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Central America

Report From The Field: Honduras

May 4, 2022

By: Chandi Guntupalli

As Groundswell International’s newest staff member, I had the privilege of doing my first field visit to our partners in March 2022, along with our Executive Director and co-founder Steve Brescia. Steve and I traveled to Honduras at the end of March 2022 for five days to meet with our partner, Vecinos Honduras, to discuss our plans for the Central American Dry Corridor. 

honduras

The Central American Dry Corridor is one of the most vulnerable parts of the world, one that’s been highly affected by climate change. This region extends throughout El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, and Nicaragua, with Honduras and Guatemala experiencing extreme drought. Many people in the Central American Dry Corridor live in rural areas and live in poverty, forced to depend on grain crops for sustenance and survival. 

This was my first time in Honduras and my first time in Central America. I was excited to travel to a country I had never been to, and I was grateful to travel again internationally since COVID-19. Little did I know that this trip was going to be one of the most impactful experiences I’ve had in the past few years.

honduras

Since our purpose was to discuss our strategy to support Vecinos Honduras in its plan for the Central American Dry Corridor, we went straight to the region after we landed in Honduras. Staying in Nacaome, in the southern part of Honduras, allowed us to visit a regional office of Vecinos Honduras to learn how their services and programs differ based on the needs of the community. Over the next few days, we traveled to various municipalities in the region to meet with farmer community leaders and local organizations making a difference. This was absolutely my favorite part of the trip – to meet with the farmers and their families that we support through our work. They were incredibly gracious, allowing us into their homes and serving us lunch from the crops of their farms – this was literally a farm-to-table experience. Interacting with and learning from the farmers was a humbling experience to learn about the impact of our work and also realize how much further we need to go. 

honduras

At first, I felt out of place and out of my element in Honduras, not speaking the language and not having traveled to that region of the world. Through, sharing my experiences with the farmers and learning from their experiences, I felt a kinship in that as humans we really have the same goals – for our families to be safe, healthy, and happy. There is much to do in that region, in order to ensure each family is nourished, and I’m proud to be part of a community that is working towards that goal.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Chandana Guntupalli is Groundswell’s Donor Relations Manager. She has over six years of experience in non-profit development supporting programs focused on domestic violence, transitional housing, anti-bias education, and youth civic engagement. She has a Bachelor’s in Psychology and Philosophy from Michigan State University and a Master’s in Peace and Conflict Studies from Rutgers-Newark. She is excited about the community development and empowerment that Groundswell develops for farmers across the world.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: Agroecology, Central America, Dry Corridor, Honduras

Hurricane Eta is a Bleak Reminder of a Climate in Crisis and Why Agroecology is a Solution

November 10, 2020

Groundswell’s Regional Coordinator for Latin America and the Caribbean, Edwin Escoto, shared the below statement regarding the devastation of Hurricane Eta in Central America. For non-Spanish speakers, we have provided an edited English translation following the statement from Edwin. For anyone looking to help provide long-term food security to the region, you can donate here. 

Huracán Eta: La venganza de la tierra

La flecha muestra el sitio donde estaba puente sobre el rio Ulua que comunica a comunidades de Chinda en Santa Bárbara. Es en estas comunidades donde apoyan los colegas de SVH o TCP.

Por: Edwin Escoto 

Durante miles de años la Humanidad ha explotado la tierra sin tener en cuenta las consecuencias. Ahora que el calentamiento global y el cambio climático son evidentes para cualquier observador imparcial, la Tierra comienza a vengarse. Así lo cita el famoso científico y ambientalista británico James Lovelock en su libro “La venganza de la tierra”.

Las consecuencias del nivel de degradación ambiental y de lo mal que hemos tratado a la naturaleza, evidenciado en la deforestación de los bosques, heridas en los ríos con el saqueo de sus huesos, despreciado a la tierra arrojándole basura; y que, ahora pretendemos que sea tranquila, dócil y afable mientras ella con su actuar rebelde nos recuerda que nos ha dado oportunidades para rectificar nuestro trato, de lo contrario más temprano que tarde habrá reciprocidad en tan desigual relación. 

Eta el más reciente y devastador huracán que desató su furia en Centroamérica, es solamente una forma de manifestación que el planeta tiene y nos recuerda lo vulnerable que somos. En los países más afectados, Nicaragua, Honduras y Guatemala la historia ha sido la misma, lluvias, inundaciones deslizamientos, evacuados y lo peor de todo, un considerable número de muertos. Y como casi siempre, la población en situación de pobreza las más afectada. 

Imágenes dramáticas de ciudades bajo el agua, son solamente un reflejo del daño que hemos causado al planeta. Despertemos humanidad, aún hay tiempo nos dijo Berta Cáceres, líder indígena y social asesinada en 2016 por su lucha en la defensa de la tierra, de los ríos, de la vida. 

Calentamiento Global, cambio climático, la venganza de la tierra; no importa como le llamemos, aún existen alternativas de convivencia comprobadas. La Agroecología es una de ellas o quizás la única. Las comunidades que han resistido las acometidas de la naturaleza han sido aquellas en las cuales las familias realizan prácticas de producción basadas en el conocimiento ancestral, pero especialmente basadas en la no interrupción de los ciclos de la naturaleza.

