Indigenous Vegetables with Prof. Mary Abukutsa

The first week of August this year was an amazing chance for our communities to learn from an expert in indigenous vegetables. Thanks to Marc Barasch (GWC's Founder and Director) for having the foresight and reach to put this all together from afar in the US. Thanks so much to Prof. Mary Abukutsa for traveling so far and inspiring people to farm sustainably and nutritiously!

Prof. Abukutsa taught over 100 farmers and school children how to plant, harvest, and cook 10 kinds of native vegetables. These crops can withstand harsh conditions and bring back biodiversity to degraded lands. This is a perfect synergy with our agroforestry and permaculture training, as Kenyan farms are far too dependent on maize and less nutritious but common vegetables.

Thanks to Mwanamuna Swale and the whole Red Cross team for helping to organize the farmers of Miyani and also helping graciously with transport. Red Cross and Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) and of course GWC want very much want to see these important programs spread! We were so please that Prof. Mary came and also brought a small army of instructors from JKUAT with her.

When faced with the challenge of changing what people eat - I take solace in the work of Antoine-Augustin Parmentier in trying to educate people to eat potatoes. "Thanks largely to Parmentier's efforts, the Paris Faculty of Medicine declared potatoes edible in 1772."