Post-Trip Blog: Transformative Tropical Travel (Olivia)

My passion for agriculture was cultivated in the soil of my high school years. When I was a junior, I ran for the title of Miss Cecil County Farm Bureau, something utterly outside of my comfort zone as well as persona. However, this leap from comfort was a pivotal point in my agricultural career.

During my reign, I was not only exposed to, but immersed in extremely rare opportunities to advocate on behalf of the industry that I love. Through my county and state Farm Bureaus, I was able to meet Maryland Governor Larry Hogan several times, attend legislative sessions in both the state capitol and Washington, D.C., and even meet and talk to senators and their constituents. 

This program was the first time that I really saw the power of the agricultural community. Maryland's county Farm Bureaus, as well as the overarching state organization, were incredibly passionate for and invested in the future of agriculture in the state, and as someone who didn't grow up on a farm, it was the first time that I truly felt as if my voice mattered to the industry.

Now three, almost four years since I have held the title of Miss Cecil County Farm Bureau, I feel a revitalized sense of community and belonging within the industry I love, this time on an international scale.

Throughout my time in Belize, I was amazed at the pride in which the Belizean people took in the integrity of their Belizean agriculture. For example, the Belizeans almost always preferred to buy "local chicken" instead of "Mennonite chicken." To put that into an Americanized context, this essentially meant heritage breed chickens versus broiler chickens. However, almost all of the Belizean people preferred the chicken which was homegrown in their community, and took pride in the fact that they were able to support their friends and neighbors while reducing their environmental footprint. 

Another particularly intriguing aspect of my trip to Belize was our time spent at Spanish Lookout, one of the Mennonite communities in Belize. As someone who was raised around Anabaptist sects such as the Amish and Mennonite, I was interested to see the dynamic of this religion in a different context. During our time in the community, I was struck by the diversity that I saw working at the various Mennonite operations, which I found to be strikingly different than the United States. 

When I asked one of the Mennonite business owners if they typically only employ members of the Mennonite community, he elaborated on their diversity within the workplace. He said that they typically have an oversupply of workers, which is very different from America. I found it really interesting and refreshing to see the inclusion of every community in these typically conservative communities. 

The aspect of agriculture that I have always love the most is community. I love knowing that there is a group of people there to support me, care for me, and watch me grow who are just as passionate about the industry that I hold closest to my heart as I am. My time in Belize helped me realize that these communities, founded on the principle of agriculture, exist all over the globe, and to this day agriculture serves as the glue for every society in every corner of the world. I am so glad to have been able to experience these communities first hand, and it has added fuel to my fire of investment in the industry as a whole. 

Olivia is a sophomore majoring in Agricultural Science at Penn State

Day 9: I can't Belize it is over (Sarah)

With having so much to do and to learn about in the last week some things were strong reoccurring themes. These themes were inclusion of different modes of education, along with education of both male and female youth. With the trip including a visit to a Mayan community, Mopan Technical High School and Tumul K'in Center of Learning, there was a strong connection with many different modes of learning.

At both high schools, the students learned basics that we also cover here in the United States, like math classes. In my high school career, I did not, however, have as much hands-on experience that these two Belizean schools do. At Mopan Technical- the students learned different skills through choosing their path of interest. There were different class paths that students could choose from instead of having set classes with a few elective classes like I did. The students in the agriculture program would take care of their livestock as part of their agriculture class as well as classroom work. The students in some other technical classes went through different stages in their four-year high school programs that allowed different things every year, such as mechanical drawing on paper and then computer work as part of their program. At Tumul K'in Center of Learning- the students had practicals in the morning where they would wake up early and learn different hands-on skills before becoming engaged in classroom work. These practicals include every student and have them physically participate in the traditions and methods of their Maya people. The Center of Learning showed the Penn State group a traditional dance and then taught us the dance through participation, something that some other schools in Belize do not teach to their students.

Another mode of education was how several of the farmers taught their children about their farms. One of the farmers named Manuel said that he planted mahogany trees, especially for his children to come back later and harvest, like the mahogany trees in his fields. This type of hands-on education from one generation to the next about farming also applied to the cooking that was being done in the Mayan community that we stayed in for a couple of days. At one of the houses, the smaller group that I was with met a family with a young child who was already learning to make tortilla by watching her mother and playing with some of the dough. By the time that little girl is starting school, she will also be learning a lot from the people that her community welcomes in, just like our Penn State group. Her older sister Stacey talked to our group and seemed very interested to learn about our culture as well as share her own with our group.

When speaking about inclusion, both schools, Mopan Technical High School and Tumul K'in Center of Learning, included both their male and female students in many, if not all, aspects of their classes. At Mopan Technical High School, the day that our Penn State group took the tour, it was the girls turn to clean out the chicken pens; the boys had cleaned out the pens the time before. The girls did not hesitate to get to work and participate in this part of their class. One of the girls that lead our tour around the school said that some of the girls do not always enjoy doing the hands-on part of the class, but the tasks were still done. At Tumul K'in Center of Learning, all students did the morning practicals that entailed many tasks that may have been seen as a male-specific or female-specific roles in the past such as machete field clearing or cooking. The day that our Penn State group went to the Center of Learning we asked what they did for their morning practicals and were told that they had been doing machete work. Then after all of their students took part in their practicals, one of the boys went to help the cook make breakfast.


Sarah Miller is senior majoring in Agricultural Science at Penn State, with minors in International Agriculture and Sustainability Leadership

Day 6: Manuel's Farm (Gillian)

Visiting Manuel's farm in Laguna on Thursday showed the values found within the Mayan community and served as a good reminder of values that I find important and hope to strive for in my life as well. Hard work, community, peace, and protection of the natural resources are just some key values that I was lucky enough to see in practice.

There's no doubt that Manuel works hard. His beautiful farm is covered with plants and crops that he cares for, manages, and harvests. Situated with terrain and heat and a number of different obstacles such as narrow paths, Manuel spends a lot of time working with his extensive knowledge to keep the farm running. Meanwhile, he also works to prepare for the future by planting for his children to take over once they come back to the farm after education.

A strong sense of community was also found throughout the day. Manuel and the family I had lunch with discussed the importance of helping one another. A perfect example is replacing the thatched roof every few years. If a few men come together, they can complete the whole process in half a day! It definitely shows that we're stronger as a team, something I've seen within our group this week as well. We have all become close and help each other out to make sure we're prepared for the experience... and have enough sunscreen!

Although it might not have been obvious, there was a sense of peace at the farm. I've heard many times that being outside is good for the mind and body, and Manuel's description of his connection to the land truly shows that belief. He feels that by eating what he produces and drinking the water from the creek he has remained healthy. Connecting to the natural world that way is incredibly powerful and cleansing. I know I've felt my worries drift away when I'm outside!

Finally, protecting that connection with nature requires the protection of natural resources. Hearing that conservation is a value within the community is really inspiring as it's something I care about deeply as well.

This farm visit was very special to me as it gave me the opportunity to learn about and see values of the Mayan community in practice. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that I value similar things. Finding common ground and similarities despite some differences helps us to understand, appreciate, and further connections. I'm excited to apply this new information in future interactions!

Gillian Warner is a freshman majoring in an interdisciplinary major
in the College of Agricultural Sciences at Penn State.