Category Archives: sustainable agriculture

Heifer increases goat productivity in Nepal

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In January Heifer launched its dream project for Nepal, Strengthening Livestock Value Chain (SLVC). Its goals are to increase meat and milk production to substitute current imports and create a unique value chain for meat and milk that incorporates smallholder farmers not only in the production phase but also in marketing it. But there was a glitch. Over the years degradation of genetic merit in goats resulted in lower levels of productivity. In layman’s terms, they had fewer babies who did not grow as well and farmers could not sell them for good prices.

Farmers of Ladavir in the Sindhuli district in eastern foothills of Nepal are a part of a unique classroom under the Community Initiative for Genetic Improvement in Goats (CIGIG). Here they learn about how to improve production of goats through selective breeding. These farmers are not new to rearing goats but what they learn in this classroom will teach them to do so in a more scientific way through observation and intervention. To put it simply, it’s the Mendel’s Law in action. A pool of healthy genetically superior does and bucks will be produced by the end of the project and will be marketed across communities around the country to in-turn increase their production. Ladavir will be a training ground and resource village for genetically superior high productivity goats.

Heifer’s work around the world is not just limited giving animals and agricultural inputs if farmers but also extends to doing what needs to be done to bridge the gaps between the present that the future that Heifer envisioned together with the families it works with. CIGIG is one such initiative.

Participants of the first CIGIG class mull over a poster that depicts how to select a good male and female goat from physical traits for breeding.

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Heifer CEO in Nepal: First Steps into Sustainability

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On his first day in Nepal, Heifer International President and CEO Pierre Ferrari found himself among a group of withdrawn yet excited women in an unused classroom in the village of Kabilash in Chitwan district, a jostling 45-minute drive uphill on a dirt track that was patched up from recent landslides especially for his visit. The ethnic tribal women spoke of the challenges of and their aspirations for Heifer’s signature project, of which they were going to be a part. This was a first for Ferrari. Having traveled through Nepal in February 2011 and having heard about the country’s achievements in implementing transformational projects ever since he joined Heifer, Ferrari was more accustomed to strong women displaying confidence. “It validated the time and money we put into trainings to build the social capital to strengthen and transform women,” said Ferrari.

The women in Kabilash are part of a groundbreaking effort in Nepal that will scale up Heifer’s work to end poverty and hunger by increasing goat and milk production by helping women farmers increase production and enabling them to take part in the value chain through cooperatives formed and led by women. The overarching goal of the project, reducing importation of live goats and milk, will increase income for smallholder farmers through increased production and participation in the value chain, which will ensure that they get a fair share of the profits.

Heifer’s plan in this beautiful but resource-poor community is to establish sustainable partnerships with the local government, which is a co-funder of the project. “Our five-year plan consists of improving livestock and agriculture to help the people of this village escape poverty,” said Village Development Committee Secretary Pradhumna Khadka. “So when Heifer came to me with an opportunity to partner, I accepted it without any reservations.”

This is a partnership that works for all. Because after Heifer completes its work in Kabilash, it can be assured that the impacts will be exponential. “By this time, Heifer will have strengthened the farmers, the cooperative they form, and the agents of development, the government organizations, who are there to stay,” said Parbati Rawal, executive director of SRAM, a Heifer local partner NGO that will implement the project in Kabilash.

Heifer Nepal is geared up to implement similar projects in 28 districts of Nepal in the next five—an ambitious plan that has already been able to seek support in forms of resource leverage and collaborative partnerships from the national and local government and other development agencies.

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An Ode to Bolivia

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This monkey named Boris chased chickens and stole sun-dried beef in the village of San Jose del Cavitu, so the locals now keep him as a pet. Boris is well cared for, but will happily pickpocket strangers given the chance. Photo by Jason Woods

I’ll hedge and say that it could have something to do with jet lag, or changes in altitude, or even something in the water, but anytime I visit a new country where Heifer works, auspices of magic immediately distract and I spend much of my trip wondering if, perhaps, I’m hallucinating. It’s never anything ghostly or alarming, just sights so surreal that I’m bewitched, amazed, delighted. Is there such thing as a traveler’s high?

