Welcoming to our new MAST International Intern

Posted by Reginaldo Haslett-Marroquin on January 12, 2012

I’ve known Daniel Ajpop Garcia since he was a small boy in Totonicapan Guatemala. So I am really looking forward to his arrival in Minnesota this weekend – as a new Rural Enterprise Center intern and student in the University of Minnesota’s MAST International program.

MAST stands for Minnesota Agricultural Student Trainee and its mission is to improve global understanding by providing educational and cultural enrichment through international exchange. Working with the Rural Enterprise Center in Northfield will be part of his three-month MAST experience.

Daniel graduated from the National Central School of Agriculture (ENCA) in 2008 (the same school that I attended in Guatemala, and is currently continuing his studies in agriculture business management at the Escuela Agrícola Panamericana, Zamorano.

At ENCA, he worked on crop production systems including vegetables, fruits, ornamental plants, extended season systems (greenhouses), cattle ranching, pig production, egg production and managed the student broiler production projects, and many other activities aimed at improving the productivity of small farms as well as building the capacity of families and communities to sustain and increase food security.
At Zamorano, Daniel continues to learn the science behind farm production critical to rural communities, but with a larger systems view – gaining experience in post-harvest processing, larger scale natural resources management, technologies such as GPS and GIS and the application of these tools to improving landscape-based ecological management for communities, and other approaches to the challenge of scaling up capacity to produce more food sustainably.

Daniel’s work with the Rural Enterprise Center will expand his understanding of the food and agriculture system in the United States. Part of his time will be focused on two specific pieces of our program’s systematic approach to addressing poverty:

• Financing: Review and analyze the strategies followed by credible programs and organizations serving the financial needs of immigrant populations in other parts of the country – and compare those experiences to our financing strategies and opportunities.

• Production: Review and refine our free range poultry production manual, with a focus on nutrient management, soil chemistry and manure management; identify research projects to complement the development of a larger and more permanent student-based production research internship program at the Rural Enterprise Center.

I’m hoping his time in Northfield will be a positive experience for him. I’m sure it will help the Rural Enterprise Center continue to make progress in some important areas. But to begin, it is good to catch up on what’s happening in my home country and with my old, young friend.