Reflections, Perspectives, and Notes from the Field

Chronic malnutrition continues to persist at very high levels in rural communities across the highlands of Guatemala. A recent study published in BMC Public Health describes and quantifies the scope of this public health crisis, which has persisted for many generations.  In their paper, “Preschoolers in severely food insecure Guatemalan Mayan households consume a monotonous…

Rural Nutrition and Health Requires More Than Planting Gardens. Since 2009, Seeds For A Future has been refining and evolving the design of its core Program, which focuses on food security, nutrition education, and increasing incomes.  The concept of the Seeds Program began when its Founders, Suzanne and Earl de Berge, were living in a…

By Dr. Jim Barlow, Agronomist, Soil Expert, and Seeds for a Future Board Advisor Sometimes, it can take the new person a little while to fully understand the scope of an organization. My name is Jim Barlow, and I recently joined the Seeds For a Future team in Guatemala, where we work to reduce chronic…

By Suzanne de Berge | Co-Founder and Board President Across rural Guatemala, chronic malnutrition continues to be one of the most urgent challenges families face. Per Hum Data, 47-70% of children under five experience long-term nutritional deficits that affect physical and cognitive growth, development, and lifelong opportunity. According to the World Bank, the average rural…

By Mark Walker Since 2009, the Seeds for a Future Program has been actively reducing the chronic malnutrition and disease faced by so many families across rural Guatemala. In 2024, I joined the board of Seeds for a Future, and have had the opportunity to watch the team’s ceaseless dedication to moving the Program forward. …

The first 1,000 days of life is a critical period for child development. From the moment of conception up to age two, caretaker decisions have an immediate impact on a child’s physical health and future cognitive abilities. At Seeds for a Future, we work with rural families and particularly young parents to optimize family nutrition…

My name is Mia Di Virgillio. After six months of traveling through Europe and Central America, I arrived in Antigua, Guatemala, where I spent two months volunteering and learning Spanish. This turned out to be one of the highlights of my travels. From the moment I arrived, Guatemala captivated me with its warm and friendly…

By Roland Bunch Antonio Guterrez, the Secretary General of the United Nations, has described the rapidly worsening famine around the developing world as a “hurricane of hunger.” Some experts say that as many as 100 million Africans are in danger of dying, and the increasing disaster has no end in sight. If even just 60…