Sustainable Harvest International

Founded in 1997 by Returned Peace Corps Volunteer Florence Reed, Sustainable Harvest International addresses the tropical deforestation crisis in Central America by providing farmers with sustainable alternatives to slash-and-burn agriculture.

"Central America has lost more than half of its rainforests in the last 50 years, contributing to mass extinctions and global warming. Rainforest destruction also wreaks havoc on local populations who depend on the rainforest for their survival.

Sustainable Harvest International helps farmers reverse rainforest destruction with sustainable land-use practices that allow them to take control of their environmental and economic destinies.

Since 1997, SHI has worked with more than 700 families and 900 students in Honduras, Panama, Belize and Nicaragua implementing alternatives to slash-and-burn farming, the leading cause of rainforest destruction in the region. Working with local field personnel trained by SHI, our participants have:

• Planted more than 1,000,000 trees
• Converted thousands of acres to sustainable uses, thereby saving tens of thousands of acres from slash-and-burn destruction.
• Improved nutrition through the establishment of more than 200 organic vegetable gardens
• Increased farm income by over 450%
• Built 165 wood-conserving stoves (saving 1,650 trees per year)"

Link: http://www.sustainableharvest.org/