SARE 1997 Highlights

SARE Encourages Conservation in the Tropics

The diverse Sun Bear Farm in Hawaii's Kona District provides an educational stop for Extension staff learning abpit sustainable vegetable production and other subjects in the Pacific Islands. Photo by Jill Auburn

An interactive educational program is enhancing tropical agriculture in Hawaii, Guam, Micronesia and other Pacific islands. Twenty ag agency staff attended three intensive, week-long training courses during the SARE-funded professional development program's first phase. A team of educators provided the training, with help from 17 farmers, ranchers and landscapers. Sessions included sustainable farming concepts and systems, database management, electronic networking, field trips and identification of barriers to adoption of more sustainable methods in the Tropics. Participants reviewed how agroforestry, sustainable orchard production, biologically based pest management and other methods long used in the islands can help preserve tropical agriculture. Between sessions, trainees held local workshops to share what they learned. They continue to work with farmers who raise vegetables, coffee, macadamias and other products. Many of them want to use locally adapted cover crops to improve soil and reduce erosion. Others note an increased need for biocontrol methods and livestock waste-management systems that enhance yields and protect groundwater, reef areas and watersheds. This year, the program emphasizes hands-on teaching at demonstration sites at university farms in Guam, Pohnpei in Micronesia, and Molokai, and at an organic herb and flower farm in Kauai. A training manual and other educational packages are in the works. (Western Region project EW95-027.)

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