My first surprise, upon landing in Santa Cruz, was the flurry of kisses that didn’t let up the entire 9-day trip. The customary Bolivian greeting between two women or a man and a woman is a kiss on the cheek. It’s a bit awkward at first, but who can quibble with such a charming welcome? Far superior to a handshake, in my book.

Clusters of butterflies gather on roadsides and on trails in the Amazon region of Bolivia. Photo by Jason Woods

And then, consider the capybara. These squee-worthy creatures populate the roadsides and riverbanks of the Bolivian Amazon. The world’s largest rodent, capybaras look like sleek, super-sized guinea pigs and can grow up to 100 pounds. When startled, capybaras emit kazoo-like sounds and immediately belly flop into the nearest body of water. Seriously! Neither I nor my travel companions managed to snap any capybara photos, leaving me to question, in retrospect, whether such an adorable creature actually exists.

We were further enchanted by the pink dolphins splashing in the rivers and the parrots and toucans flying overhead. “Is that an emu?” I asked our driver as we zipped down a muddy road. Turns out it was a rhea, a giant bird native to South America that can reach up to 90 pounds and nearly six feet tall.

Monkeys whooped at us from the trees as we sped by on motorbikes, headed to the shadowy chocolate forest where giant blue butterflies looped through the trees. Did you know that the juicy white fruits inside chocolate pods turn a bright purple when you chew them? I must report, however, that the charm of the chocolate forest ebbed under attack from the clouds of mosquitoes that nibbled our faces and left bloody specks on our clothes. We were also under siege from chiggers, although we didn’t realize that until hours later when we peeled off our socks.

But back to the kisses. The best part of the trip, of course, was the people we met. The purpose of our visit was to chronicle the work and progress of Heifer project participants who are amping up chocolate harvests, protecting the forests and working together to process cocoa at high quality and large quantities to secure good prices. They’re doing a pretty phenomenal job of it. This success story will appear in World Ark magazine later this year, although I may give a few glimpses of their work on this blog before then.

Hilaria Moye of San Jose Del Cavitu displays the skull of a jaguar her husband killed while out hunting. Photo by Jason Woods

Pastel dolphins and snuggly rodents aside, Bolivia is a real place with real challenges. Our visit was limited to the lowlands of Bolivia, where wild fruit is abundant and starchy crops like corn, yucca and rice grow easily, but malnutrition is still a problem because protein and nutrient-rich vegetables are harder to secure. Jobs outside the agriculture sector are rare, so incomes are low to non-existent. Some of the project participants are prosperous enough to live in houses made of bricks, but others live under palm thatch roofs held up by sticks.

The tools Bolivians have to overcome these hardships are a culture built on community and a fruitful ecosystem that can provide ample food and incomes if it’s well protected.

Elizabeth Franco Rodriguez, the president of the chocolate gatherer’s group in northeastern Bolivia’s Jasiaquiri village, is well aware of both her country’s charms and challenges. The hot, hard work of chocolate harvesting isn’t so great when you come home covered in ticks, or when the mosquitoes infect you with dengue fever, she said. But it’s a family event, and she usually brings children, nieces and nephews along. At her home, shared with extended family, everyone stays busy. Chocolate seeds ferment in the sun, children grind yucca to make starch, and Rodriguez’s sister-in-law makes cheese in the breezeway. But that evening, when the work is done, the whole family will go into the nearby town of Baures to spend a couple of hours mingling and resting in the plaza, along with hundreds of others. It’s back to the forest to harvest chocolate again the next day, and the mosquitoes would no doubt be waiting. Rodriguez never complained.

“I just find it so exotic and beautiful,” I told her as we tromped through vines and underbrush. The translator conferred with Rodriguez, and she nodded. “She says yes, it’s that way for us, too.”

