Growing Knowledge & Building Partnerships

Ms. Uribe being interviewed on Nicaraguan television Alexandra MacMillan Uribe, a Nutrition PhD candidate at the University of Wisconsin, traveled to Nicaragua in February 2016 to promote the nutritional value of Nicaraguan beef and milk in the context of a healthy diet to increase awareness and stimulate demand for these products. This was accomplished through several television, radio, and newspaper interviews throughout Nicaragua. Ms. Uribe also trained senior marketing and branding officials at the Nicaraguan Institute for Development (INDE), the Nicaraguan Chamber of the Meat Industry (CANICARNE) and the National Cattleman’s Commission of Nicaragua (CONAGAN) about the nutritional value and potential health benefits of pasture-raised beef and milk. Reflecting on her media appearances, Ms. Uribe shared: “I was asked many questions about beef and some about milk. I had explained that milk was important because it is a rich source of calcium and most national dietary recommendat

Cooking demonstrations are an important component of the Haiti Nutrition Security Program. According to evidence from parents participating in the program, the opportunity to contribute and participate actively in the preparation of nutrient-dense meals increases their capacity to more effectively combat malnutrition at home. Below is a recipe used in NSP cooking demonstrations in Haiti. Pumpkins are rich in Vitamin A, a nutrient vital for growth and development.  Joumounad - Pumpkin-Rice Pot Ingredients: Preparing for cooking demonstration  200g rice 400g/14oz pumpkin, cubed (after peeling and removing the seeds) 3-4 carrots, diced Leafy greens 4-5 potatoes, diced Handful of c abbage,  roughly chopped  12 oz crab meat 1 lemon 4 garlic cloves, crushed 1 large onion, chopped Instructions: 1. Boil pumpkin and potatoes until tender; drain and set aside water. 2. Puree a portion of the cooked pumpkin and potatoes and set aside. 3. Add 2 tablespoons of cooking oil to a pot; drop

In recognition of World Water Day, we are highlighting a recent F2F assignment focused on water quality and water management in the Dominican Republic. Every year on this day, the UN World Water Development Report is launched and starts conversations about how best to manage our world’s most abundant natural resource, especially for those members of the global population who suffer the most from water scarcity and related issues.  Collecting water samples Erin Menzies recently completed her first F2F volunteer assignment in the Dominican Republic. Her work was focused on developing methodologies and procedures to measure the physical, biological, and chemical parameters of water quality at banana packing houses and training banana producers at small packing houses on improved practices and methods to maintain and/or improve water quality. Ms. Menzies has extensive experience working in sustainable international agriculture. She holds a degree in environmental engineering, and s

Kishé products Since 2014, Partners of the Americas’ Farmer-to-Farmer program has collaborated with the Federación Comercializadora de Café Especial de Guatemala (FECCEG). FECCEG was founded in 2006 and was originally comprised of eight cooperatives and associations of small producers interested in consolidating their coffee production and independently processing their coffee for niche specialty markets. To date, Partners of the Americas has sent three F2F volunteers to work with FECCEG. In January 2015, Michael Drankwalter was the first. During his assignment, Mr. Drankwalter traveled to eight different communities in Guatemala where FECCEG was working to conduct trainings on proper beekeeping and honey production. As FECCEG’s coffee is produced organically, many producers have turned to apiculture and honey production to manage pests on the farm and diversify income sources. F2F volunteer Willis Brown participating in a coffee cupping demonstration In March 2015, Wi

F2F volunteer Carmen Pacheco-Borden with one of her training groups Carmen Pacheco-Borden recently traveled to Panama on a F2F assignment in Tomato Processing and Canning with Partners of the Americas. F2F has been working with participants in Partners' EducaFuturo program which focuses on reducing child labor in the region. In a joint effort to improve the livelihoods of families and reduce child labor, EducaFuturo and F2F are working together to build the local capacity of community members. Ms. Pacheco-Borden shares about her experiences below: "This project provided me with the opportunity to work with native Ngabe-Bugle women in two rural villages, where the potential to help and make a difference was huge. I was able to conduct hands-on training to process tomatoes in my native language. Because my family immigrated to the United States when I was twelve, improving and maintaining my Spanish has been a life-long goal. [...] In 2013, I felt my roots pulling me ba

