His name is Antonio, and this is his story:

Antonio shelling corn at the demonstration centre

I met Antonio one morning on a visit to the demonstration site of El Instituto de Permacultura de El Salvador (IPES) – an astounding project that has over 10 years of success in teaching healthier, more environmentally sound agricultural practices to subsistence farming communities. I spent the morning shelling corn with Antonio and Tomas – a volunteer campesino who runs the demonstration site and is Antonio’s permaculture mentor. Sitting between them, stripping the dried corn down to the husk and sharing a plate of organically grown calabaza (pumpkin), I listened to them talk about what it was about IPES and permaculture that drew them to the project.

Since the 1950’s, the agricultural practices amongst subsistence farmers throughout Central America have been heavily chemical dependent, and there are many industrial agricultural chemicals in use in these parts that have long been banned in other parts of the world. The use of these chemicals creates not only economic challenges for these farmers, but is also damaging for both the health of their families and the health of their surrounding ecosystems. However after 50yrs of marketing by the chemical companies, coupled with civil wars in many of the countries, a large proportion of traditional farming practices have been lost and the current methods are the only ones they know. As Tomas talks about his passion for permaculture and how it has enabled him to better care for his family, his neighbours and his community, I see Antonio listening as attentively as I am.

The morning wears on, and the discussion progresses on to the work that I am doing with Seres. Soon, we are talking about the different types of appropriate technology that could be used on the site and before long the corn husk in my hand is replaced by a marker, and the baskets of kernels are pushed away, replaced by the ever present whiteboard that I carry with me: on which designs and sketches are rapidly appearing. I am amazed by the eagerness with which my new friends are participating in the discussion: with question after question being fired at me in a way that would thrill any teacher. Suddenly, I have a thrilling moment of realization: this is it! This is Seres!

Tomas demonstrating the compost pile

Standing there, being able to share my knowledge freely and openly with people that need it, appreciate it and will use it to help themselves and their communities. That is one of the fundamental goals of Seres!

It is with a shock that I realize it is after lunchtime, and I have spent over 4 hours here on the demonstration site. It is time to get back on the road, so with promises of a return trip with solar dehydrator and biodigestor designs I head back to the car. Antonio is also heading home for the day and – curious to get to know a little more about this young man – I offer to give him a lift into the nearby town. In town, we sit down and grab lunch at a small comedor, and I ask Antonio to tell me more about himself. At 22 yrs of age, Antonio is from a small subsistence farming community outside of Suchitoto. In addition to studying at the Institute each week, he has also organized a group of young men from his community to attend a monthly permaculture training course. This group of boys is from the youth environment group within Antonio’s community – something that when I first heard it, I thought I had misunderstood. It is now my turn to ask questions, and I probe a little more.

Tomas and the permaculture banana circle

Antonio’s passion and dream is to work within the field of sustainable development, teaching communities such as his own about climate change and ways of living more sustainable: such as through permaculture, and technology like the biodigestor that we had spent the entire car ride talking about. He started the group in his community a few years ago, getting youth involved in caring for their environment, and working on projects such as local clean-up and recycling programs. It’s an amazing story, but still the question loomed: How? How was it that a young man from a poor farming community in El Salvador found the inspiration and motivation to do this? The answer, when he told me, left me lost for words.

When Antonio was 19, a friend took him to go and see Al Gore’s movie: An Inconvenient Truth and from that moment, Antonio was dedicated to doing what he could to stop climate change and the damaging environmental practices that were taking place around him. Little by little, he started taking his friends to see the movie and talking with them about it, becoming a climate change educator without even realizing it. The youth environment group was the result of these efforts, a group that has been steadily growing since its inception 3 years ago.

When I heard Antonio’s story, I suddenly realized what an effective tool we had at our disposal. In places where people have very little exposure to films and movies (and the politics of the United States is irrelevant) this movie has had a profound effect. Even if Antonio was the only person that this movie reached, it has served its purpose. But how do we take this opportunity and see how many more people we can reach?

