Volunteer Post
Another Successful Assignment in Bangladesh
Jen Snow
Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) volunteer Dr. Sanjay Shah visited the vermicomposting facility of Jyoti Development Foundation (JDF) during his assignment with Human Resource Development Organization (SETU) in Bangladesh. JDF is a humanitarian organization providing services for the disadvantaged, orphan and street children. SETU Program Manager Mr. Debesh Chandra Sarkar will use what he learned from Dr. Shah to provide technical support to JDF as a volunteer for their vermicompost and municipal waste management program. In the photo below, Dr. Shah (right) is training Mr. Sarkar on how to check moisture content and quality of vermicompost.
At the end of his assignment, Dr. Shah noted,
“I had to adapt to teach farmers to compost using more rule-of-thumb methods whereas in the US, I emphasized more scientific methods because of availability of analytical facilities and measurement devices. The host [SETU] engaged in a wide range of topics but luckily because of my broad agricultural engineering experience, I could respond to their questions satisfactorily. On a personal level, I found the people and farmers in Bangladesh more interested in what I had to say than in the U.S., and this was very encouraging. I learned a lot from my Winrock liaison Mr. Mehedi Hasan (F2F Assistant Country Director) not just about agricultural practices and extension but also about herbal pesticides. I was able to build very useful contacts and I hope that I can contribute further to the betterment of the Bangladeshi farmer.”
Dr. Shah also visited students at Sun Up International Schools. He talked to the students about the growing population in Bangladesh – and what that means for people, pollution pathways, and how pollution affects aquatic life, water, and air. He also conducted a lesson on recycling and composting as important solutions. The students enjoyed his class a lot. (see photo below)
[Thanks much, Dr. Shah!]