Sometimes you feel like a nut Sometimes you don't.
--- In [email protected], I am the eternal <l.shad...@...> wrote: > > http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/science/04/16/cnnheroes.erika.vohman/index.html > > http://tinyurl.com/cntekb > > <http://www.cnn.com/> /technology > > updated 1:07 p.m. EDT, Fri April 17, 2009 > Maya nut changes lives while aiding the rain forest*FLORES, Guatemala (CNN) > * -- In the rain forests of Central America grows the nutrient-rich Maya > nut. The marble-sized seed can be prepared to taste like mashed potatoes, > chocolate or coffee. To those who stumble upon the nuts on the ground, > they're free for the taking. > > The problem, however, is that many people living in areas where the Maya nut > grows abundantly don't know about it. > > Erika Vohman is trying to change that -- and improve rain forest > conservation and women's status in the process. > > "People are living right there, in extreme poverty, not even eating more > than one meal a day and there's Maya nut lying all around," Vohman said. > "They don't eat it because they don't know." > > Vohman has traveled to Honduras, Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua and El > Salvador, conducting workshops that teach women how to harvest, prepare and > cook or dry the prolific seeds into tasty, hearty foods. > > The 45-year-old biologist first encountered the Maya nut while visiting > rural Guatemala a decade ago for an animal rescue effort. An indigenous > colleague told her of the native resource, once an essential food staple of > his Mayan ancestors; the civilization had widely cultivated the large > tropical rain forest tree, the Brosimum alicastrum, that produces the Maya > nut. > > That colleague prepared a Maya nut soup for Vohman and she found it > delicious. > > Having watched impoverished > Guatemalan<http://topics.cnn.com/topics/guatemala>communities clear > rain forests to plant food, it struck Vohman that the key > for uplifting Central American communities was to help them return to their > roots. > > She subsequently attended graduate school and learned how she could help > these populations make the most of Maya nut -- a resource that didn't > require forest destruction for planting. > > In 2001, Vohman created The Equilibrium > Fund<http://www.theequilibriumfund.org/>to help alleviate poverty, > malnutrition and deforestation by teaching > communities about their native Maya nut forests. Do you know someone who > should be a CNN Hero? Nominations are open at > CNN.com/Heroes<http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/cnn.heroes/nom/> > > *Far-reaching benefits of the Maya nut* > > With one tree able to produce as much as 400 pounds of food a year, using > the Maya nut prevents rain forest clear-cutting to harvest other foods and > increases populations' food supplies. Dried, the Maya nut can be stored for > up to five years -- a lifeline for regions with frequent drought. > > The Maya nut has high levels of nutrients including protein, calcium, fiber, > iron and vitamins A, E, C and B. > > "For some reason, people have stopped eating this food, which is one of the > most nutritious foods you can get," Vohman said. > > It is also less susceptible to climate changes than the crops that had been > brought in to replace it. > > In the rural village of Versalles, Nicaragua, women gather and cook the Maya > nuts into pancakes, cookies, salads, soup and shakes that feed their > community year-round. It is one of 700 communities so far where "The Maya > Nut Revolution," as it has come to be known, has taken hold. > <http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/science/04/16/cnnheroes.erika.vohman/index.html#cnnSTCVideo> > > "These women are responsible for raising the next generation," Vohman said. > "If a woman's not educated and doesn't have access to any job opportunities, > it makes it really hard. Our workshops [help them] acquire the skills and > knowledge to feed their families and better their lives." > > Training rural women about the Maya nut has made them champions of rain > forest conservation and reforestation, as well as entrepreneurs who turn > Maya nut products into income. Training empowers women to educate others in > neighboring communities, subsequently spreading the wealth. > <http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/science/04/16/cnnheroes.erika.vohman/index.html#cnnSTCVideo> > > The Equilibrium Fund has taught more than 10,000 women across five countries > about Maya nut for food and income. More than 800,000 Maya nut trees have > been planted for rain forest conservation. > > The group has found that where the Maya nut tree disappears, 50 to 80 > percent of local species are wiped out in six months to a year. > > Seeing the widespread effect of her group's endeavors keeps Vohman going. > > "It's impacting gender equality. That's a huge paradigm shift," she said. > [image: advertisement] > > "We're having an impact on the > environment<http://topics.cnn.com/topics/Nature_and_the_Environment>, > an economic impact and also motivating reforestation. It's really amazing." >