Check out this tree trunk covered in thorns. Amazing! Photo by Jason Woods

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Container Gardens From Malawi

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Kasungu Sustainable Agriculture & Natural Resource Management PrHere’s a clever idea from the industrious women of Gideon village in Malawi, who grow heaps of healthy greens right beside their front doors.

Grace Banda, a 28-year-old mother of four, keeps a line of burlap sack gardens planted with cabbage in front of her house. It saves her from trekking to her garden when she needs something green for cooking, and it could save you a trip to the grocery store.

To make your own container gardens using Banda’s method, you’ll need a large burlap sack, gravel, a tin can with both ends cut out, potting soil and goat berries. If you’re plum out of goat manure, compost works fine, too.

Kasungu Sustainable Agriculture & Natural Resource Management PrStep 1: Put the can in the bottom of the sack and fill it with gravel. Pour equal parts soil and compost around it, up to the top of the can.

Step 2: Slide the can up to the surface of the dirt, refill it with rocks and fill the area around the can with the soil and compost mix.

Kasungu Sustainable Agriculture & Natural Resource Management Pr

Step 3: Repeat step 2 until the sack is full.

Step 4: Cut staggered openings about 6 inches long along the sides, and plant seeds in the holes.

Kasungu Sustainable Agriculture & Natural Resource Management PrThe cylinder of gravel inside the sack helps distribute and drain the water, ensuring that none of the plantings get too wet or too dry.

If you try your hand at sack gardening yourself, please send us a photo. Thanks!

Photos by Russell Powell

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From the Field: Heifer’s Work Around the World

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This weekly post shines a light on a handful of stories from Heifer.org’s “From the Field” section.

No matter where in the world you go, Heifer’s there, and success is just a project participant away. Heifer empowers families to escape poverty, surpass sustenance and achieve significant success.

Rolly, from the Philippines, has realized huge success by using and selling vermicast, an organic fertilizer made with the use of African nightcrawler earthworms. Learn more about Rolly and his family in Project Participant Makes Compost Into a Sustainable Family Livelihood.

Fishing off the coast of Ecuador

A group of determined fishermen and women in Ecuador no longer pay exorbitant fees to rent a boat and dock. They developed a plan to purchase their own and, within two years, did just that. Read Sustainable Fishing on the Ecuador Coast to learn how they are planning to expand their fleet.

Choratan is a beautiful, yet dangerous, cross-border village in Armenia. Despite living in the constant shadow of Azeri snipers, residents continue to work hard for a better life. Cow Becomes ’Helper and Feeder’ for Lazaryan Family tells the success story of one tight-knit family and their cow.

In 2009, Heifer’s Sierra Leone program and Pennsylvania’s Arcadia University formed an intern partnership. Since then, seven students have interned in Sierra Leone. Check out Heifer Sierra Leone Hosts Visitors from Arcadia University to learn more about this successful collaboration.

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Better Living Through Improved Cookstoves

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Improved cookstoves improve life in a variety of ways. More spacious stoves can accommodate multiple pots at one time, significantly reducing the time it takes to make dinner. With improved ventilation methods, families don’t have to inhale dangerous smoke. A decreased reliance on firewood means healthier soil. The list goes on and on.

These photos were taken in Lower Gweru, Mdubiwa Ward, Matshina Village, Zimbabwe, where the community was recently outfitted with improved cookstoves.

Before: outdoor open-fire cookstove

Open-fire stoves are typically surrounded by smoke and the smell of burning wood. They require large amounts of firewood to cook for the entire family. Each dish must wait its turn because these stoves only hold two pots at a time. Soot builds up on the bottom of the pots and it takes a lot of time to start a fresh fire for more cooking.

After: improved indoor cookstove

In the photo above, a woman proudly displays her new improved cookstove. She is able to cook three pots at once and use residual heat on the corner of the stove to warm an additional pot of water to use later for bathing. The new stove is conveniently located indoors, where it is safe from the weather, and features a vent that funnels the exhaust outside.

