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Event Announcement
INDONESIA SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE WORKSHOP
3-5 March, 2015
This event is geared towards agriculture and community development workers, extension agents, and those wanting to learn more about sustainable agriculture practices for Indonesia and Malaysia. Morning sessions will be held at the hotel and afternoons will be dedicated to hands-on learning at a small farm center.
Register Here
INDONESIA BERKELANJUTAN PERTANIAN WORKSHOP
03-05 Maret 2015
Acara ini ditujukan untuk para pekerja pertanian dan pengembangan masyarakat, pekerja LSM, badan pelaksana program, dan bagi mereka yang ingin mempelajari lebih lanjut mengenai praktek-praktek pertanian berkesinambungan di Indonesia dan Malaysia. Sesi pagi hari akan diadakan di hotel dan sesi sore akan dikhususkan untuk proses pembelajaran melalui praktek lapangan di sebuah kebun kecil.
Untuk registrasi, mohon klik disini
Impact of Foundations For Agriculture in Kouka
From the ECHO West Africa Regional Impact Center
Emile Sanou is a national of Burkina Faso who had the opportunity to participate in the ECHO West Africa forums in 2010 and 2012 held in Ouagadougou.
Emile is a small-scale farmer working in Kouka, a town located in the west of the province Banwa in the Black Volta region also known as "the breadbasket of Burkina Faso." Kouka is in the cotton belt of Burkina which is renowned for the extensive use of chemical inputs by producers. This dependence on chemical inputs has increased budgets for farmers and consequentially has begun a spiral of impoverishment in the region despite good crop production. Much of the farmer's income is spent on repaying loans for chemicals and medical care, leaving little room for investment.
After attending the ECHO conference in 2010 Emile decided to apply the method of the FFF or FPA (foundations for agriculture). Other farmers in the region socoffed at him for digging holes and planting according to the methods he had learned. However, the surprise of Emile, and other farmers, was great at the harvest: not only its FPA field produced, but also the crops were higher on these fields than those in which he applied his old practices. The entire Kouka farming community took notice, those who scoffed were now asking him about his method.
Emile was inspired to share his new practices with peer farmers that are organized in a GPC (cotton producers group). He voluntarily trained 15 members of the GPC in Kouka, and six other farms experimented with the FPA method. Emile taught them the FPA applied to maize and they have applied it not only to corn but sorghum, cotton and millet. Tougouma Amadé, a member of the group, applied the FPA method to his cotton field and produced 2.3T/ha in a single season where he had been only producing 700 to 900 kg before. Gansonré Boureima, another member, doubled maize production. And, Boureima Zongo is full of words of praise for Emile and the FPA method that allowed him to also double its cotton production at a cheaper cost.
Testimonials such as those of Gansonré Hamadeh, Zida Aly, and Gansonré Boukaré testify to the benefits of the FPA method and illustrate impact of the ECHO forums in the lives of farmers in Kouka. According to these farmers, with this method, they have managed to reduce the area planted while increasing performance and soil fertility. Every farmer involved saw their crop performance double or triple. Despite some difficulties inherent in introducing any innovation, all of them are calling for new trainings on FPA methods.
ECHO West Africa Anglophone Forum
Accra, Ghana (24-26 March)
This ECHO Forum is geared toward enabling networking related to alleviating hunger and poverty by those persons serving Africa’s poor. Three mornings of plenary sessions featuring knowledgeable and experienced speakers will be followed by afternoon workshops and discussion groups led by regional agricultural development workers and experts.
Register Today
Looking For Information on the ECHO Global Farm in Florida?
General information about ECHO as an organization, tours, internships, donations, the nursery, and bookstore can be found at www.ECHOnet.org.
You can search the more than 75 issues of ECHO Development Notes (EDN) and 100 Technical Notes in three languages, as well as the entire text of the book "Amaranth to Zai Holes", and hundreds of Plant Information Sheets.
Search also returns results for current research and discussions in the community groups and forums.
Not finding the answer to your question?
Ask directly, a ECHO staff member will be happy to help you find the resources you need.
Latest ECHO Publications
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Just Arrived
ECHO Technical Note Issue 80
Seed Fairs: Fostering Local Seed Exchange to Support Regional Biodiversity
When you come across an especially promising local variety of a crop grown in your area, how can you enable other farmers to try out this variety? If a farmer gives you 30 seeds of an exceptional variety, how might you go about distributing these? How does seed flow happen in and among communities where you work?
