Supporting Honduran Farmers!
Honduras has a very negative reputation now a days in the news. Most people have heard about the political turmoil and poverty that sends illegal immigrants fleeing to the borders on foot in search of safety.
And it’s true: Honduras is the murder capital of the world. Many local businesses are run by gangs. Violent protests often make it impossible for people to travel safely to their jobs. Being pulled over on the highway, for no reason, and bribed by police officers is common.
Many farmers still use the conventional slash and burn technique. This way to farm rapidly destroys and the fertility of the soil, leaving no plants to decompose and replenish the earth. It also results in lots of harmful CO2 being released into the atmosphere. This technique combined with the devastating effects global climate change is making it hard for farmers to feed their families.
However, despite its bad reputation and struggles Honduras is one of the most beautiful places on the planet. It has luscious tropical plants and animals that exist in few other places on Earth. There are naturally occurring waterfalls, mountains, and caves.  Every direction you look is as fantastic as the glossy cover photos of National Geographic. It is truly an uncultivated gem of natural beauty.
In rural towns people are friendly and good natured. I have been welcomed into the houses of families, had broken Spanish conversations and been offered countless cups of sweet coffee. The communities are loving and hardworking. Many people I met brought me to dance parties and to play soccer with friends.
One thing that really struck with me was how people who could barely feed their children would hear that I was helping to build a school and immediately offer me coffee and bananas at their houses. The culture of endless generosity and kindness in response to a helping hand is almost devastatingly beautiful. This idea is one that I rarely see in Canadian culture. Money and generosity are tightly tied in Canadian culture. It is somewhat assumed that you will pay your friend back, for that coffee. Where as in Honduras If you stop at a neighbors house to say hello you’ll have kindness and warmness extended to you.
For a long time I’ve wanted to have a fundraising dinner party where I and a couple of my volunteer friends cook a traditional Honduran meal. I would intend to share the generous culture by serving the meal with excitement and smiles. The meal would cost a certain amount a plate to support PRR.
PRR is a corporation that helps local Honduran farmers with their agricultural research. They do tests to optimize crop yield at different elevations, and advocate against the slash and burn by teaching crop rotation methods. The program helps feed struggling families. It also insures that people can succeed economically when they might have ended up poor and vulnerable, to violence and gang involvement. This program over time will uplift the Honduran economy and lead to less turmoil.
Posting pictures and related news on an Instagram page and website would raise awareness around the unseen side of Honduras. It seems people are uplifted by donating money to a cause they see as beautiful rather than a cause that is displayed as hopeless. Showing the strengths and beauty of Honduras will empower more people to come out and buy a plate of food. In this image they can support a culture that needs help, but will thrive with a little help. These posts would support view on Honduras that they are not used to seeing in the same place.
Also making youtube videos that outline what a volunteer trip is like in Honduras is like would give people an idea of the trip. This use of media would attract people who are already activists and volunteers. It might also plant the idea in the heads of young people and people who have always wanted to start doing volunteer work. And it would give people who already volunteer a new sense of hope about Honduras and the effectiveness of the work they do.
Of course there are weaknesses and strengths to every social media platform for sharing information. Instagram would be good for showing pictures but probably wouldn’t be the best for sharing lots of text because people tend to skim through long captions quickly. Facebook and tumblr could work for longer descriptions of the event and the culture. I would probably also make a go fund me page to raise some money prior to the dinner.
The way my posts would describe the culture and beauty of Honduras would probably be very similar to the first half of this blog post!
Here are some cute Honduran animals :)
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