 
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Drought in the U.S. Causing Many to Suffer

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Is it hot and dry where you are? Here in Little Rock, Arkansas, it most certainly is. I’m sure you’ve heard that the United States is experiencing the worst drought on record since the 1950s. For my family it’s meant less time on playgrounds and more time at the children’s museum. My neighbor’s tree has been dropping leaves in our yard like it’s fall. Our electricity bill will be considerably higher this summer than usual.

The bigger picture, though, is so much worse.

From the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration:

Hot temperatures and low precipitation have created a visible impact across the nation: stressed and dying vegetation. NOAA’s satellites are used to measure the impact of drought on vegetation, and in many ways, the ability to measure the impact on vegetation provides a more readily understandable way to measure drought. This animation shows monthly composites of vegetation health index derived from data from the AVHRR sensor on-board the NOAA POES satellite. Areas colored in shades of orange are experiencing moderate through exceptional drought conditions and are consistent with areas of vegetation stress.

Right. So vegetation = trees, grass, bushes, flowers, food crops. The United States is the world’s largest exporter of corn, soy and wheat. With our crops turning to dust and blowing away, the world’s grain markets are in a precarious position. If corn gets too expensive or the supply is too low, that spills over into the wheat market, which is next in line as a source of livestock feed. Rice would suffer next. An article in the Guardian stated:

Ruth Kelly, Oxfam’s food policy adviser, said: “The toxic combination of a heatwave in the US, which is decimating corn harvests, and the unwavering global demand for biofuels, is again pushing the price of basic food stuffs higher and higher.”

Richard Volpe, a research economist with the US department of agriculture, said prices of beef, pork, poultry and dairy products could be the first to soar.

Image from New York Times

This seems like a no-brainer, but when food prices climb, people go hungry and are malnourished. And they get angry. Last time we had a global food crisis, we saw riots in 30+ countries. According to Save the Children’s annual child development index, the number of children who are hungry and malnourished grew for the first time in the past 10 years. They are saying hunger is the “most urgent threat to children worldwide and threatens to drag back progress in saving and improving their lives.” We don’t get to pick when droughts happen. And with the global food market so intricately connected, a drought in the United States can spell trouble for the world’s hungry children.

Diverse small farm in Ecuador

A diverse small farm in Ecuador. Photo courtesy of Heifer International.

A significant part of the work we do with farmers around the world is to help reduce their vulnerabilities to external forces like a drought in the United States. In fact, that’s one way to measure a family’s sustained exit out of poverty: in times of crisis, can the family still provide for themselves or affordably source enough nutritious food every day? A family farm with a small herd of goats, flock of laying hens, crop of livestock fodder, diverse kitchen garden and rain-collecting cistern will be much less vulnerable to rising global grain prices than a farm producing a single crop.

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Striving for Success in Armenia

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Vachagan Badalyan leads his cow back from pasture

Photo by Aram Petrosyan, Courtesy of Heifer International

Story and Photo by: Aram Petrosyan, Program Coordinator, Heifer Armenia

Recently while driving back from the regular monitoring of Heifer’s Chinari Cattle Breeding Project, our team saw project participant Vachagan Badalyan leading his cow back from the pasture. We stopped to greet him and asked him to discuss his success with us. The Badalyans, who live in the village of Choratan in Tavush region, joined the project in 2008. They received a cow from Heifer Armenia, and they have come to be recognized by one of the most diligent project participant families in their village. Vachagan and his wife Manushak have three children: daughters Lusine, 22, and Tatev, 20, and son Narek, 9.

The family fulfilled their Passing on the Gift® responsibility in 2011, but they still keep in touch with Heifer Armenia and enthusiastically shared their success and experiences with us.

“Now we have four animals in our barn,” Vachagan said. “We have the cow that Heifer provided to us; its calf, which has grown into a heifer, and two more calves. The last one was born two months ago. We get 10-12 liters of milk per day. When our pregnant heifer delivers we hope our income will increase even more. What Heifer does is unbelievable. It takes families out of poverty. More importantly, it provides its project participants with knowledge and skills we can use throughout our entire lives.”

