Spanish conquerors encountering tomato in Central America in the 15th century thought the suspicious-looking berries must be poisonous. Five centuries later, a Hmong woman in the northern uplands of Vietnam was equally suspicious of the tomato plants in her backyard garden. Never having eaten tomato before, she thought the fruit was sour and malodorous at first. The plants were introduced as part of a pilot to test improved home gardens for isolated communities of ethnic minorities in the northern uplands of Vietnam. Hmong ethnic people typically live in remote areas with limited market … [Read more...]
International Day of Rural Women – Empowered Agents of Change for Rural Transformation in Nicaragua
Today is the International Day of Rural Women, an invitation to celebrate women and a reminder about the importance of rural feminism. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 58 million women live in the rural areas of Latin America. They play crucial roles ensuring food and nutrition security, eradicating rural poverty and improving the well-being of their families, yet they continue to face serious challenges as a result of gender-based stereotypes and discrimination that deny them equitable access to opportunities, resources, assets and services. It is … [Read more...]
Creating Socially Inclusive Agricultural R4D in Central Mekong
The six countries that compose Humidtropics' Central Mekong Action Area are characterized by considerable ethnic diversity. They include southwestern China, northern Thailand, Laos, northeast Cambodia, Vietnam, and Myanmar. Ethnic minorities in Central Mekong have been marginalized socially, culturally, economically, politically, and geographically, although the extent of such marginalization varies among the six countries. Such realities are also reflected in agricultural development: in northwest Vietnam, ethnic minority farmers predominantly occupy agricultural production, and play a … [Read more...]