Winter Bulletin 2006-07 Vol. 22, No.4

Introduction
Nutrition Education in Mexico
New Beginnings for Plenty Belize
A GATE Volunteer Tells Her Story
Katrina Relief: The Beat Goes On

At Plenty Belize’s first Annual General Meeting on November 17 in Punta Gorda Town, the attending members voted in its first all Belizean Board of Directors. This is a milestone for Plenty Belize. Until now we relied on an informal group of program partners in Belize (many of whom are now on the board) to help with program and management issues, along with the Plenty International Board of Directors. It’s an evolution that follows our belief and working history of providing support to groups and efforts that, when the time is right, transition off from Plenty’s management and become autonomous. From that point on they remain sister organizations to Plenty and more significantly, part of the growing global network of people and groups working for the common good.

Students at San Miguel village school with cabbage seedlings.

In preparation for the meeting I reviewed Plenty’s history in Belize over the years. Our involvement began in 1986 when we were contacted by Majeedah Rahman, an Oakland CA nutritionist who was invited to do soy nutrition education in Belize. Plenty helped her with fundraising and other support and during her time in country she spread the word about Plenty. Shortly afterwards, the Northern Corazol Soy Bean Producers, Garifuna Council, and Caribbean Organization of Indigenous Peoples contacted Plenty and asked for assistance in developing economic and food related projects with their member groups. Plenty raised a grant through the Interamerican Foundation to send soy and agriculture specialist Chuck Haren to Belize for four months, where he met with numerous farmers and farming groups and assisted many in developing projects. As a result of this initial work, Plenty decided to focus its assistance on local efforts in the Toledo District aimed at protecting the rainforest and alleviating malnutrition and poverty. After several years of rotating Plenty staff and volunteers, Plenty Belize became registered in 1997 as a Belizean non-governmental organization and established a small office. Our dear friend Michelle Spencer-Yates, who was working on women’s development, linked up with Plenty Belize and became its first staff person. Assistance was provided to local groups like the Toledo Ecotourism Association, the Chairladies Fajina Association, the Toledo Maya Women’s Council, farmer’s groups, local schools, and health facilities. Traditional Birth Attendant training, solar installations and education, Hurricane Iris relief and more continued throughout the 1990’s.

In 2002 Hurricane Iris cut a destructive swath through the rainforest and many of the villages of the Toledo District, and its impact on agriculture renewed local interest in developing school feeding programs. Plenty’s Garden-based Agriculture for Toledo’s Environment (GATE) program began with organic school gardens in the four hardest hit villages. As more schools requested gardens, the program grew. Now, out of 30 school gardens in the entire country, Plenty has organized 23. It’s been an organic process - schools come to Plenty and request help to establish a garden. We ask them to have a village meeting to determine whether there is enough support, and village members then must pick an area and put up fence posts to demonstrate their commitment to the garden. Then Plenty provides tools, seeds and extension support. In 2005, two-day teacher training workshops were included in the program. These training workshops are held during Christmas and Easter break. Three GATE schools have now graduated, and six more should graduate this year. “Graduation" means it has been determined that they no longer require Plenty’s direct, hands-on assistance and supervision. The graduation ceremony brings the community together to talk about gardens, the environment, and nutritious foods, which are prepared and shared by all. The students and teachers of the school are recognized and credited for their work.

Plenty Belize garden extensionist, Abib Palma, teaches students how to transplant seedlings to a mulched garden bed at San Marcos Village School. Photo By Lindsay Fromme

So here we are, 20 years after Plenty was first invited to Belize, and the program is still going, and growing. For the past several years, GATE has become the focus of Plenty Belize’s work. There were deep insights shared at the AGM about the value of gardens and the overall effort that were humbling! Nana Mensah of Sustainable Harvest International said, “Planting teaches people to have patience in life and how to interrelate with friends, and live in a community with one another. Garden success is more than just the produce.” Principal Transito Romero stated: “Gardens create a certain attitude in children that doesn’t just deal with vegetables but with children as a whole… One day Plenty will cease to exist, and we want to see school gardens going on without Plenty support.” Pulcheria Teul of the Toledo Maya Women’s Council summed up the group’s feeling of strength and resolve: “Toledo is always insulted as the poorest district, but there is so much here…we want to build the attitude of self sustainability, and it should start with children. If children see they are more independent and responsible through providing their own food, this is a good strategy for development in this district. This will help us survive; we don’t need to teach that we can’t survive without help. We need to be smarter than that.”

For this successful transition to take place, Plenty International will need to continue providing financial support for the foreseeable future. Right now Plenty provides 75% of Plenty Belize’s operating expenses, made possible because of you, Plenty’s donors, as well as some small foundation grants. We sincerely appreciate your contributions to this effort!