Before getting support from Heifer, the family was desperate. They had absolutely nothing. No animals, no job and no stable income. Their nutrition consisted only of vegetables like potatoes, corn, cucumbers and beets that they grew on the tiny piece of land behind their house.

The family’s condition is much more stable now. They have milk and other homemade dairy products daily. Vachagan sells the surplus of milk and vegetables to buy bread, meat and fruit for the family. Their nutrition has greatly improved.

“I’m happy to share my success story with you. Pass on many thanks to your diligent staff, and we send the best wishes to all Heifer donors,” Vachagan said.

Seeing the impact of your work on other people makes you want to work harder and strive to help as many people as you can.

Heifer’s Small Farmer Project is making a huge difference in the lives of Armenian families like Vachagan’s. Learn how you can help.

 

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Heifer Gets $8.5 Million From Gates Foundation for Africa Dairy Work

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One of Heifer International’s biggest projects is EADD – the East Africa Dairy Development project. It was started in 2008 with a $42.8 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. It’s helping about 179,000 small-scale dairy farmers to double their incomes.

The Kosgei family in Nandi County, Kenya, are participants in the East Africa Dairy Development project.

Now, we’re happy to announce that we’ve received a one-year, $8.5 million grant from the Gates Foundation to continue that work. The grant will support existing projects in Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda and explore possibilities for expansion in Ethiopia and Tanzania.

Transporters in Uganda pour a day's milk into containers at a farmers' coorperative.

 

“We are excited for the opportunity to continue serving dairy farming families and grateful to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for their support,” says Elizabeth Bintliff, vice president of Heifer International’s Africa area program.

So what, exactly does EADD do? The project helps small dairy farmers sustainably increase their milk productivity and efficiency. It also helps them sell more milk by connecting to markets and by creating and expanding infrastructure like collection hubs and chilling plants.

EADD is now in its final year of the pilot phase. It has grown to be one of the leading market-oriented agro-livestock development initiatives in East Africa, earning the farming families more than $35 million.

Heifer International is implementing the project, with help from partners TechnoServe, The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), World Agroforestry Research Institute and Africa Breeders Services.

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Climate Change and the Hungry

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In the last few years we’ve seen how the changing climate has affected vulnerable people and places. Famine was declared in Somalia last year after the annual rains failed. Millions more are on the brink of famine in the Sahel right now for similar reasons. Food prices jumped at the beginning of 2012 after an extremely cold winter in Europe drove up the price wheat and extreme heat in Southern Africa did the same for maize and other crops.

If these trends continue, it’s possible that the number of hungry will rise by 20% according to the World Health Organization. The numbers were announced at last week’s Rio+20 summit in Brazil. 

From the article: The WHO analysis shows that of the 495 million women and children under age 5 who are undernourished, 150 million live in Africa, 315 million in Asia and 30 million in Latin America and the Caribbean. It expects about 465 million more will live in developing countries by 2020, boosting food demand.

While it is important that those who need emergency aid receive it, news like this requires planning for the long term. Heifer International focuses on exactly that: long-term solutions that enable small farmers to be better prepared when crises hit.

Read our other posts on the Rio+20 Summit and why it is important to Heifer here.

 

 

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Uganda Biogas Project Wins “Best Practice” Award

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Photo by Russell Powell

Heifer International has employed some ingenious solutions to third-world problems over the years. Now, one project has received a “Best Practices and Innovations” award from InterAction, a coalition of nonprofits focused on development.

Heifer’s Uganda biogas project eases the workload of rural women and improves their health by providing a safe, renewable and cheap source of fuel – a fuel that’s much cleaner than firewood. The technique uses cattle and pig waste to produce methane gas for lighting and cooking. The dung is collected in a “digester,” where microbes break it down and release methane, which can be captured in a cylinder or piped straight into the home.

InterAction’s technical review committee noted the impressive results achieved by Heifer International Uganda’s biogas project, especially the improvements in living conditions and incomes in rural communities. The committee was also impressed with the project’s promotion of women’s participation, as well as the strong collaboration with the government and private sector.

