CRUSA’s Vision

To be an effective facilitator of cooperation mechanisms between the peoples and Governments of Costa Rica and the United States of America, within the context of sustainable development, in order to improve the quality of life of Costa Rican citizens.

CRUSA’s Mission

To promote, encourage, and develop the broadest possible cooperation between the peoples and governments of Costa Rica and the United States of America in all fields of human endeavor, through the exchange of knowledge, specialized assistance, and technical support, in order to carry out and improve policies and programs that lead to sustainable development and the mutual and general benefit of both countries.

About CRUSA

The CRUSA Foundation (CRUSA) is a private, independent institution founded in 1996 by five Americans and five Costa Ricans who decided to unite their efforts to achieve a common objective: improving the quality of life of Costa Ricans.

Costa Rica emerged from the Central American conflicts of the 1960s as the natural vantage point from which to monitor the impact of USAID’s (the United States Agency for International Development) strategy in a region such as Central America. The Costa Rica Endowment Fund administered by CRUSA was donated autonomously by the USAID in 1996 and is overseen by an Assembly of Founders comprised of five Costa Ricans and five Americans. During its 12 year history, CRUSA has supported more than 450 projects in Costa Rica for a total of over $47 million.

CRUSA supports the conversion of good ideas into programs by working with its trusted operational partners in Costa Rica to design and develop projects pertaining to its four areas of interest: Education, Environment, Science and Technology, and Strategic Capacity. The foundation then works with Amigos of Costa Rica to present those projects to third-party institutions, seeking funding to leverage CRUSA’s resource contributions and monetary commitments and increase the impact of the projects it supports. Among the opportunities CRUSA provides its operational partners are: full project financing, the facilitation of third-party financing, information on funding opportunities, tax deductions for donors in Costa Rica and the U.S., technical support for proposal development, and the administration of funds.

CRUSA seeks to leverage its technical and financial resources by attracting the resources of other institutions to help maximize project impact. With this in mind, the foundation works to identify the country’s most value proposals in its areas of interest in order to offer a Portfolio of Social Investment Opportunities to those institutions that would like to invest or donate funds in Costa Rica. Among the services CRUSA offers to its financing partners are: tax deductibility in the U.S. and Costa Rica, the facilitation of cooperative financing, the administration of funds, technical project evaluation, and access to a world-class network of implementing organizations.

Throughout its history, CRUSA has earned prestige through its successful and transparent methods of operation. In February 2007, CRUSA underwent a rigorous evaluation of its operational and financial processes conducted by the Société Générale de Surveillance (SGS), a prestigious international organization that awards certification based on an audit of 97 of the best management practices applied by leading NGOs around the world. The SGS certified that CRUSA’s operational and administrative procedures comply with international standards of security, efficiency, and quality and awarded the institution an overall score of 93.3%.

For more information about CRUSA, please visit their website

CRUSA’s Assembly of Founders

CRUSA’s Administrative Board

Mr. Alfonso Gutiérrez, Acting President 
Mr. Francis J. McNeil, Vice-President
Mr. Rowland Espinosa, Secretary
Mr. William F. Merrigan, Treasurer
Mr. Randall Sánchez, Director
Mr. Pedro Dobles, Attorney