On the long drive back from El Salvador to Guatemala, I could not stop thinking about Antonio or his story. I felt truly inspired by this young man, and humbled that I had the opportunity to hear his story. The simplicity of his moment of realization kept on coming back to me, and I kept thinking about all the families and communities that I meet through Seres. People that don’t have a TV, and would welcome a night off to sit in the local church or community centre and watch a movie. And it that movie happened to have an environmental education focus as well…so much the better!

As I drove home, I realized that I have a wonderful opportunity to keep Antonio’s Story going, and it would take no more than a projector, a white sheet and some eager people. I decided that is what I would do, and we are currently seeking sponsors to help us raise the money to cover these costs. The budget is small, but the impact is huge…and we have already made plans with Antonio that the communites near him will be some of the first that we visit: where he will have a chance to shine and show his passion.

We are trying to reach $1000 – which is just $50 from 20 people inspired by this story. If you can give $5, $10 or even get your friends together to contribue $50, you will be helping us to make a great positive change, for life.

Thank you for time, and allowing me to share Antonio’s Story with you: I hope it was as inspiring for you as it was for me.

Corrina

Taking Off

Hellooo! My name is Jasmin Wall, and I am the newest member of the Seres team. I am an Early Childhood Teacher from Byron Bay, Australia, and like most who meet Corrina I was truly inspired by the work that she is doing, and the project that she has created. The first day that I met Corrina on 3rd of October 2009, I said to her “I am going to move over there and be your assistant!”…. And here I am, just over three months later, sitting across the desk from Corrina, writing my first blog from the Seres Headquarters in Antigua.

After a seemingly endless 40 hour journey from Australia, I arrived into busy bustling Guatemala City tired and loopy. Thankfully we left the city, and headed south to the picturesque UNESCO listed town of Antigua. The contrast of the crumbling architecture, and the volcanoes that surround the town is breathtaking!!

The volcanoes and churches of Antigua

Since I have been here I have experienced Project Seres in all its functional glory!! Sitting in coffee shops to get reliable internet connection for board meetings which connect Seres members around the world. Discussing permaculture ideas over the phone with the project leader in Malacatan using our giant whiteboard, then brainstorming new garden models on napkins in a restaurant. Scouring the markets for materials to create a worm farm experiment; then taking a trip to a worm farm outside of Antigua and exchanging ‘recipes’ for functional worm farms and foods to be applied to settings with variable available resources. Organizing fundraising dinners with the help of some local business people, and networking with the diverse selection of individuals in this town.

Aside from Seres work, I have two tasks that I intend to work on during my second week here: the first is to learn to speak Spanish! I did a beginners course before I left Australia, but all it has equipped me with is the ability to say hello, goodbye, and “Lo siento, me no hable espanol.” “I am sorry I dont speak spanish.” [which I have since come to learn is actually wrong!!]. So if I am to achieve my second task, I need to upgrade my vocabulary!

"Napkin" designing...all in the name of Seres

My second task is to get a job…. And so far I think I have a good chance at bar work [which shall force me to speak spanish regularly!] because most of the bars in Antigua cater for the tourists who all speak a version of english that shall get us all understood [I hope!]. I am actually excited about it because I have never done it before… and being here for me is all about new experiences and adventures!!

So far I am truly enjoying the culture shock. Admittedly it has been cushioned some what but having a guide who is practically a local, and can speak street-spanish with the best of them to get anything that she needs!! This week I have been a mere ‘gringa’ [silly white girl] following Corrina around and having things translated for me….. And having a fabulous time doing it! But I am confident that in no time at all I shall be entirely self sufficient in finding my way in this new home-away-from-home.

Within the next fortnight I have a facebook page to launch for Seres, a fundraiser to organise to buy a projector, a volunteer program to fine tune, and we have planned a trip to Malacatan to put into practice the horticultural masterpeice that we created on a napkin …. Truly exciting stuff!!

Corrina and Jaz

Until next I blog,

Keep checking out our website and our facebook page!!

Miss Jasmin.