Most people in rural Uganda, because they don’t have access to electricity, rely on firewood. But the supply of wood and charcoal is being quickly depleted by deforestation. Women and children spend hours gathering firewood, tending cook fires and breathing in smoke and soot.

Home biogas plants under construction.

 

The biogas project is funded by the Dutch government and began in 2009. It aims to install 12,000 biogas units by the end of 2013. The project trains both the builders and the users of the biogas plants, which are relatively simple to build. The construction enterprises working with Heifer include two run by women.

In addition to easing deforestation, the Heifer International project has lowered women and children’s risk of disease from indoor air pollution, and hygiene has improved since animal waste is no longer left close to the homes. A majority of households have reported a reduction in health care expenditures.

 

There are other benefits, too.

Bioslurry, a byproduct of the methane production, can be used as a natural fertilizer.

The bio-slurry removed from the digester at the end of the process can be used as natural fertilizer, resulting in better crop harvests. Children are able to read and study at night with gas-powered lighting. And interestingly, some men now feel more comfortable preparing light snacks and tea with user-friendly biogas stoves.

“We at Heifer International are very pleased to receive this award,” says Elizabeth Bintliff, Vice-President of Africa Programs. “It’s a huge credit to the Heifer Uganda program, highlighting one simple innovation that can solve many different problems. We hope InterAction’s recognition will help spread the word about this technique, so that we can share its benefits with many more communities.”

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Let’s Talk… Rio +20

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From June 20 to 22, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, will be hosting the United Nations Summit on Sustainable Development. The event is also known as Rio+20 because it was 20 years ago that the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, or Earth Summit, took place in the same city.

In 1992, of course, the world was a different place. Just before the Earth Summit, I had been living in West Germany. In those days, we had seen a man to walk on the moon but still could not imagine the Berlin Wall falling. But something considered impossible happened in 1989, and I watched the distinction between the First World and the Second World crumble with the wall.

In the wake of such a historic and inspiring event, the Earth Summit was brimming with optimism. The event was unprecedented in its size and potential for impact and was meant to aid governments in rethinking economic development and also to come up with ways to prevent the depletion of natural resources and production of pollutants.

One of the products of the meeting was Agenda 21, a comprehensive blueprint for sustainable development that combined environmental, social and economic elements. Previously, development was one dimensional, and the elements were considered separately.

Unfortunately, not all of the Earth Summit was inspiring, as many major players, including the United States, refused to sign key environmental agreements.

At this year’s Rio+20 Conference, according to the event’s website, “world leaders, along with thousands of participants from governments, the private sector, NGOs and other groups, will come together to shape how we can reduce poverty, advance social equity and ensure environmental protection on an ever more crowded planet to get to the future we want.”

The conference will “focus on two themes: 1) a green economy in the context of sustainable development poverty eradication; and 2) the institutional framework for sustainable development.”

Today’s backdrop isn’t post-Cold War optimism. Rio+20 comes in the wake of massive public protests: the Occupy movement and outrage at the corporate bailouts in the United States, the Arab Spring demonstrations, the indignados movement in Spain and others around the world. Potential food crises and rebellion threaten many countries globally. The participants in this year’s U.N. summit must be bold enough to confront the root causes of the public outcry and seek sustainable solutions, and all the key players must be on board for lasting changes to take place.

Heifer International is chiming into the discussion on sustainable development via our Heifer Brazil staff, who will be attending the People’s Summit, a major meeting that is parallel to Rio+20 and organized by networks of NGOs and social movements.

Together with Heifer partner organizations, staff members will engage in advocacy in the areas of sustainable agriculture, livestock, food security and food sovereignty while also accompanying the farmers’ social movement Via Campesina in its actions to advance agroecology and social justice. As an organization, we will specifically push for the following:

-A transformation of agriculture and food systems to ensure food and nutrition security, protect natural resources and support equitable development for all.

-Integrated crop/tree and livestock agriculture and rotational grazing of livestock to improve/restore grasslands and curb land loss and soil degradation.

