ECHOcommunity Actualizaciones
I-TEC Installs Solar Panels for ECHO Florida 2023-12-12
August may not be the preferred month to be installing solar panels on a shop roof in Florida, but our intrepid friends from I-TEC would not be denied. How we appreciate their good work!
I-TEC is a non-denominational ministry utilizing volunteers to meet the technical needs of missionaries and not-for-profit organizations worldwide.
Click here to see I-TEC pictures of the project.
Now Available! ECHO Asia 2024-2025 Seed Catalog 2023-11-28
ECHO Asia's Seed Bank recently released the 2024-2025 seed catalog. This new and improved catalog has a unique format to help you, our network member, better understand each seed and crop better. The catalog is grouped colorfully by category (fruits, grains, herbs & integrated pest management, leguminous trees, oil seeds, pulses & green manure cover crops, vegetables, and seed bundles). Each seed description includes a photo, elevation information, and other helpful details such as if the crop can be used for fodder or has some level of toxicity. If you are looking for a particular species or variety, the index at the back of the catalog can help you find what you are looking! Plants are indexed by Latin name, English common name, and Thai common name.
Download the catalog (PDF) Browse the ECHO Asia seed store online
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ECHO is looking for a Director to lead our East Africa Regional Impact Center, located in Arusha, Tanzania 2023-11-21
After many years of service, our Director of the ECHO East Africa Regional Impact Center is retiring and we are seeking a successor director to lead our dynamic East Africa Regional Impact Center team to continue to impact the region via the ECHO network. Since 2012, ECHO’s East Africa Impact Center has been serving our network across the region. The second of four RICs around the world, they have proven the adaptability and robustness of the RIC model to contextualize ECHO’s services to the unique needs and ecological/cultural contexts of those we serve. The first ECHO East Africa Director is now planning to retire in late 2024. This will allow the right candidate time to overlap with this passionate and highly effective individual.
The new director will expand and strengthen the capacity of the diverse regional network to defeat hunger and improve lives through sustainable food and agricultural strategies in East Africa. The director is responsible for building upon the current regional network and serving that network with joy by identifying, validating, sharing, and measuring the efficacy of contextualized agricultural strategies (4 core functions of ECHO) with technical excellence. In short, network building, team building, and training experience will be essential qualities of an effective director.
This position encompasses roles and responsibilities that are critical to the continued relevance of ECHO in the coming years to defeat hunger and bring restoration to people and the planet. Please help us share this opportunity with your network as we trust God to provide the perfect person for this time in ECHO's history.
Invitation to the ECHO Network: 3rd edition of the International Science Festival -“Science(s) & Agenda 2030, and beyond” 2023-11-13
Cirad, INRAE, IRD, and the Permanent Representation of France to the United Nations in Rome are co-organizing the third edition of the "International Science Festival: agriculture, food, environment," November 22 from 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m (CEST - Rome time), on line.
All ECHOcommunity members are being invited to participate in this event.
We will discuss about SDGs/Agenda 2030 – Research – Agroecology – Zoonoses prevention – Space – soils and foresight
Un grand merci et n’oubliez pas de vous inscrire – be warmly welcome
Árboles con hoja comestibles Disponible Ahora 2023-11-07
El Perennial Agriculture Institute ha publicado un nuevo recurso de Eric Toensmeir (2022) titulado Trees with Edible Leaves (Árboles con hojas comestibles). Este libro gratuito y descargable incluye más de 100 especies cultivadas de plantas perennes. Tonesmeier primero presenta el valor, la distribución geográfica y la versatilidad de las plantas perennes con partes comestibles. Incluye información resumida sobre los nutrientes comunes y la abundancia de nutrientes que se encuentran en las plantas perennes cultivadas. El apéndice A contiene información nutricional detallada
Los editores ya han publicado una edición en español y piden que se les contacte si se desean traducciones adicionales. Trees with Edible Leaves de Tonesmeier está disponible gratuitamente en línea.
