For the first 300 years of its settlement by Europeans, Costa Rica was an out-of-the-way place in the Spanish New world. Along with its Central American neighbors, Costa Rica shared a language, a religion, and the colonial experience. But Costa Ricans have made something very different out of those common cultural elements and their shared physical geography. What separates the country from its neighbors is a combination of luck and vision. Luck has been important, but intelligent foresight, or vision, has also shaped the country. Generations of politicians and civic leaders have quietly worked to develop democratic institutions and a sense of national identity that makes Costa Rica exceptional, not just in the context of Central America, but throughout the world. These same leaders saw the economic potential of undeveloped mountains, tropical beaches, and unspoiled rain forests. Today, Costa Rica has an international reputation for ecological diversity that makes it a natural attraction for tourists and a pioneer in the development of ecotourism.