SERVICE LEARNING
In March 2017, I took a week-long service trip to Costa Rica with nine other University of Florida students. Thanks to Florida Alternative Breaks, “a student-led organization that sends out service trips based on a social issue during academic breaks”, I was able to fulfill another one of my passions, agriculture.
At that stage in my college career I knew that my goal upon graduating was to become a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Agriculture sector. I heard about Florida Alternative Breaks the year prior to taking this trip and knew that they volunteered on an Agroecological Farm in Costa Rica which sounded like a perfect fit for me. I was so excited the following semester about this trip that I was the first one to secure my spot. I did not know anyone else who was signing up, only that this opportunity does not come often therefore I had to follow my heart and go on it.
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"As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others." -Audrey Hepburn
Ready to board our plane!
After a few pre-service trip meetings, packing my bags, and traveling a full day with students I just met, we finally made it to La Gran Vista Agroecological Farm in Pérez Zeledón, San José Province, Costa Rica. Since we arrived around 12 am, we briefly met the owners and were led straight to our rooms to rest until sunrise. My first day in Costa Rica was amazing. The farm was located on the top of a hill so the view was truly like a million dollar view, just at a sliver of the price. We had an authentic “Tico” breakfast were we got to learn more about each other and of course the owners of the farm, Donald, and his wife Xinia. After breakfast we spent about an hour going over rules of the farm, general safety tips, as well as the overall mission of the farm, “to present a self-sufficient model of a farm that demonstrates the kindness and efficiency of sustainable ecological agriculture”. It was during this lecture from Donald where he gave us a metaphor that will always stick with me, life is like constantly being on a sinking boat and it is our actions that will help the boat to stop sinking, so what are you going to do to not like the boat sink? In other words, what are we as humans going to do to not let the earth be harmed. We later on took a tour where we learned and even tasted some crops grown on this sustainable farm.
Picking oranges for breakfast!
During my short week at La Gran Vista I learned so much about organic and sustainable farming. We spent two days digging up holes along the hill of the farm for soil conservation, one afternoon terrace farming in the forest, one full day collecting and making organic fertilizer and compost, and a couple days harvesting and planting in the garden. We also made an alternating schedule to help Xinia cook fresh and natural meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Most of the food we ate was grown on the farm and harvested just a few minutes before cooking with them such as oranges for oranges juice, coffee beans for coffee, cilantro to garnish our eggs, etc. Seeing exactly where these foods came from definitely made me appreciate nature more and reinforced my love for agriculture.
Before heading to bed every night our group would reflect on what we learned that day. Whether it be something simple such as learning about a new fruit or something complex such as how to make organic fertilizer, we knew that what we were learning will help make a difference not only on that farm but in the future as well. I know that I can take my experiences from this service learning trip and apply them to the farm that I will work on during my time in Paraguay as a Peace Corps Volunteer. This trip truly opened my eyes and gave me a glimpse into the world I signed up for in my future as an agriculture volunteer.
The group and I at Playa Dominical!