Snow covered Tajulmulco, seen from the project site

Since arriving back in Guatemala, I haven’t yet had a chance to provide a project update, and for those of you who live vicariously through the blog (we know who you are) I apologise for the lack of information. However, as they say: “no news is good news”, and even though I have only been back here just over a month I have become involved in an exciting new project that has kept me very occupied.
Shortly after landing back in the country, a close friend of mine from Alaska called me up to say that he was in Guatemala for a few weeks volunteering on a project near the town of Malacatan. We arranged to catch up in Antigua, and after a couple of beers and a few hours reminiscing about the old times working together in Quetzaltenango back in 2007, he had convinced me to get up at the crack of dawn, jump in the back of a pick-up truck and head with him on the 8-hour trip back to the project to see what it was all about. And I must admit, I am extremely glad I did.

Banze and Corrina, bathing down at the nearby river (using degrable soap!)

The project is located in the small community of La Independencia, on the Pacific slope about 45 minutes from the Guatemalan border with Mexico. On the Guatemalan side of the border, there are a large number of homeless children – left behind by parents trying to make it into Mexico or the United States to find work. In response to the needs of these abandoned children, a group (the Asociación de Desarrollo Integral Casa Del Niños, or ADICN) from the community of La Independencia decided to start a project to provide a place where these children and others like them from the community could come to receive food, shelter and vocational training in different skills.

Don Carmello, member of ADICN, in one of the design brainstorming sessions

Integral to the success of this project is the support of Solace International – an organization which provides programs in education, vocational training, mentoring and small business development in developing communities to help create sustainable, lasting change. They have been involved here in the project since the outset: assisting in the establishment of the Casa del Niños, and the buildings, infrastructure and small businesses that will support it.

Banze helping out to apply the cement membrane to the completed frame

It is thanks to Solace International that Chase was down in Guatemala, and that Seres is now involved in the Casa del Niños. Through many a late night brainstorming session with Banze (Solace’s Project Manager), we are working to design the 3.5 acre farm to be environmentally and economically sound, and to introduce the community to alternative farming and construction techniques.

Banze & Corrina laying rocks for the tank foundations

The 20,000L ferro-cement rainwater catchment tank (a construction technique not previously seen by the community) has already been well received, paving the way for us to introduce ferro-cement composting toilets and an earth-bag guesthouse for volunteers to come and work. The existing septic system (which currently discharges directly into the nearby river) will also be converted into a black water treatment system, with plans to integrate this into the long-term permaculture plans to create small agricultural businesses that will bring revenue to the project.

Banze with the soil test, used to determine suitability of soil for earth-bag construction

The systems that we build into the site will require ongoing maintenance and upkeep, and our plan is to involve young people staying in the Casa del Niños – training them in the basics of permaculture and sustainable design and by doing so creating a greater interest and awareness of the environmental sustainability of the wider community. Seres’ presence here also gives us a chance to gain a better understanding of the needs of the community, and help introduce more sustainable practices into the daily routines…each time I come back, I am more energized and enthused by the progress that we are making and the relationships that we developing, and I know that there will be great things to come. So stay tuned…I promise the next update won’t be so far away!

To see more photos from the project, clicke here to visit our Flickr Photo Stream

The Executive Committee is one of the most important elements of a project such as this, and can make the difference between success and failure. It needs to be a dynamic, diverse and talented group of people who are dedicated towards making this venture a success…and I believe that we are on our way to having this.

Because of the importance of having a strong, functional Executive Committee I have put a lot of thought into who these people would be – and was consequently both honoured and excited when the two people that I asked both agreed to be on the committee. It has also been very uplifting to hear the language around Seres change from “I” to “We”, “you” to “us” as one became three, and I have no doubt that this is the beginning of a very strong foundation. As with everything Seres-related, the committee will continue to grow as the right people come along and I look forward to finding those people.

For now, I have asked both of the new Executive Committee members if they would be willing to share some words on the blog about who they are, and why they became part of Seres. And so, without further ado….some words from Rowan.

Introducing Rowan Peck

I love the outdoors and adventure sports. The canyons around the Blue Mountains near Sydney are a favourite summer haunt. In winter, I’m often found in Australia’s ski areas working as a volunteer ski patroller. Otherwise I enjoy cycling, reading, the company of friends and family, and anything else that seems worth a go to see what experience it may bring! At work, I’m an electrical power engineer, working for a major consulting firm out of their Sydney, Australia office.

