December 2014
Thank you for helping us in our mission to create a happier, more successful, and more optimistic world. We look forward to working with you in 2015. Click here for a special holiday message from Winrock International.
Winrock is pleased to announce the launch of SolutionMUS.org, a new website introducing an open initiative to scale-up Multiple-Use Water Services (MUS). The website allows implementers, funders, policymakers and researchers to understand the SolutionMUS methodology, read about real-life results, and explore resources related to MUS.
This video from USAID illustrates how USAID is working with Bangladesh to protect the mangrove forest and biodiversity of the Sundarbans, which millions are dependent upon. Winrock is proud to support these efforts through implementation of the Climate Resilient Ecosystem Livelihood (CREL) project, which provides alternative training to forest-dependent communities to reduce pressures on the Sundarbans.
La Montañita Co-op in Albuquerque, N.M., installed new refrigeration systems for meat and produce this year and built a clean room for packing, through a partnership with the Wallace Center at Winrock International, and with financial support from the Walmart Foundation. Read more.
At the end of her Winrock assignment with an agricultural university in Nepal, Farmer-to-Farmer volunteer Susan Pavlin reflected on the connections she made and future impacts of her work. She shares her thoughts in the latest Winrock Volunteers blog.
Catch up on the latest project updates on GlobalGiving — from the Arkansas Women’s Business Center and the National Good Food Network (NGFN) Webinars.
Are you interested in working at Winrock? Search current openings and post your resume. Would you like to volunteer with Winrock? Learn more about new opportunities for volunteers.
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Winrock and Golden Harvest launch cold chain network in Bangladesh
 Around 40 percent of produce in Bangladesh is lost due to poor post-harvest handling and a lack of adequate cold storage and transportation. Over half of the population relies on agriculture for their livelihood; when farmers cannot preserve their produce, they must sell at lower prices resulting in lower income.
Winrock International and Golden Harvest, a local food processing and transportation company, are addressing these challenges by establishing the first integrated cold chain in Bangladesh. At an inaugural event in September, Winrock and Golden Harvest officially launched Bangladesh’s first integrated cold chain under the Cold Chain Bangladesh Alliance (CCBA), a public-private partnership funded under the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Global Development Alliance. The cold chain, once completed, will have the capacity to safely store agricultural products in temperature-controlled facilities.
“Preservation, transportation and food storage network — the cold chain network — will revolutionize agriculture and nutrition in Bangladesh,” said Dan Mozena, U.S. ambassador in Dhaka. “Bangladeshi farmers can use this and other transportation and cold storage facilities to keep their produce fresh and safe.”
CCBA is implemented by Winrock, in collaboration with partner World Food Logistics Organization. The project links farmers to cold storage facilities operated by Golden Harvest and other private enterprises through training and high-value product aggregation at rural collection centers. CCBA is working to improve the quality and quantity of high-value agricultural products, increase incomes of 18,000 farmers, and improve overall food and nutrition security in Bangladesh. 
Universities introduce climate change curriculum in Thailand, Vietnam
 Forty-seven professors from 16 Thai universities came together at Kasetsart University in Bangkok this month for the National Seminar on Integrating Climate Change into University Curricula. The seminar marked the latest countrywide rollout of the Regional Climate Change Curriculum from the USAID Lowering Emissions in Asia’s Forests (USAID LEAF) project, and is part of a joint effort under the U.S. government’s Lower Mekong Initiative to build the capacity of future climate change professionals in the region.
Kasetsart, Chiang Mai and Phayao universities contributed to the development of the curriculum materials, and are now leading the process to implement the curriculum at additional universities in Thailand.
USAID LEAF and its university partners presented an overview of the four curriculum modules – basic climate change, social and environmental soundness, low-emission land-use planning, and carbon measurement and monitoring – in addition to demonstrating how to integrate climate change into interdisciplinary curricula.
“Everyone is concerned with climate change in Thailand now, including universities,” said Dr. Sapit Diloksumpun, an assistant professor at Kasetsart University who has been involved in the curriculum’s development. “USAID LEAF has prepared very good teaching materials, and integrating them into Thai Universities is important for the future of climate change education in Thailand.”
The event in Thailand event is the second such countrywide rollout, after seminars held in Vietnam in June and July of this year. Three universities in Vietnam are taking the lead in introducing the curriculum. Vietnam Forestry University, Vinh University and Da Lat University, in collaboration with USAID’s Vietnam Forests and Deltas project, conducted an open seminar at Hong Duc University in Vietnam’s Thanh Hoa Province from November 27-28. Read more about the Vietnam roll-out.
Country rollouts will continue in early 2015 with events in Cambodia and Laos. 
Scholarship program fellows reunite in Dhaka to share knowledge, impact
 Fifteen fellows reunited in Dhaka last month, providing an opportunity for each participant to share their knowledge and the impact the scholarship programs, including the Agricultural Development Council (A/D/C), have had on their lives. These men and women, now working in various national and international positions within the development sector, studied at universities in the region, and in the U.S., for their degrees related to agriculture and natural resource management. Dr. Shamsul Alam (A/D/C 1981), of the Government of Bangladesh’s Planning Commission, said the A/D/C program changed his life by providing him the opportunity to study abroad. He encouraged the group to strengthen the alumni network and share research findings through seminars and workshops.
Others also commented on the impact of the A/D/C and other Winrock scholarship programs. “The opportunity opened my eyes,” said Ishrat Shamin, president of the Center for Women and Children Studies, based in Dhaka. Added Nazma Begum, who studied anthropology: “Winrock gave me the keys and the courage to study.”
At a time when scholarships and overseas degrees were not common, the A/D/C program, established in 1954 by John D. Rockefeller 3RD, provided promising young women and men the opportunity to study overseas. During its 31 years of operation, the A/D/C supported advanced degree studies of 588 men and women in Asia. Many fellows became leaders in government, while others have trained students through their jobs at leading universities. Many more have joined bi- and multi-lateral development organizations. Winrock continues to build the capacity of individuals through the JDR 3RD Scholars Program, which supports social science research to inform policy on agriculture and environment challenges affecting the rural poor.
Winrock hopes to create a vibrant network, where these fellows will help current scholars through their knowledge, experience and support.  |
