The biointensive method of organic small-scale agriculture combines innovation with tradition, growing the maximum amount of produce in a small space. In the indigenous community of Corozo, we work with families year-round.
Since 2015, Artists for Soup has developed school gardens in Nicaragua. We train students, teachers, and family members in bio-intensive cultivation to create more nutritious school lunches.
The enthusiasm for our arts workshops spills back into the programs we design aimed at improving access to and knowledge of nutritious food. Artists for Soup sells goods created by the women’s arts collectives in Nicaragua and in the United States.
Reforestation improves access to fresh water needed for nutrition and gardening initiatives, while mitigating the effects of climate change. When possible, Artist for Soup plants nutritional trees to provide additional sources of food while supporting reforestation efforts.
Over time, the women who receive scholarships for their children become knowledgeable leaders in biointensive gardening. And, their daughters are often the leaders in the large school garden in Corozo, which provides fresh produce for lunch meals.
Artists for Soup is expanding our seed-saving training for family gardeners to include a seed bank at the demonstration garden. This seed bank will increase and diversify the supply of seeds available to our family growers.
Artists for Soup sees the exchange of local knowledge and science-based strategies as central to transforming food systems. We host monthly workshops at the demonstration garden Artists for Soup’s Program Director, Eleoena Arauz, started on her parents’ farm in El Corozo in 2014. .