-Sustainable livestock production systems including global support for strong animal health and welfare guidelines and practices.

-Strengthening linkages between urban and rural areas for food and nutrition security.

In terms of sustainable development, the three pillars defined in 1992 (environment, social,

Heifer Brazil project participant

economic) are incredibly important. But I think the social element should be defined to include culture. When I say culture, I don’t mean folklore, but rather the unique elements that indigenous peoples bring to a geographic area. They often bring an unparalleled knowledge of the local natural environment as well as a healthy respect for the nature that sustains them.

Additionally, we want everyone to know that the answers to many of these complicated issues are present at local levels. Farmers, fishers, indigenous peoples, campesinos—these individuals and their organizations have the solutions and they are themselves part of the solution. Their voices just need to be heard, and at Heifer, we want to do our part to make sure those voices are heard.

In the coming weeks, we will make sure to keep you updated on Heifer Brazil staff members as they participate in Rio and support small holder farmers who are speaking out. Stay tuned!

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How to End Hunger in the U.S.

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A home to 300 million people, the U.S. has an estimated 49.1 million people living in hunger and poverty. That’s one in six struggling to have enough to eat. In the land of the plenty, healthy foods aren’t accessible enough to all who are in need. So what steps can we do today to make an impact in the U.S.?

1. Learn the fact about U.S. hunger from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

2. Share the facts with your family, friends, and co-workers about the effects hunger and poverty can cause:

  • Children who do not receive an adequate diet have a harder time learning and keeping up in school.
  • Children and adults who are hungry are more vulnerable to common illnesses.
  • Adults who experience malnutrition may have weak muscles, bone or joint pain, and be unable to job related tasks at maximum speed.

3. Get involved by volunteering with organizations that provide assistance to those in need.

  • Volunteer at a soup kitchen or food bank by organizing and passing out food.
  • Donate non-perishable goods to shelters and charities in your community.
  • Invite over those in need for a meal or two a week.
  • Give without spending with these easy online tools.

Two significant pockets of poverty in the United States are the Mississippi River Delta in Arkansas and Southern Appalachia. Heifer USA is focusing its work in these two regions. Watch this video to learn more:

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From the CEO: Fighting Poverty Locally

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When some people think of hunger and poverty, they picture people struggling in different parts of the world – many of the countries where Heifer is already working. Very rarely do we picture families and individuals that are living in the United States, but it is a reality we need to recognize.

Many Americans are just one major illness or job loss away from sliding below the poverty line, and millions are already there. Roughly 46 million people in the United States live below the official poverty line. One in every five children in the country is food insecure, meaning he or she may have to forgo nutritious foods or meals all together because there’s not enough money to pay for them.

I think we overlook the poverty here in the U.S. because it is difficult to accept and it is even embarrassing. With all the abundance of resources we have, why are people still hungry? Whatever the reason is – perhaps lack of knowledge or lack of access – it is undeniable that families are struggling.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. And it is not a problem that “someone else” can fix. I want to ensure that we rid the world of hunger and poverty, and sometimes that means that the work starts at home.

I’ve received many letters or met with donors that have asked me how they can support Heifer’s work in the United States. Heifer USA recently kicked off Seeds of Change, a five-year project to support and cultivate sustainable community food systems and create jobs in Arkansas and Appalachia. In collaboration with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and other partners, Heifer USA will build a food system value chain that connects farmers with businesses , markets and their communities. I’m so excited about the outcomes from this project and most important is that this project links healthy local food and meaningful work.

Photograph by Russell Powell, courtesy of Heifer International

Now this work will not happen overnight. It will take a lot of time, dedication and effort – from ourselves and from our participants – but change is coming.

Hunger and poverty aren’t tomorrow’s problems. We need to address them today, and with your support we can help families and individuals in need become empowered, self-reliant and economically stable.

I invite you to read the latest issue of the World Ark to read more about Heifer’s work in the United States and how you can support Heifer USA’s Seeds of Change.

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