Oscar Arias Sanchez was born in Heredia, Costa Rica on September 13, 1941. He was president of Costa Rica from 1986 through 1990. While President, he assumed the role of peacemaker in his determination to prevent Central America from being used as a battleground between Nicaragua and the United States.

Educated in Costa Rica, the United States, and Great Britain, Arias served with distinction as Costa Rica's minister of planning from 1972 to 1977 and as general secretary of the moderately socialist National Liberation Party from 1979 to 1984. As president he tried to maintain Costa Rica's neutrality, political stability, high cultural level, and relative prosperity, despite serious economic problems. Dr. Sanchez's efforts to end the strife in Central America earned him the Nobel Peace Prize in October 1987.

"How beautiful it is that these characteristics of the Hispanic culture are so broad and far reaching. They free us from the shackles of identifying ourselves with only one color, one accent or flag. Being Hispanic makes us diverse and being diverse makes us free."

-Remarks by Oscar Arias Sanchez to the members of the Oscar Arias Sanchez Society, December 2, 1992.