Volunteer Posts
Changing the World
May 3, 2013
A few Winrock Volunteer Technical Assistance staff attended the Business4Better conference & expo in Anaheim, California this week. It was an exciting conference focused on matching businesses with nonprofits to forge partnerships for the greater good. There were many “aha!” moments and points of inspiration during the two-day event. Driven by the collective energy of […]
Earth Day
April 22, 2013
Happy Earth Day! With growing populations and poor waste management systems in so many countries around the world, our planet faces many human-made health hazards, environmental pollution, and water contamination. Winrock’s Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) volunteers promote environmental protection in every country where we work. For example, with volunteer assistance, one Bangladeshi NGO now produces 31,200 kg […]
First Impressions
April 15, 2013
One of the rewarding things about our jobs as Farmer-to-Farmer staff is to facilitate and witness volunteers’ journeys to unknown territories. Farmer-to-Farmer volunteer Howard Prussack beautifully describes his first impressions of El Salvador below: This was the first volunteer assignment in Central America that I have participated in. I really knew nothing about this country […]
Community Assessments in El Salvador
April 3, 2013
A graduate student team from George Washington University just finished up their assignment in El Salvador, where they were conducting community assessments to create a set of indicators that help farmers measure their own progress. It was a dynamic, empowering assignment, for both the volunteers and the beneficiaries. Their blog (linked below) captures highlights of […]
Speaking the Same Language
March 28, 2013
“One thing I have noticed by working on Farmer-to-Farmer is that even though we may speak different languages and have different cultures, we speak the same language through agriculture. Most of the challenges to the farmers in Mali are very similar to my business problems as a cattle producer such as weather, access to financing, […]
Inspiration and Generous Donations
March 21, 2013
Winrock Farmer-to-Farmer volunteer Anais Troadec traveled to Guinea in Nov/Dec 2012 to provide organizational development training for rice growers cooperatives/unions and beekeeping cooperatives. During her time in Nialya, Guinea, she formed strong bonds with the women, men, and children in the village. Inspired by her trip, Anais returned to the US and spoke about her […]
Taking Time to Smell the Coffee in Ethiopia
March 17, 2013
Here’s another personal blog entry from volunteer Dave Pearce from his trip to Ethiopia. Taking a moment to soak in the culture is always an important part of every volunteer trip. Sometimes, the simplest things are the most memorable! One of my biggest joys and memories while volunteering in Ethiopia was the Saturday / Sunday […]
International Women’s Day
March 8, 2013
It’s International Women’s Day! Looking back on all of the great work our volunteers have done with women around the world, one of the programs that stands out in our minds is our USAID-funded Partnership for Safe Poultry (PSPK) program in Kenya, which, like our other Farmer-to-Farmer programs, fielded US volunteers to provide training and […]
Improved International Understanding
March 1, 2013
One of the important goals of the Farmer-to-Farmer program is to improve international understanding. There are so many examples of how this happens, on every volunteer assignment. While thinking about her trip to Guinea, volunteer Heather Davidson explains what this has meant for her: “I am very pleased with the outcome of the Farmer-to-Farmer training […]
Valentine’s Day in Ethiopia
February 15, 2013
Last week, we received a blog post from one of our Farmer-to-Farmer volunteers, Dave Pearce, in Ethiopia. Here’s a snapshot of his trip, in his own words: Thursday, Valentines Day in Lera, Ethiopia (Lera is a small ((mostly Muslim)) community of 15,000, 260 KM south and west of Addis Ababa. 2600 meters above sea level, […]