Semilla Nueva

Semilla Nueva, or "New Seed" in Spanish, works with small farmers in Guatemala who are eager to learn new technologies that fight soil erosion and increase crop yields on land that has suffered from intensive agriculture practices for centuries. We bring the best technology from the world's leading agriculture research institutions to poor farmers. We do this through a collaborative methodology called the farmer to farmer approach. Community volunteers, called promotores, work with Semilla Nueva staff to try new growing technologies on their land. After they see results, we provide them the tools to teach these same techniques to their neighbors. Farmers also receive the resources needed to form sustainable agriculture support groups where they can continue experimenting and sharing results with their community. Semilla Nueva is working to become a model of sustainable community-based development.