I have known Corrina since she started work fresh from University; her idealism has hardly faded at all! When Corrina asked me to consider joining the Project Seres Executive Committee, I was honoured to be considered worthy, and thrilled to have the chance to make a difference in people’s lives. I find Corrina’s ambition to succeed totally inspirational, so I’m very happy to be asked to bring my love of the outdoors plus my business, project management, and engineering skills to the Executive Committee to support Project Seres.

This year, give a gift that really counts and purchase a square foot of land for your loved ones

We have found the perfect site to establish the Seres Centre: a property that is lush, fertile and full of potential.

Help Us to secure this property by purchasing a christmas gift certificate for your friends and loved ones.

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To find out more, or to purchase a certificate, simply click here.

To view a video of this land, click here. (Note this video has been prepared by our partner project, Project Somos)

So please, check it out at The Blog Garden, and support the David Suzuki Foundation and the work of other people involved in bringing about positive change, for life.

On the 10th November, 2009 President Nasheed from the Republic of the Maldives delivered a moving speech to the members of the Climate Vulnerable Forum (V11). In his speech, the President voluntarily committed his country to carbon neutrality by March 2010, telling a press conference that:

“We want to show an example to the world by unilaterally adopting green development. We want to show the way by committing to carbon neutrality. We want to argue for climate change action from the moral high ground.”

Below is a copy of President Nasheed’s powerful and inspiring speech, showing what we can do if we choose to stand up and take positive action against climate change.

