodiversity: A new global study using AI on 8 million digitized plant specimens finds flowering times are shifting about 2.5 days per decade, disrupting plant–pollinator relationships and raising conservation stakes. Local Health Tech (Costa Rica link): Celltrion expands its Vietnam oncology lineup, and the report notes strong uptake in Costa Rica for its biosimilars—highlighting how biotech supply chains are scaling in the region. Life Sciences Delivery: Astrix opens a second Global Center of Excellence in Kosovo, building on its first global delivery center in Costa Rica to support European pharma clients. Public Health Collaboration: A regional meeting in the Dominican Republic brings Latin American and Caribbean partners together to accelerate malaria elimination by 2027, including Costa Rica. EV Momentum: EV sales are surging worldwide, with electric cars reaching 25% of new sales in 2025 and 63% by May 2026.

Global Delivery Expansion: Astrix opened a second Global Center of Excellence in Kosovo, building on its first global delivery center in Costa Rica to meet rising European life-sciences demand. Health Tech in Focus: An indigenous low-cost HPV test (Truenat HR-HPV-Plus) cleared international validation benchmarks in a multinational study, aiming to expand cervical cancer screening access in resource-limited settings. AI for Biodiversity: A new AI-driven study using eight million digitized plant specimens found flowering times are shifting by about 2.5 days per decade, with major implications for plant-pollinator relationships and conservation planning. Digital Health Training: PAHO launched a new virtual course on youth-centered digital health interventions, emphasizing responsible use of digital tools and AI. Costa Rica Link in Pharma: Celltrion launched cancer drugs in Vietnam and notes strong market traction in Costa Rica for its biosimilars. Local Tech & Safety: Costa Rica’s North Pacific search continues for four missing fishermen after Tropical Storm Cristina rough seas.

AI for biodiversity: A new global study using AI on 8 million digitized plant and fungi specimens finds flowering times are shifting about 2.5 days earlier or later per decade, disrupting plant–pollinator relationships and raising conservation stakes. Climate & ecosystems: The same work highlights how digitized “hidden in cupboards” collections can speed up searches for climate-resilient relatives of key crops like coffee and help uncover new medicines. Costa Rica health: UCR researchers warn Costa Rica may be missing timely diagnosis for hereditary heart diseases, estimating up to 1,114 sudden-death-risk cases annually due to gaps in the healthcare pathway. Local environment & risk: Costa Rica’s fishing communities face mounting pressure as rough seas from Tropical Storm Cristina leave four fishermen missing after multiple boating emergencies off Guanacaste. Regional health cooperation: The Dominican Republic convened Latin American and Caribbean partners to accelerate malaria elimination by 2027, including Costa Rica, with a focus on faster diagnosis and treatment.

Public Health (Regional Malaria): The Dominican Republic convened health authorities and partners from nine Latin American and Caribbean countries to accelerate malaria elimination, targeting zero transmission by 2027 with faster diagnosis and treatment, including a reported 80% of patients treated within 24 hours. Local Health (Costa Rica Cardiac Risk): Costa Rica researchers warn that hereditary heart conditions are being missed until too late, calling for a more centralized pathway to prevent sudden deaths. Marine Science (Costa Rica Microplastics): New findings report microplastics in Costa Rica’s beaches, fish, livestock, and poultry—raising fresh concerns for food chains and ecosystems. Marine Tech (Sargassum to Materials): Intec researchers extracted alginate from Sargassum for potential use across food, pharma, and biomaterials, turning a Caribbean environmental problem into an industrial input. AI & Industry (Manufacturing Roadshow): MethodHub announced MFG.NXT, an AI-focused CXO roadshow on transforming manufacturing, pharma, and logistics. Cybersecurity (Ransomware Origins): A look back at malware’s early playbook traces how ransomware grew into a major global industry.

World Cup Tech & Safety: England and Scotland are leaning on GPS performance tracking (STATSports) to manage workloads and reduce injury risk in a packed 48-team tournament. Local Health Tech: Costa Rica researchers warn up to 1,114 people a year may face sudden death risk from hereditary heart disease due to gaps in timely diagnosis, calling for a dedicated pathway. Cybersecurity: A look back at ransomware’s origins traces how a 1989 malware scheme evolved into a billion-dollar annual extortion industry. Marine Biotech: Intec researchers extracted alginate from Sargassum seaweed, aiming to turn a Caribbean environmental problem into usable materials for food, pharma, and biomaterials. Public Health Threat: Reports highlight the spread of flesh-eating screwworms in the U.S., with new cases prompting heightened precautions. Costa Rica Environment: Coverage also flags microplastics found in Costa Rica beaches, fish, livestock, and poultry, adding pressure for better monitoring and cleanup.