About ECHOcommunity

ECHOcommunity is a membership community that provides access to nearly all of ECHO’s resources online, as well as communications tools to help development workers connect with each other.   View a list of ECHOcommunity.org features here.

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Upcoming events

ECHO Asia Tropical Agriculture & Development (TAD) Course
Mon, 24 June 2024 » Sat, 29 June 2024

ECHO Asia Small Farm Resource Center Chiang Mai, Thailand, Thailand

This 1-week course is designed for development workers, missionaries, and volunteers looking to engage their communities with low-cost, high-impact agricultural ideas and techniques. Participants will be introduced to various agricultural practices and technologies through classroom time and hands-on activities on the farm, learning to 'use what you have to make what you need.' This course is considered an 'introductory survey course' and will present a broad overview of many options suite...

ECHO North America: Introduction to Tropical Agriculture Development - July 2024
Mon, 8 July 2024 » Fri, 12 July 2024

ECHO North America, United States

Those interested in preparing for short to long-term involvement in international agriculture development are encouraged to participate in this five-day course.  Topics and discussions will focus on improved food security and agricultural livelihoods for small-scale farmers in developing countries.  Participants will be introduced to the complexities related to poverty and community development.  They will also be introduced to principles and practices that contribute toward maintaining healt...

การอบรมหลักสูตร การพัฒนาและการทำเกษตรในเขตพื้นที่ร้อนชื้น ECHO Asia Tropical Agriculture & Development Course (TAD) - Thai Language
Mon, 19 August 2024 » Sat, 24 August 2024

ECHO Asia Small Farm Resource Center, Chiang Mai ศูนย์การเรียนรู้และธนาคารเมล็ดพันธุ์ เอคโค่ เอเชีย อำเภอสันทราย จังหวัดเชียงใหม่ , Thailand ประเทศไทย

  หลักสูตรการอบรมนี้ถูกออกแบบขึ้นเพื่อเป็นประโยชน์ต่อ ผู้ที่ทำงานด้านการพัฒนา มิชชั่นนารี และอาสาสมัคร ที่กำลังมองหาแนวทางในการประยุกต์ใช้ทักษะและเทคนิคด้านการทำการเกษตรที่มีประโยชน์และมีต้นทุนต่ำในการทำงานกับชุมชน ผู้เข้าร่วมอบรมจะได้เรียนรู้และฝึกปฏิบัติเทคนิคการทำการเกษตรที่หลากหลายตลอดการอบรม เรียนรู้ที่จะใช้ประโยชน์จากที่มีตัวเองมีอยู่ให้เกิดประโยชน์สูงสุด หลักสูตรนี้เปรียบเสมือนกับ หลักสูตรการเริ่มต้นสำรวจ ซึ่งผู้เข้าร่วมอบรมจะได้เรียนรู้ภาพรวมของหัวข้อและเทคนิคในการทำการเกษตรต่าง...

ECHO East Africa and Canadian Foodgrains Bank Joint Symposium on Best Practices in Sustainable Agriculture & Appropriate Technologies
Tue, 20 August 2024 » Thu, 22 August 2024

Linde Hotel in Mponela/Dowa, Malawi

Greetings!..You are cordially invited to join us in this important meeting for learning and sharing best practices of Sustainable Agriculture and Appropriate Technologies. We will be sharing best practices promoted by different specialists from across the region. It will be an opportunity to network among those working in East and Southern Africa to alleviate poverty, fight against hunger, and improve food security and the overall livelihood of the people we serve. Presenters welcome: W...

ECHO North America: TAD II: Food Forests, Garden Design and Planning
Mon, 16 September 2024 » Fri, 20 September 2024

ECHO North America, United States

This is a five day, hands-on course that will focus on food forests and garden design. By taking this course you will learn how to design and start a food forest in your own backyard. You will also learn practical ways to design a garden using items such as old tires, milk cartons, and swimming pools to be able to start a garden anywhere. Attendees should be able to leave the course with knowledge about how to plan and prepare for a food forest or garden and have the tools and ability to s...

Latest Resources

Smallholder Farmer Profile

Having good sources for understanding the efforts of ECHO and its many friends and partners is important.  How many smallholder farmers are there?   What is their impact on the worldwide food supply?   What is that impact on...

Subnational distribution of average farm size and smallholder contributions to global food production

Leah H Samberg et al 2016 Environ. Res. Lett. 11 124010

Smallholder farming is the most prevalent form of agriculture in the world, supports many of the planet’s most vulnerable populations, and coexists with some ...

The Number, Size, and Distribution of Farms, Smallholder Farms, and Family Farms Worldwide

Sarah K. Lowder, Jakob Skoet, Terri Raney, The Number, Size, and Distribution of Farms, Smallholder Farms, and Family Farms Worldwide, World Development, Volume 87, 2016, Pages 16-29, ISSN 0305-750X, https://doi.org/10.1016/...

Data-Driven Agriculture: The Future of Smallholder Farmer Data Management

More than 500 million smallholder farms worldwide play a significant role in food production and the genetic diversity of the food supply. Until now, it has been difficult to get information to or from smallholder farmers, c...

The impact of user characteristics of smallholder farmers on user experiences with collaborative map applications

Bartling M, Robinson AC, Achicanoy Estrella H, Eitzinger A (2022) The impact of user characteristics of smallholder farmers on user experiences with collaborative map applications. PLOS ONE 17(3): e0264426. https://doi.org/1...

Smallholders and small-scale agriculture: Mapping and visualization of knowledge domains and research trends

Bartol, T. (2022). Smallholders and small-scale agriculture: Mapping and visualization of knowledge domains and research trends. Cogent Social Sciences, 9(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2022.2161778

© 2023 Th...

The Role of Smallholder Farms in Food and Nutrition Security

Food and nutrition security has become one of the most important items on today’s international political agenda and a serious issue for governments around the world. Despite the availability of enough food globally, over a ...

Compendium of forgotten foods in Africa: A companion publication for Integrating Africa’s forgotten foods for better nutrition

Reviewed by Tim Motis

If you are looking for information on underutilized or neglected crops, be aware of the Compendium of Forgotten Foods in Africa, released by the Food and Agriculture Organization in March 2024...

Wild Marigold for Natural Pest Control and More

The ECHO seedbank now has a type of marigold, Tagetes minuta (Asteraceae family.), that is different from the ornamental ones (e.g., T. patula and T. erecta) that gardeners may be used to. Native to South America, and spread...

Paddy Rice Seed Assessment Using Salt and Eggs

This article describes a cost-effective way of assessing the quality of paddy rice (Oryza sativa) seed before storing and planting. You will need water, salt, and eggs. This technique has been tried and tested by more than t...