A Message from Peter Schweitzer, Plenty's Executive Director
1998 PROJECTS REVIEW
COMMUNITY HEALTH CARE IN SOUTHERN BELIZE
AN ECOTRAIL FOR PUEBLO VIEJO
RETURN TO DOMINICA

BELIZE: With the help of grants from the International Foundation, Food For All (now "Food Industry Crusade Against Hunger"), the Atkinson Foundation, the Knights of Columbus and Catholic Diocese of Austin, Texas, and Onaway Trust in England, supplementing the contributions of individual donors, Plenty made substantial progress this year in assisting community-based activities in the Toledo district. Plenty implemented close to $20,000 in foundation grants for agricultural and soy promotion work in the Toledo district with five farmer's cooperatives and other community-based groups, as well as direct support for the Toledo Ecotourism Association (TEA) and related volunteer activities.

Plenty also provided additional direct funding for other activities such as critical financial support for outreach work by members of the TEA and Toledo Alcaldes Association to the new government and citizenry of Belize through meetings with government officials and the national media to give voice to concerns about the foreign logging taking place in Toledo's forest reserves. This resulted in a temporary moratorium on logging while reports of illegal and destructive logging practices are investigated.

Plenty also produced a video about the TEA and Toledo (see page 4). The Plenty center in Punta Gorda is now staffed by Michelle Spencer-Yates (Plenty Belize Projects Coordinator) and Soy Agriculture and Food Processing Technician, Ignatius "Gomier" Longville, and has expanded to the second floor of a building overlooking the Caribbean. This additional space will be utilized for offices and meetings as well as by local organizations needing temporary quarters or meeting space like the Toledo Maya Women's Council, an umbrella organization for 40 village women's groups. Plenty provided donated computers to several community-based groups such as the Cacao Growers Association and the Chairladies Fajina Association (crafts cooperative).

We were fortunate to have many talented volunteers in 1998 who worked in a variety of ways with our project partners. Their activities included designing educational materials, making assessments of primary health care conditions and needs, providing direct medical care, carrying out training in woodworking, solar dryer construction, and computers, and organizing a pilot recycling project for Punta Gorda.
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GUATEMALA: JACALTENANGO LIBRARY: The Jacaltenango community library, Pop'bal Hum, has been open for a full year, providing books and materials for Mayan students and the public in this town of over 25,000. Plenty has paid the librarian's salary in 1998, provided funding for the librarian to receive additional training in Guatemala City in basic library science, and contributed towards the purchase of a computer system. Other support this year will make the permanent library facility a reality in 1999. The library committee received a pledge of $8,400 towards construction from a local agency, and a friend of Victor Montejo and Plenty recently donated $1700 towards the purchase of the computer system and a copy machine.

ALIMENTOS SAN BARTOLO: (ASB, the Mayan Soy Dairy) Thanks to a grant from the Food Industry Crusade Against Hunger (FICAH), Plenty soy advisor, Maria Eberle, spent two weeks in Solola, Guatemala helping ASB's staff in product development and marketing. Maria, a Cakchiquel Maya, learned soy foods processing while working with Plenty during our early Guatemala projects in 1977. The FICAH grant will also enable ASB to purchase needed processing equipment in order to expand production.
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NICARAGUA: WOMEN PRODUCING FOR LIFE, MUPROVI: Through the efforts of Plenty Board Member, Chuck Haren, and Advisor, Casta Calderon, Plenty raised a $2,500 grant from the Trull Foundation in support of food production and nutrition education efforts for San Juan de Limay in Nicaragua. The recent disastrous hurricane is making all efforts to alleviate food shortages especially urgent. In December, Chuck and Casta will return to Nicaragua to provide more assistance to MUPROVI and other local organizations taking part in emergency relief efforts.

CARIB TERRITORY, DOMINICA, WEST INDIES: Plenty assisted WAIKADA, the Karifuna (Carib) Development Association, in securing a grant of $6,500 from New England Biolabs Foundation for an environmental education and reforestation initiative on the Carib Reserve. This project will be carried out by WAIKADA members beginning in the spring of 1999. Plenty Board Member Chuck Haren also assisted WAIKADA in writing and producing a brochure identifying community resources for residents and visitors to the area.

LIBERIA, WEST AFRICA: IMANI HOUSE INTERNATIONAL: While working as a medical volunteer in Senegal in the early part of 1998, Plenty Chairperson, Richard Schoenbrun, trained and equipped IMANI HOUSE International's medical supervisor, Benjamin Grant, in basic dentistry. This enabled Mr. Grant to offer dental services at IMANI HOUSE to medically underserved area residents.

KIDS TO THE COUNTRY, TENNESSEE: KTC celebrated its thirteenth year in 1998! Sixty children from Nashville area homeless shelters, public housing and social institutions for disadvantaged youth joined in the fun of experiencing nature and new friendships, along with learning nonviolent conflict resolution skills during this multi-cultural summer program. A shorter winter program, focused around Kwanzaa and gift making, takes place in December.
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PINE RIDGE, SOUTH DAKOTA HEMP PROJECT: Slim Butte Land-Use Association President Loretta Cook, and Slim Butte's Agricultural Projects Director/Plenty board member, Tom Cook, are continuing to move this groundbreaking initiative forward to allow the Pine Ridge Reservation Oglala Lakota community to cultivate industrial hemp as an income-producing crop. Unemployment is a crushing 80% on the reservation which encompasses the poorest county in the U.S. This initiative was assisted by Plenty in 1998 with a $1,000 grant as well as through publicity and networking efforts. Plenty was also able to channel a grant from longtime foundation supporter Onaway Trust to fund an important cultural event at Pine Ridge, the 1998 Sundance.

ROUND VALLEY, CALIFORNIA: Round Valley reservation in northern California is settling down after a long period of turmoil due to the highly politicized 1997 murder trial of Round Valley resident Bear Lincoln. Bear was acquited in a unanimous jury verdict. The "California Native Circle," a nonprofit community organization which Plenty has supported for many years, is in the process of restructuring, and is now called "Kuksui." We were able to provide funding of $700 this year and a truckload of furniture, office equipment and supplies, organized and delivered by Plenty Board Member, Karen Flaherty, and Advisor, Lani Young.
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