In this article, we share about ECHO Asia’s experience helping host four very different seed fairs. We also outline several important components of a seed fair, so you can learn from our experience if your organization is interested in hosting one.
[ All ECHO Tech Notes ]
ECHO Development Notes Issue 125
Also Available In [ French ] and [ Spanish ]
Worldwide, the number of insect pollinators has declined sharply in recent years. Beekeepers have experienced heavy loss of honey bee colonies; in the United States,the number of managed colonies is half of what it was sixty or seventy years ago. This issue of ECHO Development Notes focuses on preventing the loss of key pollinators and how they can be effectively attracted and reintegrated into agricultural systems.
In this issue, the ECHO Florida Seed Bank provides a list of seeds available that can serve to encourage beneficial insects as well as tips and suggestions for impelemeting them effectively.
[ All ECHO Development Notes ]
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New Translations: Mandarin & French
ECHO is pleased to make available, in Mandarin and French, our Best Practices Note on Institutional Gardens. [ BPN 4: Mandarin ] [ BPN 4: French ]
ECHO Best Practice Notes Issue 4
This Best Practices Note explores common pitfalls and challenges related to design and implementation of an institutional agriculture project. It also outlines proven principles and practices that a development practitioner can implement in a variety of settings.
Although many new institutional agriculture projects are started every year, few produce the expected positive results that were imagined during planning and implementation. The reasons for this lack of success are varied, but upon careful analysis, some common themes emerge.
[ All ECHO Best Practice Notes ]
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New Translation: Spanish
ECHO Technical Note Issue 34
Now Available In [ Spanish ] and [ English ]
Originally published in 1998 this is part of ECHO's ongoing efforts to bring important resources to more languages. We are please to announce that ECHO Technical Note 34 - Banana, Coconut & Breadfruit by Dr. Frankln W. Martin is now available in Spanish.
This technical note describes the propagation and care of three outstanding fruits that are particularly important in feeding people. These fruits produce a lot of food for a minimum of effort and are practically staple fruits of the tropics.
[ All ECHO Tech Notes (English) ]
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ECHO Asia Notes Issue 20
Farm-Generated Feed: Fish Feed Production | Producing the Biocontrol Fungi Trichoderma and Beauveria
[ All ECHO Asia Notes ]
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ECHO East Africa Notes Issue 3
Linking Small Scale Farmers to Markets through a Value Chain Approach and the Role of Information and Communications Technology (ICT)
[ All ECHO East Africa Notes ]
Upcoming Conferences and Networking Opportunities
The Events Calendar lists all scheduled ECHO network events by date. [ See All ]
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Un Forum Ouest Africain - Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
French Language Only - ECHO West Africa Forum (See English Language Event Below)
27-29 Janvier 2015
Ce forum de ECHO vise le renforcement d'un réseautage au profit des personnes luttant contre la faim, la pauvreté et servant les pauvres en Afrique. Des sessions plénières seront conduites pendant trois matinées par des personnes ressources et seront suivies par des ateliers de l'après-midi. [ plus d'informations ]
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ECHO Asia Biopest Control Workshop - Chiang Mai, Thailand
January 28-29, 2015
This workshop will include sessions on integrated pest management (IPM) using natural bioproducts, hands-on training covering the use and production of Beauveria and Trichoderma, the creation of and production of natural pesticides with Southeast Asian herbs, a visit to the Biopest Control Office’s breeding sites for predatory and parasitic insects, and a field trip to a local village to learn about their community biopest control management program. [ more information ]
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East Africa Symposium - Arusha, Tanzania
UPDATE: Symposium Schedule Posted [Download]
3-5 February, 2015
The East Africa Symposium will be a valuable time of learning, information sharing and networking for those working and serving in the East Africa Region. This event will be held at the Naura Springs Hotel in Arusha.[ More Information ]
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ECHO West Africa Anglophone Forum - Accra, Ghana
English Language Only - ECHO West Africa Forum (See French Language Event Above)
24-26 March, 2015
This ECHO Forum is geared toward enabling networking related to alleviating hunger and poverty by those persons serving in Africa. This event will be held at the Mensvic Grand Hotel in Accra.[ More Information ]
Register for a Conference or Class
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