Ariel Dansky is volunteering with us in El Salvador for two and a half months. She chronicles her time in country on her personal blog. Dansky is assisting the Salvadorian Chamber of Commerce with expanding the market for plantain leaves, through a grant from the UNDP. In her blog, she looks at both the cultural and technical side of working in El Salvador.

Check out her most recent entry here!

Katie Hicks has been volunteering and traveling through Myanmar (Burma) with her husband since early June. Read about her trip, in her own words, below:

When my husband and I decided to travel halfway around the world to do a volunteer assignment with Winrock International in Myanmar, I truly didn’t know what to expect. I was excited about the opportunity, but nervous about living and working in a country that had only recently opened up to visitors from the United States. As my assignment nears its completion, I can honestly say that my time here has been better than I could have ever imagined, which is exactly why I’d strongly encourage anyone who has a few weeks of free time and a valuable set of skills to volunteer with Winrock International through the USAID Farmer-to-Farmer Program!

My assignment with Sai’s Tacos – a social enterprise and restaurant that is focused on providing economic opportunities to individuals from Myanmar’s Shan State – has been both challenging and rewarding. The truth is, though, I think that would have been the case no matter what organization served as my host because the people of this beautiful country are so amazing. Throughout my time here I have been amazed with the way in which they have wholeheartedly taken an interest in and responded to my assignment.

Perhaps the best example of this is from a man from Maing Thouk, a small village on the eastern shore of Inle Lake (one of Myanmar’s most visited places), named U Thein Linn. For the past ten years, U Thein has worked as a trekking guide, which has provided him an opportunity to learn some English and get acquainted with the needs and desires of Western tourists. Unfortunately, in the past year, U Thein has suffered from knee problems and, as a result, can no longer guide treks. He and his wife still runs a small tour operation in Nyaung Shwe, the major tourist hub for Inle Lake, but after spending a few minutes talking with him it is easy to tell that he misses his old job. In addition to his tour company, he is also helping his mother and six younger siblings expand their modest restaurant in Maing Thouk, which is where I first met U Thein.

After telling U Thein why I was at Inle Lake – to explore potential expansion opportunities for Sai’s Tacos and to locate local sources of produce (the region produces some of the country’s best eggplant, tomatoes, cabbage, cauliflower, cucumbers, peas and beans) – he quickly took an interest and offered to help – without me even asking! I thought this would entail putting me in touch with a few people or making a few recommendations on what to do, but after meeting him the following morning as he requested, it became obvious that U Thein was genuinely interested in helping me in my assignment. We spent the next four hours biking around Nyaung Shwe, exploring property that he knew was for sale or rent. After lunch at his family’s restaurant – a lunch that he wouldn’t allow me to pay for – we spent another two hours talking about sourcing produce for the restaurant from the Inle Lake area. I would have never been able to get so much accomplished without U Thein, and he offered his services without even being asked. I will always remember U Thein’s generosity and kindness.

Katie explores possible restaurant locations with her friend, U Thein Linn, in his home village of Maing Thouk

Hopefully, as a result of my assignment, Sai’s Tacos will be able to expand to Inle Lake in the near future. If it does, it would be my pleasure to return to Myanmar and treat U Thein to lunch. He deserves it.

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As Katie explains, Sai’s Tacos is a for-profit social enterprise and Mexican restaurant established in 2008 with an aim of providing employment and income opportunities for people from Myanmar’s Shan State. In addition to hiring workers from Shan State, the restaurant also sources as many food products as possible from this region. The purpose of Katie’s assignment was to help Sai’s Tacos sustainably expand its operations, providing employment and income opportunities for additional beneficiaries.

Sai’s Tacos

The last photo (below) shows how Myanmar’s Intha people, who have have lived and worked on the waters of Inle Lake for generations, cultivate floating gardens, which they create by intertwining reeds that grow around the lake into long buoyant rows. Mud from the lake’s floor is then piled on top and mixed with the dense hyacinth weed from the lakebed for fertilization. How beautiful!

Beautiful floating gardens

Thanks very much to Katie for a job well done!