F2F field officer, Elisa Estrada Elisa Estrada has worked for Partners of the Americas for over eight years. In Nicaragua, she plays a large role in ensuring that our USAID-funded Farmer-to-Farmer program is operating efficiently and with high quality. Last week, we interviewed her to get her thoughts on what it is like  working for the Farmer-to-Farmer program, as well as  being a woman in Nicaragua .  What about the Farmer-to-Farmer program has inspired you to work for so long? En Nicaragua para mí ser Oficial de Campo ha sido una gran oportunidad de cumplir mi sueño de hacer trabajo comunitario, de compartir conocimiento. Siempre he creído en la gente y en la oportunidad que necesitan las personas para fortalecer sus capacidades y mejorar su calidad de vida. Este no es un trabajo tradicional con horario convencional. To be a field officer in Nicaragua has been a great opportunity to fulfill my dream to do community work, to share knowledge. I have always believed in pe

¡Se  puede trabajar con manicura! ¡Feliz Día Internacional de la Mujer! Para celebrar este importante  día , Andrea Fión G óngora , nuestra Oficial del Campo, nos comparte sus pensamientos sobre como es ser mujer trabajando para el programa de Farmer-to-Farmer en Guatemala. Me llamo Andrea, soy oficial de campo para el programa F2F en Guatemala. En unos pocos meses más cumpliré mi segundo año trabajando para Partners dentro del programa. El tiempo se ha pasado rápidamente y en el proceso he aprendido muchas cosas nuevas, cada tema es diferente para cada asignación y cada asignación es una nueva oportunidad de crecimiento personal e intelectual.  Ser mujer en Guatemala dentro del campo de agricultura no es del todo fácil, como en cualquier carrera profesional en un país en vías de desarrollo, ser mujer es en realidad un reto. Desafortunadamente Guatemala es un país histórico y culturalmente con tendencias machistas, las desigualdades van desde salarios más bajos para mujeres si

It has been just over three weeks since I arrived in the Dominican Republic working for Farmer-to-Farmer and the National School of Environment and Natural Resources in Jarabacoa and it feels like I’ve been busy every moment. But, before I get into my experiences, I should probably tell you all just who I am. My name is Ryan Kesler and I am an undergrad student studying Spanish at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW). It is my final semester at UW and I am fortunate enough to spend it here in the DR. Here I get to practice not only my Spanish skills, but also my teaching skills as I am helping the Environmental School with their English classes. Thus far it has been an excellent experience and I would like to share some of my experiences with you all. For the first two weeks, I worked with Rick Hall and Maria Moreno, two additional Farmer-to-Farmer volunteers based out of the UW-Arboretum called Earth Partnership. Earth Partnership works with communities both in Wisconsin a

Alex Matthews served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Peru from 2009-2011. In December 2015, he left for Ecuador to complete a  vegetable production assignment  for the USAID-funded Farmer-to-Farmer program  in the Amazon Basin.  The following is an excerpt from Alex's field journal during his F2F assignment. A cacao and banana farm located near Puyo "Plants want to grow. That is a simple piece of wisdom that I learned my first summer working on a vegetable farm years ago. The proof of that statement is everywhere, from the small weed growing in a crack in the pavement, to the dense, lush growth of the rainforest surrounding Puyo, where I have been living for the last two months, volunteering with Partners of the Americas' USAID-funded Farmer-to-Farmer program. What I have learned in the last ten years, however, is that while plants may want to grow, crops don’t want to grow well or productively without some helping hands.  Nowhere have I found this to be more