“Your Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,
We gather in this hall today, as some of the most climate-vulnerable nations on Earth.
We are vulnerable because climate change threatens to hit us first; and hit us hardest.
And we are vulnerable because we have modest means with which to protect ourselves from the coming disaster.
We are a diverse group of countries.
But we share one common enemy.
For us, climate change is no distant or abstract threat; but a clear and present  danger to our survival.
Climate change is melting the glaciers in Nepal.
It is causing flooding in Bangladesh.
It threatens to submerge the Maldives and  Kiribati.
And in recent weeks, it has furthered drought in Tanzania, and typhoons in the Philippines.
We are the frontline states in the climate change battle.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Developing nations did not  cause the climate crisis.
We are not responsible for the hundreds of years of carbon emissions, which are cooking the planet.
But the dangers climate change poses to our countries, means that this crisis can no longer be considered somebody else’s problem.
Carbon knows no boundaries.
Whether we like it or not, we are all in this fight together.
For all of us gathered here today, inaction is not an option.
So, what can we do about it?
To my mind, whatever course of action we take must be based on the latest advice of climate scientists. Not on the advice of politicians like us.
As Copenhagen looms, and negotiators  frantically search for a solution, it is easy to think that climate change is like any other international issue.
It is easy to assume that it can be solved by a messy political compromise between powerful states.
But the fact of the matter is, we cannot negotiate with the laws of physics.
We cannot cut a deal with Mother Nature.
We have to  learn to live within the fixed planetary boundaries that nature has set.
And it is increasingly clear that we are living way beyond those planetary means.
Scientists say that global carbon dioxide levels must be brought back down below 350 parts per million.
And we can see why.
We have already overshot the safe landing space.
In consequence the ice caps are melting.
The rainforests are threatened.
And the world’s coral reefs are in imminent danger.
Members of the G8 rich countries have pledged to halt temperature rises to two degrees Celsius.
Yet they have refused to commit to the carbon targets, which would  deliver even this modest goal.
At two degrees we would lose the coral reefs.
At two degrees we would melt Greenland.
At two degrees my country would not survive.
As a president I cannot accept this.
As a person I cannot accept this.
I refuse to believe that it is too late, and that we cannot do any about it.
Copenhagen is our date with destiny.
Let us go there with a better plan.
Ladies and gentlemen,
When we look around the world today, there are few countries showing moral leadership on climate change.
There are plenty of politicians willing to point the finger of blame.
But there are few prepared to help solve a crisis that, left unchecked, will consume us all.
Few countries are willing to discuss the scale of emissions reductions required to save the planet.
And the offers of adaptation support for the most vulnerable nations are lamentable.
The sums of money on offer are so low, it is like arriving at a earthquake zone with a dustpan and brush.
We don’t want to appear ungrateful but the sums hardly address the scale of the challenge.
We are gathered here because we are the most vulnerable  group of nations to climate change.
The problem is already on us, yet we have precious little with which to fight.
Some might prefer us to suffer in silence but today we have decided to speak.
And so I make this pledge today: we will not die quietly.
Ladies and gentlemen,
I believe in humanity.
I believe in human ingenuity.
I believe that with the right frame of mind, we can solve this crisis.
In the Maldives, we want to focus less on our plight; and more on our potential.
We want to do what is best for the planet.
And what is best for our economic self-interest.
This is why, earlier this year, we announced plans to become carbon neutral in ten years.
We will switch from oil to 100% renewable energy.
And we will offset aviation pollution, until a way can be found  to   decarbonise   air transport too.
To my mind, countries that have the foresight to green their economies today, will be the winners of tomorrow.
They will be the winners of this century.
These pioneering countries will free themselves from the unpredictable price of  foreign oil.
They will capitalize on the new, green economy of the future.
And they will enhance their moral standing, giving them greater political influence on the world stage.
Here in the Maldives we have relinquished our claim to high-carbon growth.
After all, it is not carbon we want, but development.
It is not coal we want, but electricity.
It is not oil we want, but transport.
Low-carbon technologies now exist, to deliver all the goods and services we need.
Let us make the goal of using them.
Ladies and gentlemen,
A group of vulnerable, developing countries committed to carbon neutral development would send a loud message to the outside world.
If vulnerable, developing countries make a commitment to carbon neutrality, those opposed to change have nowhere left to hide.
If those with the least start doing the most, what excuse can the rich have for continuing inaction?
We know this is not an easy step to take, and that there might be dangers along the way.
We want to shine a light, not loudly demand that others go first into the dark.
So today, we want to share with you our carbon neutral strategy.
And we want to ask you to consider carbon neutrality yourselves.
I think a bloc of carbon-neutral, developing nations could change the outcome of Copenhagen.
At the moment every country arrives at the negotiations seeking to keep their own emissions as high as  possible.
They never make commitments, unless someone else does first.
This is the logic of the madhouse, a recipe for collective suicide.
We don’t want a global suicide pact.
And we will not sign a global suicide pact, in Copenhagen or anywhere.
So today, I invite some of the most vulnerable nations in the world, to join a global survival pact instead.
We are all in this as one.
We stand or fall together.
I hope you will join me in deciding to stand.”

Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed

As the PC makes its familiar little “goodnight” sound while shutting down, a memory from a past life pops into my head. The memory goes back to my former corporate life, when I would tease my colleagues about working late nights or on weekends. I can still hear myself, playful yet mildly chastising: “work to live, don’t live to work” – a mantra that I held close, making a conscious effort not to cross the line and allow myself to slip into the lifestyle of long work hours and weekends locked away in the office.

These lines have now become as blurred as my eyesight after countless hours starting at a computer screen, and the little devil on my shoulder raises a sardonic eyebrow at me: “mmm hmmm??” As I close my laptop and stumble wearily into bed, I can’t help but smile. Look at you now, I think: no weekends, AND no salary!

Preparing paper-crete panels

There can be no doubt that this project has taken me places and had me doing things that I never would have imagined – and not just working into the wee hours of the morning and over weekends. I can now add to my career as an engineer a list of sporadic jobs that I have taken on in order to keep the money coming in to fund the project: I have worked in a bar – and even on a bar – sending many an unsuspecting tourist well on their way to a wicked hangover; I have given massages in a Mayan Sauna; trained for a half-marathon; provided strategic business consulting and most recently I have donned the tool belt, picked up the hammer and turned to home renovations. It’s a long way from the work that I was doing 12 months ago, but I’m definitely still learning and my mantra has now changed it’s tune to “whatever it takes to get the job done”.

