More than 1,000 researchers from 70 countries will gather in Costa Rica from Feb 22 to 29 to debate the current state of sea turtles and the measures necessary to prevent their extinction. The 24th International Sea Turtle Symposium is being organized by the Costa Rican Ministry of Environment and Energy, the International Sea Turtle Society, and Conservation International's Center for Applied Science.

“We will analyze how sea turtles can provide local populations with more income, such as living tourism resources, rather than consumer goods that are becoming increasingly scarce,” Marco Solano, head of the Inter-American Convention on the Protection and Conservation of Sea Turtles, told Tierramérica.

Some endangered turtle species that nest on the sandy beaches of the Americas include the green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas), the 'caguama', or loggerhead (Caretta caretta) and the carey, or hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata), prized for its shell, which is used in handicrafts.