Burt Hicks is finishing up his first volunteer assignment with Winrock in Myanmar (Burma). He describes his rewarding experience below:

Over the course of the past two months, my wife and I have worked as volunteer consultants in Myanmar with Winrock International through the USAID Farmer-to-Farmer Program. While I was the one that was supposed to spend the summer providing knowledge and training to farmers and processors within the fishery sector, as I reflect upon my time here, I believe that I have received more than I gave. This is not because of a lack of effort on my part; rather, it is because of the way in which the people with whom I have had the pleasure of working have treated me.

My assignment has given me the opportunity to travel extensively throughout the Ayerwaddy River Delta. This is an area where the land is extremely fertile, and where people have generations of experience in agricultural enterprises. If the farmers here can obtain access to capital, better seeds and better technology, the aquaculture and agricultural sectors in Myanmar has the potential to see rapid growth – and this will be one of the major areas to lead that growth.

Traveling here makes one feel that they have traveled back in time 80 or 100 years ago. Farmers cultivate the plots of land with plows powered by the brute strength of two water buffalos or cows. They transport their harvest in small wooden boats loaded to the brim. And they tackle each day with an abundance of optimism, even when it seems – at least, to my biased Western eyes – that life could be so much easier for these wonderful and beautiful people.

Plowing a filed the hard (and old) way

Local farmers transporting their harvest up the river

Even though the average annual family income in this region is far less than $1,000, I am treated to tea and a meal fit for a king at each of my stops. One of my favorite dining experiences was in the small town of Twante. On this day, I had visited the fish farms owned by the chairman of the regional fish farming association to discuss a transition from a low-value fish to tilapia, a fish that has the potential to increase his farm’s income significantly. After telling me about the devastating impact Cyclone Nargis had on his operations and how he is still struggling some five years later, he invites me to join him and his family for lunch. I was expecting some rice and deep fried whole fish, but when I stepped-off the boat into his house built on stilts, the table was covered with several dishes made from local produce, various types of curries, three different types of fish, loads of fresh fruit and, of course, rice. I was absolutely blown away by his generosity. And this type of thing happened on numerous occasions over the past several weeks.

Sharing a meal with the fish farmer and his family

I will leave Myanmar at the end of next week. I believe my assignment will have a positive impact for a number of businesses operating in the fishery sector, although I hope to have the opportunity to come back here and do more. Needless to say my time in Myanmar has been a great lesson on giving more than I receive.

Presenting to the Myanmar Fisheries Federation

Volunteer Joe Sullivan describes one of his hosts in Mali to be “a real spark plug who worked harder than anyone and had the will and commitment to overcome all obstacles.”

Inspired by this host (named Yacouba) and committed to the relationship that formed while he was volunteering in Mali, Joe recently purchased and shipped new equipment to help Yacouba continue to make improvements in his fish processing business.

Joe explains, “I am very impressed with how hard Yacouba works and how committed he is. A few dollars to help someone like him out is money well spent. I love helping people like that.”

From our perspective, Joe is a bit of a spark plug himself, showing continued will and committment to making a real difference.

Thanks so much, Joe! Your generosity is very much appreciated!

Demetria Arvanitis, VTA Program Director, and Howard Prussack, an organic farmer and F2F volunteer, had the chance to dine with Chef Ismail Samad at the Gleanery, located in Putney, Vt. With menus changing rather frequently (sometimes daily), the Gleanery is a community supported restaurant that connects local farmers, producers, and consumers by offering the best of the best of local and seasonal foods. The restaurant also offers “irregular” or surplus crops that some consumers might shy away from, by providing an extensive canning and preserving program to farmers.

The Gleanery has contributed to sustainability and the viability of the farmland and has offered consumers an enticing and gracious experience. The operational model of the Gleanery is the same as an agricultural CSA, in which customers pay farmers in bulk for produce at the beginning of the season, and in return receive weekly boxes of farm fresh products. The Gleanery redeems memberships in the form of monthly credits that can be used at the restaurant. By purchasing memberships, community members help raise start-up capital and the restaurant redeems memberships for monthly credits on food. In return, the community benefits by having a fabulous place to eat!
http://www.thegleanery.com