Sustainability and Self-Reliance

Poverty plays a major role in the environmental problems of many countries. That’s why Heifer teaches our project partners environmentally sound, sustainable farming methods through agroecology.

And just what is agroecology?

Agroecology is the sustainable use and management of natural resources, accomplished by using social, cultural, economic, political and ecological methods that work together to achieve sustainable agriculture production.

That means everything is working together to help save the environment – a healing touch for our planet that helps reduce our environmental footprint, the impact each one of us makes.

Heifer has learned that impoverished people often make short-term choices based solely on their desperate need for food. Many farmers have no alternative to cutting trees for firewood or putting animals on overgrazed land — practices that harm the earth.

So we’re working with an integrated system of plant and animal production practices to satisfy human food needs, enhance environmental quality and natural resources, and make the most of on-farm and renewable resources.

In fact, Heifer has been a pioneer in combining hunger and environmental concerns. Animals that provide food and income can also be catalysts for many changes that benefit the earth.

Almost 3,000 families worldwide have benefited from Heifer’s Agroecology Initiative, established in 2000, to place more emphasis on environmental protection as part of our work.

Through Heifer training:

• Families learn how to keep their small plots of land healthy and renew the soil for future generations by planting trees and using natural fertilizer.
  
  
• They learn to practice zero– or managed–grazing techniques, which means keeping livestock in an enclosed, shaded area and carrying fodder and water to them, instead of letting them wander in the open where they are more likely to catch diseases or damage the environment.
  
  
• They learn contour planting and terracing, techniques that resist erosion.
  
  
• And they discover how to use biogas stove units for cooking and heating their homes.

• Heifer's Agroecology Initiative is helping restore land to its original abundance and replenish the earth's resources through the smart use of plants and animals.

You can help end poverty by supporting Heifer's work to teach sustainable farming methods around the world.