Agroforestry and Earthworks Education for Erosion Control and Increased Resiliency in Rural Mountainous Farms of Puerto Rico

Commodities

Practices

This project is an innovative initiative to support underserved farmers in the mountainous western region of Puerto Rico through educational opportunities including experiential workshops and educational videos. Participants will learn to make the most efficient use of rain water on their farms through the passive irrigation of agroforestry systems as well as to act as effective stewards of the natural resources, reducing erosion of valuable topsoil. These practices will significantly reduce water pollution generated by soil erosion, which is especially problematic and common in farms located in the mountainous regions of PR. This will also result in more resilient farms with diversified water retention methods,  long-term production, and mitigation of high temperatures through agroforestry. Our 2 main educational strategies include offering experiential workshops and creating high-quality educational videos in Spanish. We will offer 3-4 Agroforestry and Earthworks workshops for farmers from our rural mountainous region,impacting an estimated 60 - 100 farmers and agriculture extensionists. We will also create 2-3 video series in Spanish (with English subtitles)on the topics to be covered in the workshops so that a larger audience will have access to this information. With our media outreach plan we expect to reach over 4,000 people.

1. Offer 3-4 (4 day) experiential workshops on Agroforestry/Earthworks for farmers to practice:
   1. Land Surveying 
   2. Identifying potential Erosion zones
   3. Identifying and understanding water collection and management structures (swales/berms, ponds, overflow zones, check dams, vetiver retention walls, terraces, etc.
   4. Agroforestry Design
   5. How to complete earthworks projects avoiding soil erosion
   6. Design and construction of swales/berms, overflow zones, and check dams
   7. Planting fruit trees and support species on different zones including newly built water structures
   8. Propagation of shade and support species
   9. Climate change resiliency through water management and agroforestry practices 
2. Publish 2-3 video series in Spanish (with English subtitles)to reach a larger audience expanding workshop topics such as:
   1. Building Terraces 
   2. Building long lasting vehicular paths incorporating water management structures
   3. Reforestation 
3. Disseminate videos through outreach plan