slash-and-burn

Acres of forest destroyed by slash-and-burn. You can still make out the natural forest in the background. Learn how you can bring an end to this destruction and protect what is left of our planet's tropical forests: www.sustaianbleharvest.org

SHI works in some of the most impoverished villages in Central America. We hire local staff who provide training in techniques that families can use to improve their quality of life while restoring our planet's tropical forests. In most cases, these families have been practicing slash-and-burn techniques for generations. Historically, slash-and-burn farming worked well. A family would clear a small area of forest, burn it and use the ash as a fertilizer to grow their crops for one or two growing seasons. After heavy rains washed away both the ash and top soil, the family would move to a new piece of land and repeat the process, not returning to the first piece of land for 50-100 years. This allowed enough time for the forest to move back in and regenerate the soil.

What is currently happening is that the most impoverished families have been pushed onto tiny pieces of land that are difficult to farm. They are still trying to practice these same techniques, but after several years of using slash-and-burn on one piece of land your soil becomes so depleted that nothing will grow there. Families in this situation are faced with the difficult decision of abandoning their land and trying to make a living for themselves somewhere new. This often leads to new pieces of forest being cleared.. Faced with no other options, a farmer may abandon his livelihood altogether and try to seek a better life in a city and end up in a dangerous shanty town on the outskirts of an urban area.

SHI provides alternatives to this vicious cycle. Families working with SHI learn sustainable land- use practices that allow them to farm the same land again and again. In addition, SHI helps families increase their income through community loan cooperatives and marketing techniques. Family income often increases at least 200% in the first or second year of working with SHI.