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Did you know that almost 80 percent of the world’s population includes insects in their diets? More than 1400 species of insects are edible. Insects are a valuable source of critically needed protein and micro-nutrients. What are the pros and cons of promoting insects as a solution for world hunger? Why does the Western attitude toward entomaphagy matter? Join us for this conference to participate and learn more from global experts. When: April 23-24, 2010 Cosponsored by
On Friday afternoon, our executive director Tom Corson and 2009 graduate Trey Reed were given an opportunity they couldn’t turn down – a chance to leave Thursday, Jan. 21 to travel to Haiti with a group of medical personnel and relief workers from HERO, Haiti Emergency Relief Organization, a nonprofit based in Huntsville. Air travel will not be a problem, because Remote Area Mission – RAM – will be providing a plane and pilot to take the volunteers and their supplies to the Dominican Republic. From there, they will travel across the border and into Haiti. HERO partners with the Jimani Project and Hunstville Haiti Congress, so they have a base camp from which to work. Tom and Trey will be taking water purifiers from New Life International. These purifiers run from car batteries, which can be recharged using solar panels. The purification system uses electricity and table salt to chlorinate the water, making it safe to drink for up to 10,000 people each day. The systems last for several years, and Tom and Trey will train local people to maintain them. ** As with any disaster relief effort, sometimes plans unexpectedly change. Tom and Trey’s travel is dependent on RAM and HERO at this time. We will keep you updated if the airports close. As of now, they will fly out on Thursday, Jan. 21 . The 2009 Practicum has begun! This marks our second week of classes. Most of last week was spent learning “the basics” – computer and Internet training, cross cultural studies and learning important Southern words/phrases, such as y’all. This fall, one of our American students, Katherine Harrison, will be writing about her experiences for our blog. Below is one of her reflections from last week, introducing herself and why she is participating in the Practicum. Katherine is a member of Brookhaven UMC (Brookhaven, Miss.) and was a member of their SIFAT mission team to Ecuador in July 2009. Katherine is also keeping a personal blog here. Through more tears than I can count and a strange meandering path, God has brought me here to the SIFAT campus. I say He brought me here because I was unsure I would be able to attend. In fact, by the middle of last week, I had begun making plans not to attend and to continue on this spiritual journey at home (for the moment). But God and Kathy Bryson had other plans and the SIFAT door kept opening back up even though I was steady trying to close it. I have an image of me leveraging my weight against a door to close it and there’s this big God-sized foot lodged in there to keep it open. So here I am and I can honestly tell you I have no idea why or where it may lead. That’s not to say I am not focused or enthusiastic about being here. I am! I feel so blessed! I also feel a bit unworthy. I am not a community leader, a pastor, the head of some organization or a full-time missionary. These people are established and they know their place in God’s kingdom. They have specific missions to carry out. God may change those plans mid-stream, I know, but they at least have a stream. I don’t. Yet. People interested in participating in SIFAT’s community development training often cannot take part in our 10-week international Practicum. This spring, we are offering a two-week Field Study Course highlighting hunger and malnutrition. Kathy Bryson, our international training director, has written a letter below to those interested. At the bottom of this post, we have included some links to our training information on the SIFAT website.
Dear Friends,
Do you want to learn practical skills to address hunger and malnutrition in the developing world? Come join us at SIFAT for two weeks (May 17- May 30) of intensive hands-on learning that will give you a tool-kit to address basic human needs.Â
Learn roof-top gardening, build a simple solar cooker, make leaf concentrate to treat malnourished children, learn some simple technologies for clean water and sanitation, build fuel-efficient cookstoves, learn to preserve foods and “refrigerate” without electricity and much more…..At the same time you learn practical skills, your understanding of world hunger and community development issues will deepen through participatory activities.
Classes will be taught at SIFAT’s 176-acre rural International Training Campus outside of Lineville, Alabama (1.5 hours from Atlanta or Birmingham). Some hands-on components will be in our simulated Global Village.  Â
SIFAT Trainers are experienced in international development and cross-cultural dynamics. Additionally, we are partnering with several outstanding instructors for this training including Dr. Martin Price of ECHO, Dr. Larry Winiarski (Rocket Stove inventor), and Dave Kennedy, founder of Leaf for Life.
This field study is designed for grass-roots community workers, university students, missionaries, development organization workers, and those who want to learn how to make a difference in meeting the needs of a hungry world. This course was first developed with NIH grant funds through the Sparkman Center for Global Health and the University of Alabama in Birmingham,School of Public Health.Â
Click here for additional information about this course, as well as a registration form, course flyer and course objectives.
Please e-mail me with any questions. I look forward to hearing from you!
Kathy C. Bryson, MPH, MHS International Training Director ————-
Quick links:
We have asked Practicum student Becky Forrest to let us publicly post the recaps e-mails to friends and family. Becky is an American and has just begun full-time missions after 29 years as an accountant. Through her posts, we hope you will understand a little more about what the Practicum is and what students are learning. Below is her most recent e-mail. Thanks for sharing with us, Becky! Last week. Wow, I can’t believe the last week of training is here. It is bittersweet. I look forward to returning home, but I will miss my new family I have made here so very much. All 16 of us have gotten so close, and we realize most of us will not meet again until we see the pearly gates. I have gotten very close to two of the Nigerians, and maybe one day I will get to visit with them. I plan to stay in touch with email. The internet is a great tool for keeping in touch. Friday night we have our graduation ceremony, and it will be very special for all of us. One of the biggest lessons I have learned is we are all brothers and sisters in Christ and regardless of the color of our skin or the language we speak we are all God’s children. |
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