Desde Groundswell International se promueven de proyectos de esperanza que construyen vida, que apuntan a reducir pobreza y evitar que familias enteras se vayan de nuestros países ya sea por la violencia, inseguridad y por la falta de alimentos.

Por cierto, uno de los mayores efectos de mediano y largo plazo que el huracán Eta dejará en la población afectada, en su mayoría urbana, será la falta de alimentos, pues grandes extensiones de cultivos que hacen parte de la dieta básica centroamericana han sido afectadas (maíz, frijol y arroz), de igual manera han sido afectados cultivos de agroexportación. Seguirán siendo las familias campesinas que residen en las tierras marginales (de ladera), quienes provean de alimento al resto de la población. Sin embargo, la mayor dificultad será la movilización ya que debido a los deslizamientos de tierra muchas carreteras permanecen obstruidas, al igual que se ha interrumpido el paso por la caída de puentes sobre caudalosos y temporales ríos. 

Ante tal panorama y en el afán de asegurar los alimentos, se requiere apoyo para el almacenamiento local de granos (maíz y frijoles), para ello infraestructura de acopio es necesaria. Ya los productores organizados mantienen reservas comunitarias como una estrategia para enfrentar el desabastecimiento provocado por el COVID-19 y las medidas gubernamentales que restringen la movilización.

Lo anterior es solamente uno de los beneficios de la Agroecología, la cual ha ganado mucha atención en las últimas tres décadas como base para la transición a una agricultura que no solo proporcionaría a las familias rurales beneficios sociales, económicos y ambientales significativos, sino que también alimentaría a la población urbana de manera equitativa y sostenible.

Pobladores de Azabache, Danlí, El Paraíso en labores de limpieza de la carretera que fue obstaculizada por deslizamiento de tierra.
Cultivo de café afectado por deslizamiento de tierra en comunidades de Azabache, Danlí, El Paraíso
Carretera destrozada en comunidades de Azabache, Danlí, El Paraíso

______________________________________________________

Hurricane Eta: Revenge of the Earth

By: Edwin Escoto 

For too long, humanity has exploited the Earth with little concern for the long-term consequences. Now, with the impacts of global climate change ravaging much of the planet, the Earth is making us feel the consequences of our disregard. This is what the famous British scientist and environmentalist James Lovelock warned in his book “Revenge of Gaia.”

Our mistreatment of the Earth can be seen almost everywhere – in the deforested landscapes, air thick with pollution, rivers fouled with chemicals, oceans filled with plastic, and rising sea levels. According to Sofar Ocean, “Rising sea levels will impact our drinking water, food supply, and overall health. “As sea levels rise, saltwater intrusion into freshwater increases the salinity of groundwater basins and well water. This reduces crop yields and the availability of safe drinking water. It also increases the risk of hypertension, as well as vector-borne and diarrheal disease,” said one joint report by the Public Health Institute and the Center for Climate Change and Health.” Yet, we expect the Earth to remain docile as we continue to kill her. She’s angry now, and her anger will keep showing up in increasingly dangerous ways until we take steps to remedy all the wounds we’ve inflicted.

Hurricane Eta, the most recent and devastating hurricane that unleashed its fury in Central America, is a bleak reminder of our vulnerability as a species when up against planetary forces responding to the climate crisis. In the most affected countries of Nicaragua, Honduras, and Guatemala, the story has been the same – rains, floods, landslides, evacuees, and tragically, a considerable number of deaths. As in almost every natural disaster, the population living in poverty is the most affected. 

One of the harshest long-term effects that hurricane Eta will have on Central America, mostly in urban settings, will be the lack of food, since large areas of crops that are part of the region’s basic diet have been affected (corn, beans, and rice). It will continue to be the peasant families residing in the marginal lands (on the hillside) who provide food for the rest of the population. However, the greatest difficulty will be mobilization in the aftermath of landslides. Many roads remain obstructed and main passageways have been interrupted by the fall of bridges over large and temporary rivers. 

In an effort to supply enough food for the population, support is required for the local storage of grains (corn and beans). Organized producers already maintain community reserves as a strategy to face the shortages caused by COVID-19 and the government measures that restrict mobilization.

This is just one of the benefits of Agroecology, which has gained much attention in the last three decades as an effective means to transition from conventional to ecological agriculture that would not only provide rural families with significant social, economic, and environmental benefits, but also as a long-term solution to feed urban populations in an equitable and sustainable way.

Global Warming. Climate Crisis. Revenge of Gaia. The horrific consequences of continuing to mistreat our planet are the same, regardless of the terminology. However, that doesn’t mean that the outcome is inevitable. We, together as global neighbors, can – and must – do better. Agroecology is one of the most proven, sustainable solutions available to us in our quest to mitigate the effects of climate change. The communities who have been able to reclaim a symbiotic relationship with the natural world around them have been those in which families carry out production practices based on ancestral knowledge and rooted in agroecological operations which honor nature’s cycles.

Groundswell International promotes programs of hope that build livelihoods aimed at reducing poverty and preventing entire families from forced migration due to violence, crippling poverty, systemic suppression, and food insecurity.

Please contribute to helping provide nutritional security and support for Central America by clicking here.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: Central America, Climate Change, Hurricane, Latin America

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