Mountain West Seed Summit: Lessons from the Past to Guide our Future

Mar 15, 2017 | Activities

Image above: Beautiful Sacred Seed at the Tesque Pueblo Seed Bank

Part 1: Indigenous Communities and Their Innate Resilience

I was honored to attend and have the opportunity to moderate and speak on a panel during the recent Mountain West Seed Summit hosted by our collaborators and friends at the Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The panel was titled, “Working With Traditional Communities,” which was a theme of the entire Summit. The other panelists were Lynda Prim, a seasoned anthropologist that has been working with SW native peoples for over 30 years helping restore seed saving and ecological agricultural practices, to Lorraine Gray, a Mowhawk woman and Executive Director of The Four Bridges Traveling Permaculture Institute. She works to reconnect her people with the land, permaculture, and ecologically sound practices. Brett Baker, currently an organic certifier for the State of New Mexico with years of experience collecting and saving seeds throughout the SW Region. As well as, Heather DeLong the Director of DeLaney Community Farm in Aurora, Colorado which has recently transitioned into an all refugee farm. Heather joined us in the Philippines last November to help facilitate the Seed School and Farmer Capacity Building Seminar.

Wonderful to reunite with Belle, Heather, and Bill at the Seed Summit!

Wonderful to reunite with Belle, Heather, and Bill at the Seed Summit!

Beautiful altar during the Seed Swap at the Summit

Beautiful altar during the Seed Swap at the Summit

A theme we all shared during our presentations was that indigenous communities have had and will continue to have the knowledge, skills, and wisdom to build resilient and ecologically sound communities. When you look at history, it is indigenous peoples around the globe, be it our Ibaloi and Kankana-ey farmers in the Philippines, or the Pueblo and Native American populations we had the opportunity to learn from during the Summit, it is their traditions and history of resiliency, stewardship of the land, and perhaps most importantly connection to seed as the root of all life and key element to our sustenance and survival. This is what we must learn from in a “modern world,” perhaps now more than ever!

For me, the Mountain West Seed Summit was a reminder of the resiliency of our indigenous peoples and that our food and seed have a sacred connection to culture, one that is too important to be forgotten and lost.

Tesque Pueblo Beautiful Seed Bank

 

Momentum, Planning, and Continued Collaborations

Momentum, Planning, and Continued Collaborations

Dec 4, 2016 | Activities

Image above: Wacky shot with our friends at Maryknoll

It has been an incredibly busy 10 days in Tublay/Baguio since I returned from Sagada on November 23rd. Complete with presenting awards at the local Mr. and Mrs. Tublay pageant, attending the opening of the new Food and Coffee Processing Center in Tublay (where our seed library will be housed), setting goals with our core seed savers for the coming year, and more! On Wednesday, Karen (our local Program Manager) and I met with the core Seed Savers in Tublay. This was the first time I had seen the group since our seminar last month and it was great to reconnect with these dedicated farmers. We de-briefed the seminar and each of them said that it was a huge learning opportunity and they loved being able to share with and learn from the farmers from other regions of the Philippines. It helped them realize how blessed they are in Benguet to have fertile land and supportive government and partners. One of the farmers said that helping our newfound farmer friends should be the Seed Savers largest advocacy! Each of these Seed Savers is ready to teach and we are excited to make this happen in 2017.

Karen has been telling me all year what a great group our core seed savers are, and I now know what she meant. Each of these dedicated farmers is committed to helping restore seed saving to their community and setting a true example of leadership and commitment to making this happen. In addition to de-briefing the seminar we also discussed the groups goals for the coming year. They have decided to form a Seed Savers Association by the end of Quarter 1 and each member will be inviting one dedicated farmer to join the association, as you need 15 to officially register. We will be assisting them with the formation of this association in the coming months and are excited to expand the seed saving trials with more farmers. We also distributed the second half of the infrastructure project funds each Seed Saver submitted proposals for in July. Thanks to the generosity of our donors during our June Global Giving Campaign, 5 of our core group will soon have new composting and greenhouse facilities at their farms to support their continued seed saving and organic farming efforts. I will be visiting the farms before I leave to check in on the progress of these projects and am excited to see the results in the coming months!

