My First ECHO Experience!

The field trip my Colloquium class took to Echo was the first time I have ever been there.   After living in Fort Myers my entire life, I cannot believe I have never experienced this place before.  Echo is a global farm that does studies on different types of agriculture that could benefit third-world countries and provide education for them on sustainable farming.  This “global farm” was completely different than what I expected.  I expected rows of plants, similar to a normal commercial farm.  Echo is in no way similar to a commercial farm.  The examples of different methods of sustainable farming that were showcased there make “American” agriculture seem wasteful and very unsustainable.  At Echo, every piece of the land serves a purpose.  A steep hill is cut out to provide flat ground for crops while another smaller hill is covered in a thick net-like grass that conserves the soil and provides food for smaller animals, such as the ducks.  In America, commercial farms consist of rows and rows of crops on land that is only used for that purpose and only yields that particular crop, nothing else.  To some people, Echo may not seem relevant to the developing world; however, I think that it, as well as programs like it, should be an important part of our developing world.  The way Echo runs their global farm may be a little more labor intensive, but, ultimately, it is so much better for the environment and everyone in it.  There were techniques of irrigation that Echo used that would save thousands of gallons of water if used on a large commercial farm.  These are the types of technologies that American farms could benefit from.

This photo depicts a drip technique of irrigation, in which a 5 gallon bucket can provide water to quite a large area through the use of hoses that are circulated throughout the rows. Our guide said that the bucket shown can water the area it is supplying for up to 8 hours.

When discussing the appropriate technologies needed for agriculture, I think it depends on what part of the world you are in, which is the reason for such different techniques of farming around the globe.  However, agencies like Echo are trying to close this gap in appropriate sustainable farming technologies.  What they are studying is being shared with the rest of the world and, the best part of it is, they already know it is beneficial for man and the environment.

The bottom right hand corner of this photo is one of the technologies that echo has developed. The object you see that is made out of PVC pipe is actually a water pump that can be operated manually to pump up water from the pond below.

I would love to perform some of my service learning hours at Echo.  The best part of it would be the wealth of information I could absorb from this experience.  I have always wanted to have a garden of my own; what a better way to learn than from individuals whose goal is to preserve our precious earth for future generations.  From the field trip alone, I learned I can grow plants in plastic bags, kiddy pools, and using bottles and cans as a soil substitute.  I would also enjoy learning about the people who are working and interning there.  Every intern at Echo spends one week living off of the farm alone.  They pick their own vegetables, create their own shelter, and even slaughter their own animals for meat.  These are skills they will need when going to different countries to educate people on sustainable agriculture.  Echo is such an interesting and amazing place that I most certainly will visit again.

This is displaying what I spoke of earlier when I learned that bottles and cans can be used as a soil substitute.

The following are a few more photos from my ECHO experience!