By Sherry Manning | Founder and Executive Director
We are happy to report that we have distributed the first round of direct farm infrastructure support to five farmers. Each farmer has received $600 USD each as an initial disbursement to implement a variety of farm infrastructure improvements. The projects range from building new composting facilities, rebuilding existing greenhouses, and construction of new greenhouses that will help increase their organic seed production.
Each farmer submitted applications to receive these funds that included: budget projections (including a local counterpart), drawings of the improvements, and detailing why these improvements will advance their seed saving and organic farming operations. One of the main benefits of improved greenhouse design for our farmers is the ability to grow food year-round and ensure that crops can withstand the heavy typhoon and rainy seasons in the Philippines. By ensuring our farmers have access to more sustainably designed growing structures they will be able to grow food and seeds year-round which will support more income from increased sales and production.
We have also moved forward with our collaboration with Red Rocks Community College Engineering students. Five teams have submitted initial design ideas to build more durable and typhoon resistant greenhouses. The students have met with our farmers virtually once and have been working closely with our Philippines Program Manager Karen who also happens to be an engineer to refine their designs. We will be taking the best of the designs and moving forward with implementing one of the final designs in early 2017. We are thankful for this collaboration and opportunity for our farmers to build typhoon resilient greenhouses.
Thank you for supporting these projects and the advancement of seed saving and organic farming in the Philippines!
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