Yesterday, Karen and I were invited to give the final talk at Maryknoll Ecological Sanctuary (where we held our seminar) climate conference. We are so thankful to have identified Maryknoll as a partner and collaborator as our missions are very similar and the staff and sisters there are very excited to get more involved in our seed saving efforts. The audience was filled with a diverse room of urban gardener’s, local officials, and others. Karen and I shared about the success of our seed saving trials and education and training programs this last year. In fact, one year ago yesterday was when we held the first Seed School in Tublay! Karen and I marvel at all we have built and accomplished since that first seminar one year ago. None of this success has been possible alone and I am daily thankful for Karen and her hard work, passion, and vision for this work. Thankful to our partners at home and here in the Philippines, and thankful to each of you for believing in this work and supporting it in the many diverse ways you do.

Each time we share about our seed saving efforts and the reality of the current state of seeds in the Philippines (all treated with chemicals) and around the world people light up and are making the important connections between seed and healthy food and ensuring our continued resiliency in light of the large challenges we face. This work is not easy, but after all, anything that is worth doing is often not, and I am inspired, empowered, and committed to seeing this movement grow in the Philippines with each farmer we empower to return to the important historical practice of saving their own seeds for themselves and their community!!

Seed School Success and Adventures in Sagada

Nov 20, 2016 | Activities, Seed School

Image above: Bill and Belle right before leaving Sagada on Friday. With our wonderful hosts Steve and Siegrid.

It is hard to believe that after well over a year of planning and preparations our much anticipated 3-Day Seed School and Farmer Capacity Building Seminar is over and our guest facilitators are off to their next destinations! I cannot begin to express my deep gratitude to Bill McDorman and Belle Starr of the Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance, and Heather DeLong from DeLaney Community Farm at Denver Urban Gardens for jumping head first into this adventure and sharing their knowledge, love, and heart with our farmers and all they encountered during their time in the Philippines. You each made the 3 day seminar the great success that it was by adapting your curriculum to our local context, helping each participant realize they are a critical part of a global movement, and most importantly sharing your heart and knowledge with all you encountered during your time here.

The largest success of the seminar was the fact that it was like nothing any of us had ever done before (facilitators and farmers alike). To have a room full of 50 farmers that traveled from 6 different Provinces in the Philippines (many required 2 days of travel to reach the venue in Baguio City) and create a space for farmers to learn not only from our guest facilitators but also from each other was incredibly powerful! While their challenges might be different in their respective communities as the seminar unfolded it was clear that all of the farmers have something to learn and teach each other. Friends of ENCA Farm is very excited to continue this momentum starting with our core Seed Savers from Benguet Province to step up and become trainers as we continue to work with our new found collaborators across the country. That is the true success of this work when it is fully taught and run by the farmers that are actively restoring seed saving to their communities. Each participant left the seminar with hands on knowledge of how to save seeds, a new found connection to the global landscape of seed saving, we held an impromptu seed swap where farmers got to exchange seeds amongst themselves, and each participant left with a tangible plan of how they will implement their new found seed saving knowledge at their farms and within their communities. We have ignited a powerful group of dedicated farmers and community leaders that I have no doubt will change their communities for the better with each seed they sow, save, and share!

We have spent that last three days in Sagada one of my beloved pockets of the world. High up in the mountains about 6 hours north of Baguio City nestled amongst pine forest and limestone cliffs sits this beautiful mountain town. While each time I return the startling influx of domestic tourism is visible with new hotels popping up everywhere, I so am thankful to have wonderful local friends to stay with and experience the “real Sagada” through. Siegird, my dear friend and talented local potter and her husband Steve (former Peace Corps) always open their home to me and our guest felt the same hospitality. We went on an epic 5-hour hike up Mt. Ampacao two days ago. As we climbed up steep road and trail it was worth each step to reach the top where there was wide-open grassland and amazing views of neighboring villages and mountains complete with a delightful breeze. This was the perfect place to end our impactful time together to hike, reflect, and eat delicious food and homemade bread that is ever abundant at Siegird’s since her mother runs a bakery out of the house.

