The focus of  this class for most of us was the field trip.  The months of preparation allowed us to get to know each other and establish friendships before we left on our eleven day adventure. Dr. Kuzmic was incredibly organized for each of our meetings and always brought a little piece of Honduran culture with him to class.  Whether it was the Honduran coffee that kept us up all night or the molasses candy that nobody really liked (Sorry, Dr. K).  Dr. Kuzmic always added a little flavor to each of our classes.

     The information presented by Dr. Kuzmic in this class was a good foundation for me to build on for the rest of my life.  In the class we discussed issues facing many of Central American countries that I had never thought of.  The issue of foreign aid and the work that (NGO's) non-government organizations do in these countries will be a major key to their survival. The months of preparation before we left for the trip enabled us to grasp the past and present dilemmas these countries are facing concerning issues such as crop production and deforestation. By examining agricultural practices used in Latin America from the past, such as slash and burn agriculture, we were able to determine why there is a growing need for new programs to be implemented today.

     There seems to be a call for agroforestry in Latin American countries.  Before this class I had heard of the idea but had never had any hands on experience with it.  All through Honduras NGO's are trying to promote agroforestry. For example, World Neighbors has implemented an agroforestry project on a coffee farmers plantation just outside the village of Buenos Aires.  The coffee grows better in the shade so the farmer leaves a natural over story of large trees and plants his coffee under it. Other organizations such as the Peace Corps are looking for volunteers to work on these types of projects.  After seeing a working project in Honduras I feel compelled to volunteer for one of these organizations and help make a difference myself.