Our Permaculture course group holding medicinal plants after our course with the Guatemalan natural medicine expert, Dr. Armando Cáceres...

Homes and hives of native bee species that Granja Elisa conserves ALL bees are important. Not just those that produce abundant honey. We...

I've always wanted to learn how to use the A-frame to make contour lines! Now I'm excited to say I know how. In farming, contour lines...

Analyzing the intricate Mesoamerican art by the Beehive Collective "What do you all see in the canvases hanging in the room?" Andrés...

Visualizing when to plant/ propagate different types of plants according to the moon cycle Throughout my time living in Central America I...

Gregorio smiling proudly in his food forest July 10, 2024 Gregorio's retirement plant is to have a food forest of healthy, low-maintenance, diversified production. Over time, a food forest should be largely self-sustaining and require little work or intervention. It follows permaculture's ideology to mimic nature and allow nature to do its work. Gregorio also has a broader view of the social and environmental problems we face globally such as climate change, environmental deg

July 7, 2024 Preparing the ceremony Nawales During the Mayan ceremony each of us participants were given our nawal. According to the Mayan culture, nawales are protector spirits that we acquire at birth. There are 20 nawales which are the 20 energies that govern life in all of its manifestations. In the Mayan calendar there are also 20 days, and each day has a nawal. You can see the nawal of the day here and you can also discover your nawal by putting in your birth date and

The avocado plantation surrounding the pathway entry to the community Pachitulul where IMAP is located When you first arrive to the entrance of The Mesoamerican Institute of Permaculture (IMAP) in the small town of Pachitulul, Guatemala, you see a plantation of avocado trees. At first I thought it was a part of the permaculture institute but you soon realize that it's a big monoculture production, and I later learned that it's owned by a man who lives in Guatemala City. The e

Making a garden mandala design June 21, 2024 Huertos Familiares: Building a Family Garden The rain poured and pounded all night long...

June 25, 2024 Stomping down the microorganisms to store them anaerobically Microorganisms!! I wrote some about microorganisms during my...

June 22, 2024 Native Kitchen-- Amaranth Colorful, red and yellow stalks of amaranth create a beautiful scenery throughout the garden...

June 14, 2024 The Mesoamerican Institute of Permaculture I boarded a bus to the towns of Lake Atitlan and, while the first half was a quick drive on the highway, the second half was a windy journey through countryside and mountains where we started to feel very dizzy! The bus took us to a city called Panajachel on the Lake Atitlan and from there I took a boat ride to San Lucas Toliman. It was a quick boat ride-- just 15 minutes. When I arrived to San Lucas Toliman, I took a

Bus ride to Guatemala May 2024 Traveling from Mexico to Guatemala After two incredible months in Chiapas, Mexico, I traveled down to...

Juana and Faustino from DESMI April 18, 2024 A Conversation about Community-Based Work in Agroecology: To continue my journey of visiting organizations that work in areas of agroecology and rural development in San Cristobal de Las Cases, today I visited the office of DESMI. I was received by two of DESMI's workers, Faustino and Juana. We sat in their library where we were surrounded by a collection of books about the history of Chiapas, rural development, and agrarian studie

April 24, 2024 The bumpy road to Mitontic Arriving to Mitontic We took a two and a half hour drive north to the municipality of Mitontic. As soon as we arrived, the paved road abruptly turned into a rocky, bumpy dirt road. As we arrived into the community, we could see women and children waiting next to water spigots where water was hardly trickling out. April is the peak of the dry, hot season before the rain comes. Mitontic has scarce underground water sources and this is a

The Team as CISERP: From left to right: Yareni, me, Cielo Lourdes, and Adolfo (not pictured-- Vicente) April 15, 2023 Arriving to CISERP, the Center for Research and Professional Services El Centro de Investigación y Servicios Profesionales After spending a month in Honduras at the Organic Learning Center farm, I traveled up to Chiapas, Mexico. Here I stayed in the town of San Cristobal de Las Casas-- a colorful, colonial town in the mountains of the central highlands of Chia

February 23, 2024 Team meeting with Evelin, Glen and the students I have focused a lot on the organic practices and ideas on how to run...

February 22, 2024 When I arrived to the Organic Learning Center (CAO), Glen gave me a bucket for my room which he told me I could pee...

February 20, 2024 Mountain Microorganisms: MM Soild and Liquid Today Glen sat down with us to give us a lesson on Mountain...

School Visits to CAO's Farm and Vegetable Garden February 17, 2024 David teaching the students to compost and working in the garden David...