I am looking forward to spending a few more solo days here in Sagada to continue to reflect, plan, and prepare for all the follow up work we have with the farmers from the seminar and planning for 2017. We will be finalizing our Seed Library Space and small office at the Municipal Hall in Tublay next week when they officially open the new food-processing terminal in town.

Once again I would like to send a huge thank you to our guest facilitators and The Posner Center for International Development, International Collaboration Fund Grant that made this program possible. We have launched a dynamic community changing movement with 50 farmers and are incredibly excited to watch the seeds we have germinated grow in the coming months and year!

 

 

 

Momentum and Collaboration Lead to Success for Our Farmers

Momentum and Collaboration Lead to Success for Our Farmers

Nov 3, 2016 | Activities, Nourish Celebration

In less than 24 hours I will depart for my yearly trip to the Philippines. Each year’s trip fills me with a wave of emotion for the new goals and aspirations that characterize each annual trip. This year we will be conducting a Seed School and Organic Farming Capacity Building Seminar during a 3-day intensive workshop to over 30 farmers from throughout the Philippines (Benguet Province, Panay Island, and the Sierra Madre). It is our honor to partner with two Rocky Mountain West based organizations to facilitate this dynamic farmer driven program. Thanks to the generosity of The Posner Center for International Development’s International Collaboration Fund, the founders of The Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance (RMSA) Bill McDorman and Belle Starr, and the Director of Delaney Community Farm at Denver Urban Gardens (DUG) Heather DeLong will be joining us in the Philippines for 16 days.

This trip and program have been well over a year in the making. In August 2015, I had the pleasure of attending Seed School in a Day at the Denver Botanic Gardens, where I first met Bill and Belle. After the class we had coffee together and I shared about our soon-to-launch seed saving programs (that are now in full swing with our core seed savers in Benguet Province) and literally “planted the seed” about them coming to the Philippines with us someday. I am thrilled that this seed is soon to geminate by bringing together international expertise on seed saving and farmers’ sustainable development. And, perhaps most importantly, this program creates a space for farmers to gather, learn, interact, and share their collective challenges and successes. I firmly believe that there is nothing more powerful than bringing together farmers who are committed to building a more climate and food secure world. I am humbled and honored to build these experiences for our partner farmers and am looking forward to seeing the power of this collaboration in action.

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Guest Speaker Dennis Apuan receiving the First Annual Friends of ENCA Farm “Seed to Service Award” at the 6th Annual Nourish Event. To see more pictures from the event please visit our Facebook Album.

Also, thanks to our incredibly successful 6th Annual Nourish Event held on Saturday, October 22nd, the excitement for this program is palpable. With over 125 guests, a silent auction, incredible food from our chefs at The Orange Crunch, and a poignant message from our Guest Speaker Dennis Apuan, this was our most successful event to date grossing over $16,000!! Dennis is a prominent figure in the Filipino-American Community in Colorado. He was the first Filipino-American to be elected to the Colorado State House where he served two terms. He is an activist, community organizer, and non-profit leader dedicated to building a more just and sustainable local and global community. Dennis shared powerful words about what justice means in the context of our work in increasing food security in the Philippines:

“ Food justice starts from the conviction that access to healthy food is a human rights issue and goes beyond advocacy and direct service….it calls for organized responses to food security problems, responses that are locally driven and owned.”

Friends of ENCA Farm is committed to supporting these solutions one farmer and one community at a time. It is an honor to work with dedicated Filipino farmers who seek to increase broad access to organic seed as a direct move to liberate themselves from the chokehold that biotechnology companies attempt to exert throughout global food and seed markets.

We know that our involvement and investment in this important, challenging, and often times thankless work is the right place for us to be right now as an organization. It is a sacred process of protecting our human sources of sustenance, cultural heritage, and future success… all found in each powerful little seed our farmers diligently sow, plant, and grow!

I look forward to sharing this trip with you all! Next update from the Philippines!

Denver Seed School in a Day- A Great Success!