Sonoran Desert, Baja California Mexico

Thanks to Seres, I have journeyed to places that were never previously on the travel destination list. I have driven (on my own) from Oregon in the United States, down through Mexico and across into Guatemala and El Salvador – definitely one of the greater adventures of my life. I am just back from the beautiful islands of British Columbia, spending a week in Vancouver before taking Seres down to Seattle and Eugene, and planning ahead for research trips to Belize and Honduras early next year.

On my travels, I am blessed to have the opportunity to meet the most incredible and inspiring people, building networks and relationships that we weave into the ever-richer, always growing tapestry of this project. It is a bitter-sweet experience however: never being in the same place for more than 2 to 3 months at a time means that I am constantly saying goodbye to dear friends, never certain of when our paths will cross again (although certain that they will, one day). In this transient life, it is difficult to send down roots and become established in any one place. By necessity, my home has become your home and I have learnt to find comfort on a sofa, a mattress on the floor, the back of a car or in some cases even the back patio – realizing that a place to rest in the company of friends is a gift to be cherished. Gradually, I have changed my outlook: instead of reaching down to one place, I am sending out roots as mushrooms in the forest do: mycorrhizal fibres forming an underground network, that emerge and fruit when conditions are right. And during the times that are challenging or difficult, I wrap the Seres tapestry around me like a blanket, and find comfort in the smiles and words of people that have been empowered, motivated and inspired by this project to make positive changes in their lives.

I hope that in light of this, I can therefore be forgiven for those times when someone says to me “I wish I could do what you’re doing”, and I can do nothing more than stare back stupidly. As my tired brain, struggling to work out which time zone I am in, tries to process that comment, I can’t help but think: which part? The one where you give up your job to work for nothing? Or perhaps the part when you come to substitute Microsoft’s start-up and shut-down noises on the laptop for having a real person to say ‘good morning’ and ‘good night’ to. Seres is the first thing I think about when I wake up, and the last thing I think about before I go to sleep. It represents the greatest sacrifices I have ever made in my life, but I also believe it will represent the greatest achievement of my life. It is all-consuming, it is pervasive, it is intense: but it is my life. And I wouldn’t change it for anything.

Having said that, I still urge a degree of caution, and now whenever I hear someone saying “I wish I could have your life…” I cannot help but echo the wise words that a close friend shared with me recently:

“Be careful what you wish for…it may just come true.”

So here are a few more to share with you and remember – if you haven’t sent any in yet, it’s not too late! Simply email info{at}projectseres{dot}org to get your number.

Ezra

The Mad Scientists

Bianca

Greg and Deia

Jo

Below is a short Climate Quiz provided by the David Suzuki Foundation. If you’re Canadian and find the answers to this to be a little surprising, then – on behalf of Seres and the David Suzuki Foundation – we are asking you to Take Action, and send a message to your Prime Minister that he can take to Copenhagen this December.

Canada’s Climate Quiz

Q. What country spews five times more global warming pollution per person than China and ten times more per person than India?

Q. What country invests six times less per person than the U.S. to build a clean-energy economy and clean-energy jobs?

Q. What country is one of the top 10 global warming polluters in the world, based on the average carbon footprint of its citizens?

Q. What country produces two to three times more global warming pollution per person than most European countries?

Q. What country produces less than one per cent of its energy from renewable sources like wind and solar power — employing just a few thousand people?

Answers: Canada Canada, Canada again, Canada and – you guessed it – Canada!

Take Action

All you need to do is write a personalized letter (each one represents 100 citizens!) and get it to Stephen Harper before 7 December. Postage is free, and we’ve even provided a template for you as a guideline. So please, get writing and help us to make these December negotiations really count!

Send it to:

Prime Minister Stephen Harper
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada K1A 0A6
(Letters to the House of Commons can be mailed postage-free!)

Send copies to:

Michael Ignatieff,  Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada
Gilles Duceppe, Leader of the Bloc Québecois
Jack Layton, Leader of the New Democratic Party

(Same address as above.)

Let Us Know

If you do write a letter, we would love to hear about it. Please let us know by emailing info[at]projectseres[dot[org].