Descargar Árboles con hoja comestibles
From the Farm: Moringa for Seed Production 2023-10-31
Over the years, ECHO's seed bank in Florida has sourced Moringa oleifera seeds from both local and international sources. In 2009, a local church graciously allowed ECHO to plant a specific variety of M. oleifera on their property and later manage and harvest the seeds. That experience raised our awareness of local production's value in providing seeds to our network in light of the difficulty in sourcing seeds internationally. In 2021, we decided to produce M. oleifera seeds on our Global Farm in Fort Myers, Florida. This entailed a decision to prioritize seed production over that of trialing and demonstrating multiple varieties. An isolation distance of at least 500 m between M. oleifera varieties is recommended to prevent cross-pollination by bees. To offer and maintain genetic purity of a single variety, instead of seeds with a genetic mix of multiple varieties, we decided to grow just one variety on the farm for seed. Before doing this, we conducted a few trials to identify a variety with good production of mild-tasting leaves within easy reach from the ground. This meant we needed a variety with good branching characteristics leading to outward instead of just upward growth. We identified a variety, PKM-1 from Ghana, that fits those parameters. We removed all the other varieties from the farm and currently have 23 PKM-1 trees planted. As these trees yield seeds, we will plant more trees on the farm and offer seeds to our network. We look forward to serving our network with this variety!
Research Update: Clay Beads for Drying and Preserving Seeds 2023-10-17
At ECHO in Florida, staff have been working to develop a method for small-scale farmers and community seed banks to make their own desiccant to dry and preserve seeds. The three main requirements are clay, wood ash, and a way to heat the beads. Wood ash is a common byproduct of wood-burning cookstoves, and clay can be obtained from clay soil found in many parts of the world. Heating can be done with a forge used by local blacksmiths.
Keeping some desiccant with the seeds, in their storage containers, will help keep seeds dry.The clay beads ECHO has been working with can easily be added to clay pots, tin cans, and glass or plastic bottles. Some closed containers are not perfectly sealed. Even glass jars are not completely airtight if the lids do not seal well. In such cases, keeping some desiccant with the seeds, in their storage containers, will help keep seeds dry. If using well-sealed containers, a farmer could 1) use the desiccant to dry seeds initially and then remove it or 2) keep the desiccant with the seeds if she/he will need to open the container from time to time to access the seeds.
Read More Watch the video online
EDN Número 161 Disponible Ahora 2023-10-03
Temas de Relieve:
- Factores que influyen en la germinación de semillas
- Ecos de nuestra red: Consideraciones Sobre el Espaciamiento de la Moringa
- Del Banco de Semillas de ECHO: Perlas de Arcilla para Secar y Conservar Semillas
- Libros, Sitios Web y Otros Recursos: Aprovecho.org: Información sobre estufas eficientes
Factores que influyen en la germinación de semillas
personal y miembros de la red de ECHO
Extracto:
Otro elemento importante para que la semilla germine o que las plántulas no prosperen es la profundidad a la que se siembre la semilla, ya sea a demasiada profundidad o demasiado superficiales. Si las semillas se siembran a demasiada profundidad, es posible que no contengan suficiente energía para empujar al brote fuera del suelo antes de agotar sus reservas de nutrientes (endospermo). Si las semillas se siembran a muy poca profundidad, es posible que las raíces no se anclen a suficiente profundidad o que las semillas se sequen con facilidad. Como regla general, debe sembrar las semillas a una profundidad equivalente a tres a cuatro veces la anchura de la semilla (Gilroy, 1986). Las semillas pequeñas necesitan poca o ninguna cobertura del suelo, pero son extremadamente vulnerables a la desecación, de modo que asegúrese de regarlas con frecuencia durante sus primeras semanas de vida. Las semillas más grandes tienen mayor cantidad de energía para empujar el primer brote (plúmula) a través del suelo y en el aire por encima del suelo. La orientación de la semilla que se siembra no es vital puesto que las semillas sienten la gravedad en forma innata y enviarán brotes hacia arriba y raíces hacia abajo.
CED Webinar on Agriculture Training and Savings Groups Now Available! 2023-09-19
Robert Morikawa from Plant with a Purpose shared research conducted by Hope International and Plant with a Purpose in Burundi for the first-ever Agriculture Community of Practice. The community of practice around agricultural development will continue to meet and share important information with each other. This space is meant to focus on the assets and needs of smallholder farmers.
Watch the Webinar Learn more about the Community of Practice
ECHO International Agriculture Conference - Speaker Highlight: Philip Deal 2023-09-12
Philip Deal, Ph.D.
International Director of Programs, Water4
November 7-9 | Fort Myers, Florida Register Today!
Philip has worked in the rural water sector for 10 years, supporting projects across sub-Saharan Africa. In 2015, Philip began partnering with Water4 through the University of Oklahoma to assess their service delivery model in Ghana. Over the next several years, he was able to track their progress and evaluate the success of what has become a key enterprise partner – the first to attain district-wide coverage. His passion is to see rural water service mature in professionalism and sustainability, and see consistent health benefits for the people served. Philip holds a PhD in Civil Engineering from the University of Oklahoma.