Sep 19, 2016 | Activities

On Saturday, August 20th nearly 20 eager participants gathered at DeLaney Community Farm in Aurora, Colorado for Seed School in a Day! This course was made possible through a grant from The Posner Center for International Development received by tenants: Denver Urban Gardens (DUG), Friends of ENCA Farm (FoE), and outside collaborator The Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance (RMSA).

 

Seed School in a Day is a dynamic program created by RMSA, the jam packed one-day workshop offers a comprehensive overview of seed saving. Practical, hands-on activities are balanced with engaging lectures to provide a fun and interactive learning experience. Participants leave the workshop with a deeper understanding of why regional seed saving is so important and the skills needed to start their own seed saving adventures!

Our course included this learning and so much more! Participants ranged from seasoned seed savers, community gardeners, backyard gardeners, educators and community non-profit partners. The dynamic and infectious passion of lead facilitator Penn Parmenter of Miss Penn’s Mountain Seeds in Westcliffe, Colorado set a fun and engaging tone for the day. Participants learned about the history of seed saving, how to save specific seeds including tomatoes, beans, squash and more. They also learned how to conduct their own germination tests on seeds and connected with the growing community of people returning to the historic practice of saving seeds.

The first half of the course was held at the beautiful 5 acre DeLaney Community Farm, which provided a fantastic natural classroom for many of the lessons including; observing how to self-pollinate squash in the field, and a brief wild seed walk in the fields at DeLaney where participants observed wild dill, cat-nip, and other wild plants.

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Participants left the course inspired to take the knowledge they learned and implement it at their home and community gardens.

“The class opened my eyes to a whole new-critical-aspect of gardening this offers hope for healthy food production in the face of climate change and population challenges.”

-Carol, Seed School Participant

“ I learned so much! I can’t wait to get home and turn my basement into a seed palace.”

– Amy, Seed School Participant

In November staff from DUG and RMSA will be traveling to the Philippines with Friends of ENCA Farm to conduct Seed School and Farmer Capacity Building with organic farmers in the Philippines.

We are so grateful for the opportunity to share this powerful seed saving knowledge with Denver and the Philippines and build a global community of seed stewards and advocates!

To learn more about our collaborators in this work please visit:

The Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance website

Denver Urban Gardens website

 

Reflections on a Sagada Native Wedding

Dec 16, 2015 | Activities

Image above: The next generation learning to play the gangsa!

Last week, after a very productive Friends of ENCA/Benguet Tivangdal board meeting, during which we reviewed drawings and costing’s for the repairs of the Nipa Huts at ENCA and introduced Karen Hizola our new Baguio Based Program Manager (more about her soon). I headed North to Sagada for a dear friends native wedding.

It is always wonderful to return to Sagada a beautiful mountain town about 6 hours north of Tublay. Sagada is known for their amazing natural caves, peaceful mountains, and delicious yogurt at the world famous Yogurt House. Siegird, a local potter and environmental activist, has been a dear friend since my early Peace Corps days. She and her husband Steve, an RPCV from the 70’s (that has never left the Philippines), had a civil marriage seven years ago and have two beautiful boys Chico (6) and David (almost one year).

In Sagada, it is very important and as Siegird put it “part of their obligation” to host a native wedding. This is an opportunity for extended friends and relatives and most importantly the entire town of Sagada to celebrate the marriage and give their blessing and congratulations in the form of financial contribution. This also means the entire town comes together to help in the elaborate preparations of feeding literally 1,000’s of people. Sigerid and Steve purchased and extended relatives and community member’s butchered 14 pigs and 1 carabao (native water buffalo) for the party the lasted four days!

As I sat with women from all over the community (who each brought a bowl and knife to help chop the copious amounts of veggies it takes to feed this many people), chatted with the beautiful Lola’s who’s weathered faces tell a story that does not need words, and enjoyed the sound of the Gangsa (native gong music) till literally the wee hours of the morning I was struck with the true community that Sagada demonstrated to pull off this beautiful gathering. Loved ones near and far gathered to honor Siegrid and Steve as tradition has done for 100’s of years. Indeed I am blessed to have been a small part of this beautiful gathering and demonstration of true community and love!