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Borlaug Institute brings Junior Master Gardener program to Guatemalan orphanagesAs part of a U.S. Department of Agriculture-funded Food for Progress project, the Norman E. Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture and National Junior Master Gardener program has been bringing the joy of gardening to Guatemalan orphanages. "This summer, we presented Junior Master Gardener program curriculum and activities and taught organic gardening to orphans at the Agua Viva and Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos orphanages in the Chimaltenango region," said Yanet Rodriguez, the Borlaug Institute's coordinator for educational programs in Guatemala. Rodriguez said she and three summer interns chosen by the Borlaug Institute, part of the Texas A&M System, introduced more than 300 children, mostly orphans, to the Junior Master Gardener program and helped nearby communities with reforestation efforts. "We wanted to do something fun and educational for the orphans," she said. "Junior Master Gardener activities not only teach about horticulture and gardening, they also teach kids about science and provide them with useful life skills." The Junior Master Gardener Program is an international youth gardening program that has its national headquarters at Texas A&M University in College Station. "Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos provides housing, education and daily meals for over 200 children," Rodriguez said. "Agua Viva currently has over 100 children under their care, but not all are orphans. Some are from the surrounding communities, but their parents cannot provide for them." The Junior Master Gardener program provided the orphans with fun and exciting ways to learn about agriculture and life sciences, she said, and the interns provided useful technical assistance toward community reforestation efforts. "The children benefited greatly because now they understand the importance of things like reforestation, soil conservation and growing crops using organic compost," Rodriguez noted. "The kids had a lot of fun," said Vince Partida of Houston, 19, one of the interns who has now returned to Texas A&M and is majoring in sociology but taking many agriculture courses. "The orphans don't get much of a chance to go anywhere, so we brought hands-on and interactive program activities to them. They really enjoyed the experience." Partida said he learned about the internship when Borlaug Institute director Dr. Ed Price spoke with him and other members of the TAMU Gents, an educational organization devoted to helping developing countries. He was given the internship, plus the organization raised more than $3,000 to help support Junior Master Gardener program efforts in Latin America. "I spent the month of July working with the orphans and providing technical assistance to farmers in the Chimaltenango region toward reforestation efforts," he said. "But the best part was working with the kids. They were so excited and so appreciative of our being there. I think they had a great experience." Partida said activities in which he and the orphans participated included establishing an organic garden and starting a compost pile in an abandoned bus on orphanage grounds. "I worked with kids from about 10 to 16 years old in two orphanages and two rural schools," said Gabriela Santistevan, 23, who is originally from Bolivia. Santistevan also has returned to Texas A&M and is pursuing degrees in both animal science and agricultural economics. "The kids enjoyed the activities, especially the vermicomposting, which is a type of composting using worms. They were a little hesitant at first, but then they really got into it and started to have fun." Santistevan said the experience was not only rewarding but also gave her a chance to learn more about Guatemala. "More than 50 percent of Guatemala's population works in the agriculture sector, so the kids were interested in everything about gardening and agriculture," she said. "The children in Guatemala are fantastic." The interns provided horticultural instruction using the Junior Master Gardener curriculum and activity handbook, which had been translated into Spanish as a resource for Latin American instructors, said Johanna Roman, director of Latin American programs at the Borlaug Institute. "We also have produced video DVDs in Spanish showing many of the most popular Junior Master Gardener activities as part of an effort to expand the program throughout Latin America," Roman said. "The curriculum videos were produced by former students in the university's entomology department who now own and operate Solpugid Productions in College Station." Roman added that Junior Master Gardener train-the-trainer programs for educators and community leaders in Central America have been ongoing for the past two years, with instruction taking place in Guatemala and Honduras. She said further Junior Master Gardener specialist training is being planned for Mexico, Panama, Ecuador, Costa Rica and other Latin American countries. Roman also credited Colombian-born Pedro Schamblon, who runs My Father's Farm, a 22-acre organic farm in Seguin, Texas, with providing inspiration for the Borlaug Institute's outreach to Guatemalan orphanages. My Father's Farm helps support a nearby orphanage in Seguin operated by My Father's House International Foundation, a nonprofit organization which has built orphanages in Latin America and the U.S. "Pedro is a true humanitarian," Roman said. "He has helped many orphans in Colombia and is now helping us in Guatemala. He has been really generous in sharing his time, talent and experience with kids, igniting a passion in us to help children through youth development programs like Junior Master Gardeners." Lisa Whittlesey, director of the National Junior Master Gardener program, added that the program is being brought to other parts of the world in addition to Latin America. "The work that's been done in Latin America has served as a springboard for other international activities, including recent program activities in South Korea," she said. Whittlesey said in August the newly established JMG Korea program provided a five-day specialist training to 29 current and future educators, ranging from elementary, middle and high school teachers to graduate students and university professors. "After the training, the teachers presented a Junior Master Gardener program to more than 100 kids at the Gwacheon National Science Museum in Seoul," she said. "The museum is a large and impressive location which served to show just how interested in and supportive of the program the people in South Korea are." Whittlesey added that the new national coordinator for JMG Korea, Eun Sook Noh, as well as many of the educators trained in Seoul, also have ties to Japan, China and Taiwan, and hope to expand the program into those countries. "The Junior Master Gardener program translates well to kids everywhere," she said. "The lessons they learn about life through gardening and horticulture are universal." For more information on the Borlaug Institute, go to: http://www.borlaug.tamu.edu For more information on the Junior Master Gardener program, go to: http://www.jmgkids.us/.
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