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How Joining a Women’s Savings Group Helped This Farmer Survive Cancer
Farmers in Nepal, especially women, face a host of intersecting challenges. Many work with limited resources under difficult conditions, while also managing livestock, household responsibilities, and their children’s education from a young age. This burden takes a toll on their health and ability to sustain a livelihood. Women farmers are also particularly exposed to toxic pesticides—a result of structural inequality and poor regulation. As Nepali Times reports, “women and Dalit households tend to have higher exposure to toxic pesticides.” Long-term exposure has been linked to severe health co …
“We Are One”: Mercedes, a Young Kichwa Woman, Speaks on Nature, Community & Indigenous Knowledge
Mercedes is 16 years old and lives in Tunshi Grande, a Kichwa community 3,000 meters above sea level in Chimborazo, Ecuador.From there, she can see Taita Chimborazo, the closest point to the sun from the center of the Earth. But what interests her is not the summit but what happens below: the water that rises in the moors, the soils that feed the chakras, and the plants that heal her people. She recently told us about her two-year journey with the Youth Storytellers program, a space where young people from smallholder farmer communities learn to share their perspectives, cultural heritage and …
Groundswell International Earns a Top Four-Star Rating From Charity Navigator
Groundswell International is proud to share that we have earned a Four-Star Rating from Charity Navigator, the highest possible designation from the United States’ largest independent evaluator of nonprofits. This recognition reflects our strong financial health and our commitment to accountability, transparency, and long-term impact. Charity Navigator has been a trusted resource for over 11 million donors annually since 2001, evaluating more than 230,000 nonprofit organizations across the United States. Their comprehensive rating system goes beyond finances to assess how effectively a nonprof …
21 Verses or Principles of a Model Farmer
Across Haiti’s rural hillsides, farming is a way of life, anchored in community, care for the land, and deep ancestral knowledge. Haitian peasant farmers have long practiced resilience through adversity, drawing on tradition and innovation to steward their land. This is especially true within the agroecology movement, where farmers work in harmony with nature to regenerate their soil, feed their families, and build stronger rural communities. Since 2009, the Haitian organization PDL (Partenariat pour le Développement Local) has facilitated dialogue with successful agroecological farmers to bet …
How to Build a Model Farm through Agroecological Farming: A Practical Guide
Across the globe, farmers are confronting a storm of interwoven crises. Climate change, shifting global social dynamics, and systemic injustices intersect with soil degradation, prolonged droughts, economic instability, and rising insecurity. For rural communities, building sustainable food systems—where both people and ecosystems can thrive—is not just an aspiration, but a necessity for survival and dignity. And this matter affects us all. Smallholder farmers produce up to 80% of the world’s food. Without their knowledge, labor, and resilience, our shared future is at risk. The Practical Guid …
How a Young Agriculture Student in Burkina Faso Turned Passion into Purpose
‘In the heart of every young person lies the potential for greatness’ Unknown In many rural African communities, youth are often perceived as detached from agriculture—more drawn to city life and office jobs than farming or community-based livelihoods. This perception partially reflects a reality: youth still see conventional farming as labor-intensive, poorly paid, and lacking dignity, and the lack of jobs in rural areas pushes many to leave their home in search of opportunities elsewhere. But our experience in the field tells a different story. If this were entirely true, why are so many you …