The first international Baha'i Youth Conference held in Costa Rica came about in 1972 two days after the Managua earthquake . However a minibus full of young people came through Honduras with only minor difficulties and two Nicaraguan youth got through . Total attendance was about seventy-five . 1977 also saw the first time a Bahá ' í float was entered in one of the annualfestivals in Santa Cruz . A larger conference of about 200 gathered in January 1978 . Some of the attendees , together with various adults , then took a trip into Guanacaste province where over a short time 14 new assemblies were founded and then they extended work into Meseta province ( see San Ramón for mention of this remote province ) where several groups were re-contacted and a new assembly elected . In 1983 the Universal House of Justice recognized the twin youth conferences of Honduras and Costa Rica held in early March - a challenge representing a substantial increase in the number of youth Bahá ' ís - and called on them to consider the example of ` Abdu ' l-Bahá in civilizing influences they should undertake individually and collectively . In the fall of 1984 a permanent site for the National Youth Institute was chosen and plans were developed for it to serve as a center for the arts and performance , agriculture and outreach programs . A television crew made up of two youth from EI Salvador , a Bahá ' í from Venezuela , and two non-Baha ' i volunteers filmed Costa Rica 's 1988 international youth conference which was attended by 120 people for a program to be aired in El Salvador
Managua earthquake
1972 Nicaragua earthquake
Bahá'í Faith in Costa Rica