Regenerative Farms · Ujarrás, Buenos Aires, Puntarenas

Costa Rican Farmer Olga Vargas Named Among FAO's 100 Women Heroes

Olga Vargas, who farms guavas and tilapia in Ujarrás de Buenos Aires in southern Costa Rica, was named in October 2026 to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization's list of 100 Women Heroes in Agrifood Systems and Rural Development. FAO chose the 100 from 609 nominations, and Vargas was recognized for two decades of protecting a spring and for teaching neighbors how to farm with less water.

By Pura-Verde.com Editors · Published October 30, 2026
Original report: The Tico Times: Costa Rica Farmer Olga Vargas Named Among FAO's 100 Women Heroes (2026-10-16)

A farmer from the hills of southern Costa Rica is on a short global list this year. Olga Vargas, who grows guavas and raises tilapia in Ujarrás de Buenos Aires, Puntarenas, has been named one of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization's 100 Women Heroes, The Tico Times reported on Oct. 16, 2026. She is the name representing Costa Rica on the list.

What the FAO honor is

The full title is the FAO 100 Women Heroes in Agrifood Systems and Rural Development. It's part of the International Year of the Woman Farmer 2026, a UN observance meant to draw attention to the work women do in food production and to the obstacles they face, such as limited access to land, credit and training. The UN General Assembly approved the year in 2024, and FAO is leading it alongside other UN food agencies, including the International Fund for Agricultural Development and the World Food Programme.

According to FAO, 131 of its members submitted 609 nominations. The 100 chosen include women who grow food, fish, protect natural resources and create work in rural areas.

A spring she has guarded for 20 years

Vargas's farm runs on a single natural spring that she has protected for more than 20 years, according to The Tico Times and El Mundo CR. It supplies her household first. The extra water fills a storage tank used to irrigate fruit trees and feeds ponds where she raises tilapia.

That spring has become more important as conditions change. Farmers in her community deal with hotter days, unpredictable rain and more pests, The Tico Times reported. For a small farm with one water source, a dry month can mean losing a harvest.

How a UN project changed her farm

Vargas took part in a joint FAO and UNICEF project called "Empowering Communities in Sustainable Agri-Food Systems," funded by the UN's Joint SDG Fund and run in the cantons of Buenos Aires and Guatuso with Costa Rica's agriculture and health ministries and local governments.

Through the project, she upgraded her irrigation and added a system that recirculates the water from her fish ponds, so nutrient-rich pond water ends up watering her guava trees. A Tico Times profile from June described a reservoir that lets her store water overnight and irrigate morning and afternoon, which means she can now harvest guavas all year, including in the dry season. For a small farm that used to depend on the rain, that's a real shift. Her orchard has grown from about 100 trees to well over that number. Reports differ on the exact count.

Combining fish and plants this way is a form of aquaponics: the fish waste fertilizes the trees, and the farm uses its water twice. It's a simple, closed-loop idea that suits small farms with limited water, and it's the kind of practice we track in our guide to regenerative and organic farms in Costa Rica.

Teaching the neighbors

The equipment was only half of it. The project also trained participants in soil care and water management, and Vargas now opens her farm for hands-on workshops with other producers, sharing what she's learned about soil, water and sustainable growing.

She has said the honor belongs to more than her. "Este reconocimiento es por todas nosotras" (This recognition is for all of us), she told El Mundo CR, and she described it to The Tico Times as recognition for rural women who rise early to grow food for their communities.

Why it matters for southern Costa Rica

Buenos Aires de Puntarenas is a large, mostly rural canton in the south, known for its Indigenous territories and small family farms, and it doesn't get many headlines. Recognition like this puts a spotlight on how small farms adapt to climate stress, a timely subject in a year when El Niño has left dozens of communities rationing water.

It also fits a pattern Pura Green News keeps finding: much of Costa Rica's green progress comes from individuals building practical, local solutions, like Daniela Campos and her family's recycling center or the bee-genetics pilot at Reserva Conchal.

Frequently asked questions

Who is Olga Vargas?

She's a farmer in Ujarrás de Buenos Aires, Puntarenas, in southern Costa Rica, who grows guavas and raises tilapia using water from a spring she has protected for more than 20 years.

What is FAO's 100 Women Heroes?

It's FAO's 2026 recognition of 100 women for their contributions to agrifood systems and rural development, created to mark the International Year of the Woman Farmer. FAO received 609 nominations from 131 members.

What project helped Olga Vargas's farm?

A joint FAO and UNICEF project, "Empowering Communities in Sustainable Agri-Food Systems," funded by the UN Joint SDG Fund, which upgraded her irrigation and added a fish-water recirculation system.

What is the International Year of the Woman Farmer?

It's a UN observance for 2026, led by FAO, highlighting women's roles in food production and the barriers they face, such as access to land, finance and training.

Sources and original reporting

1. The Tico Times: Costa Rica Farmer Olga Vargas Named Among FAO's 100 Women Heroes (2026-10-16)
2. El Mundo CR: Productora costarricense Olga Vargas es reconocida entre las 100 mujeres heroínas de la FAO (2026-10-16)
3. The Tico Times: Rural Women Lead Climate Resilience Efforts in Costa Rica's Farming Communities (2026-06-12)
4. FAO: 100 Women Heroes in Agrifood Systems and Rural Development
5. FAO: International Year of the Woman Farmer 2026
6. Joint SDG Fund

We wrote this story from the published reports and official sources above. We didn't interview the people named unless the story says so.