By Anne Kraemer Diaz | Executive Director Wuqu' Kawoq - Maya Health
Hello Friends,
Over the past year we have been busy preparing to launch our community gardens pilot study, which aims to foster community cooperation and provide a sustainable source of nutritious foods for families and children in rural Guatemala. The study will take place over 18 months in partnership with the community of Chutiestancia and the US Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Participants will work together to grow and harvest a wide range of local herbs and vegetables while receiving training and support from the Maya Health nutrition staff. Through community interviews, observation, and child nutrition monitoring we will be able to see how integrating a community garden component into our usual nutrition program affects child nutrition and growth.
We are excited to report that the project is off to a great start! Many families have entered into the program and begun training courses with our local nutrition technicians. In addition, our garden has been constructed the first harvest is growing quickly. Throughout this process, we have continued to provide support and treatment for malnourished children in the community. Soon, we will be able to gather some preliminary results of the study, which will help us to understand our impact.
This pilot study reinforces Wuqu' Kawoq’s commitment to continuous learning and development. By working with communities to execute rigorous evaluation while maintaining a high level of care, we are able to better understand our impact and improve the services we offer to our patients. The results of our study will also be used by the US Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics to contribute to a broader understanding of nutrition projects and serve as an example for other organizations working to combat child malnutrition. If all goes well, after the pilot study we will be able to expand the gardens project to more communities.
Thank you so mcuh for your incredible, on-going support! Because of you, we are transforming the lives of malnourished children, their families and the future of Guatemala.
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