Costa Rica has announced is developing plans to become the world's first carbon neutral nation.

According to their Environment and Energy Minister Roberto Dobles, they will reach neutrality through a basket of measures including budgeting, laws, and new incentives to encourage biofuels, hybrid vehicles, and clean energy. They will also implement a “C-Neutral” label to certify that tourism and industrial practices mitigate all of the carbon dioxide they emit alongside a voluntary “tax” of $10 per tone of carbon emitted. Money from the tax would fund conservation, reforestation, and research in protected areas.

The UN is watching their efforts with the hope of encouraging successful strategies elsewhere in the world. Time will tell their ultimate success; however, their thriving eco-trourism industry gives them a good head start in making greater environmental investments in their economy.