Heifer in the News

As voluntourism rises in popularity, so does the urge among travellers to give back to a community, even after the suitcases are unpacked. Give the gift that gives back through organizations like Heifer International, which provides animals to poor communities around the globe to help them become self-reliant. Donate a $60 Flock of Hope in someone’s name and provide a family with chicks, ducklings and goslings that will feed that family and produce offspring that, under Heifer’s guidance, will be donated to another family in need.

Think “livestock to help poor countries” and what comes to mind? Probably not bees, worms and snails. Though they are not your everyday farm critters, they are among species John P. Perkins says will be included in workshops he will lead at the Northeast Organic Farming Association Summer Conference this weekend.

The 37th annual NOFA conference runs Aug. 12 through 14 at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, and is open to the public. Perkins, of Worcester, is volunteer coordinator for Central Massachusetts for Heifer International at Overlook Farm in Rutland. He will present two workshops on Sunday, “Livestock for a Small Earth,” for adults, and “One Solution to World Hunger: Farm Animals,” for teens.

My Journey: Paul Mugisha

Bio gas provides enough energy for cooking and lighting

Paul Mugisha from Isingiro district has been a farmer for over 15 years, but much of his experience was limited to subsistence farming. “I used to grow crops to feed my family. I would then sell whatever was left, but there was never much left,” he says. Despite this, he stuck to farming, investing his savings in agriculture. His efforts paid off when he became a beneficiary of Heifer International’s support to farmers.

Growing vegetables in the ground takes time, effort and dedication.  Yet energy focused on a single point, like the sun on a plant, can yield marvelous results.  At Heifer USA, that result is all about feeding the hungry.  Heifer USA's newest initiative, The Seeds of Change, is growing in new directions for locally grown food and its distribution in Arkansas.