This article is a contribution to a four-week blog series celebrating 30 years of USAID’s John Ogonowski and Doug Bereuter Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) Program.

30 years of Farmer-to-Farmer! For a program so rich in diversity, personal and professional exchanges, and lasting impacts, there is so much we could share!

We asked current and former Winrock Farmer-to-Farmer staff to think about their favorite memories and most impactful moments over the years implementing this unique program. Their stories are inspiring and a testimony to why the program still continues three decades after it began.

Over the next four days, we will feature stories from some of these staff, in honor of both the F2F anniversary as well as International Volunteer Day on December 5^th.

To kick us off today, Winrock’s former director of volunteer technical assistance, Demetria Arvanitis, shares how F2F is like a family:

“Two weeks ago, as I was texting a former colleague traveling across Europe to alert her to the attack in Paris, I realized that even though I have left Winrock and F2F after 19 years, I will be connected for life to the F2F team, volunteers, and host organizations worldwide.

The F2F project was designed to provide practical agricultural support to farmers all over the world and also to expose American farmers to the world of international development. The deep relationships that have resulted are far beyond what could have been anticipated. Starting with the team in the US that support the recruitment and fielding of volunteers, to the country team who meets the volunteers upon arrival and takes care of their every need, to the hosts who open their homes and hearts, the commitment and loving care is the common thread.

This consideration for the safety and well-being is a core value of the relationships that developed between all members of the F2F family; and it is a family. Also part of this family are the USAID staff who have guided implementers over the years, ensuring that the quality and values of the program remain intact regardless of political changes.

The inspiration behind all of this passion and commitment is the local farmers, cooperative members, youth, and business owners struggling to provide a better life for their families. Their initiative and perseverance are so inspiring that the only option is to jump in with both feet and give it your all. From the women in Nepal who demanded support for organic agriculture years before this was popular, to the farmers in Myanmar desperate for information from the outside to help them improve their yields, our farmer family worldwide is innovative and open to change.

The global community that has resulted from the F2F program is an example of how to make the world more connected by very simple acts of kindness and connectedness. One memory that exemplifies this to me is the act of kindness by a volunteer from Maine, Pixie Day. After a very productive volunteer assignment outside of Moscow supporting goat production with Alexander Bodorov, Pixie returned home and months later drove Buck the stud goat in her beat up Chevy to Boston Logan airport to ship him to Russia to the Bodorov farm. Of course this was a surprise to the Winrock Moscow office and Alexander, but this act of selfless kindness will forever be engrained in my memory and Alexander’s!

Thanks to the full F2F Family for your big hearted efforts and commitment to creating community worldwide!”

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From November 16-December 11, F2F program partners are sharing their knowledge and experience providing technical assistance to farmers, farm groups, agribusinesses, service providers, and other agriculture sector institutions in developing and transitional countries. As aligned with Feed the Future, the U.S. Government’s global hunger and food security initiative, F2F works to support inclusive agriculture sector growth, facilitate private sector engagement in the agriculture sector, enhance development of local capacity and promote climate-smart development. Volunteer assignments address host-led priorities to expand economic growth that increases incomes and improves access to nutritious food. This blog series aims to capture and share this program experience.

Read more articles celebrating 30 years of F2F on Agrilinks

Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) volunteer Dr. Anil Shrestha is our August Volunteer of the Month for so many reasons! A professor of weed science at California State University in Fresno, CA, Dr. Shrestha was notably Winrock’s first volunteer in Nepal after this year’s devastating earthquake. Born and raised in Nepal himself, Dr. Shrestha is also an excellent example of returning to one’s roots, to give back. “After taking on my first F2F assignment (in 2014), it made me reconnect with agriculture in Nepal. I saw the potential of how I could contribute,” he explains. “I am now going back more often than before.”

Earlier this month, Dr. Shrestha returned from his 2^nd F2F trip with Winrock in Nepal , where he completed two assignments: one focused on developing a weed science program for the Agriculture and Forestry University (AFU), and another providing training for faculty and students at Uttarpani Technical School (UTS) Dhanakuta and Central Campus of Technology (CCT) Dharan on grant writing, experimental design, and data analysis.

Dr. Shrestha with trainees at CCT Dharan

Dr. Shrestha presenting to students at UTS

Dr. Shrestha presenting to AFU students on basic weed science

We are all inspired by Dr. Shrestha’s reflections on this latest volunteer trip:

“On a personal level, being one of the very few weed scientists of Nepalese origin, I am extremely grateful for having had the opportunity to volunteer in Nepal and contribute to the development and initiation of a weed science program at the Agriculture and Forestry University (AFU). I also had the opportunity to interact with the young minds and was impressed by their enthusiasm and thirst for knowledge. Being originally from Nepal, one of my personal dreams was to start a weed science program in Nepal, and clearly, had it not been this opportunity offered by Winrock/F2F, it would have probably been impossible to accomplish this desire. Nepal definitely needs such type of assistance, and the impact also seems to be immediate. Of course, it will be interesting to see the long-term impact.

People were very, very receptive and eager for the information that I took to them. They participated a lot. It was good to see that I was able to bring some changes there, even during the short duration of the assignment. The weed science curriculum that I developed went through the curriculum committee and university academic council and was adopted right away. AFU will implement it starting in January. Also, with the faculty and students that I trained at UTS and CCT, I was able to see a change right away in how they handled data during and after the training.

Having seen all the potential in Nepal in my area of expertise, I felt that I could do more by serving my sabbatical need here than in some other country. I expressed my interest in serving my sabbatical leave in Nepal, and AFU was very welcoming to this idea.”  

We asked Dr. Shrestha how U.S. universities can benefit from participating in F2F assignments. He notes, “It gives opportunities for our students in the US to learn about international opportunities. We are bringing back photos and experiences and sharing those with our students. Their interest in international opportunities increases. Volunteering with F2F benefits our university, brings visibility, and helps recruit students.”

Points of Light, which spearheads National Volunteer Week, asks, “What’s your story?”…

… so we asked our Volunteer Technical Assistance (VTA) team this very question. The VTA team is responsible for recruiting qualified volunteers and implementing Winrock’s volunteer programs around the world. What we confirmed was that volunteerism is a value and a focus in the team’s professional AND personal lives. And it’s fun!

Program Associate/Recruiter Jennifer Robinson volunteers with Rock City Rescue as a foster mom for dogs and a volunteer at Rock City’s fundraising events. She also raised over $1700 for Puppy Up!, to raise awareness about canine cancer. “I volunteer because it makes me feel good. I’m honestly happy knowing that I continue to make a difference,”she explains. “I think volunteering, making the world a little better, is absolutely the right thing!”

Program Manager Melanie Berman has volunteered for the Little Rock Sister Cities Commission since 2013, and is the commission’s secretary and co-liaison to the sister city of Hanam City, South Korea this year. “I volunteer to stay involved in my community,”she explains. Melanie is looking forward to chaperoning a youth leadership delegation on a trip to Hanam City later this year.

Program Associate/Recruiter Angela Kraszewski volunteers with the Uganda Village Project, which promotes public health in villages in rural Uganda. Angela says, “I volunteer with UVP because I believe in and support their mission to facilitate community health and well-being. My involvement with the internship program was a wonderful and eye-opening experience, and I really enjoy sharing my knowledge with future interns.”

M&E/Outreach Director Jen Snow volunteered the last two years as a host family and mentor for international students participating in the Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship program. She volunteers because “what better way is there to make a meaningful connection with others?” 

What’s your story? #NVW2015