Roger flores
collaborator
Since day one, Sustainable Harvest International (SHI) was built on the foundation of partnerships and alliances. Early partners like the Fundación Ecologista Hector Rodrigo Pastor Fasquelle and its staff believed in SHI and graciously lent their energy and passion. Such early collaborators really paved the way for SHI’s 25 years of success across Central America.
Life-long conservation activist Roger Flores met SHI Founder Florence Reed in 1996 when he was working for the Fundación Ecologista Hector Rodrigo Pastor Fasquelle and helping protect the “El Cusuco” National Park along the Honduran border with Guatemala. And when SHI partnered with the Fundación, Roger was assigned to take the lead on hiring and training SHI’s first two field trainers, Wilmer and Leopoldo. He helped create their work plans and managed early monitoring and evaluation efforts.
Roger saw firsthand how Wilmer and Leopoldo’s background as local community members garnered an exceptional level of trust, enabling them to really deepen their impact. Roger recalls how excited partnering farmers were to collaborate with these SHI field trainers. “There was always an enthusiasm to learn,” Roger says. “They saw the fruit of that work and they learned a lot.”
People and Trees, in Harmony
Working with SHI, Roger learned about the power of multi-purpose trees like the Leucaena Leucocephala, a fast-growing and drought-tolerant tree often used to prevent soil erosion and as a shade plant in agroforestry systems. Moreover, he was thrilled and excited by the prospect of helping reconnect people with life-giving trees, everything from hardwoods to coffee to fruit trees.
Roger Flores (right) with SHI’s first two field trainers, Leopoldo and Wilmer.
Whenever he returns to the area, he still sees the impact of the work. “Some farmers used to say that they’d never have the opportunity to enjoy the fruit of these trees,” Roger recalls. “But many people now tell me that they continue living and the trees continue providing food for their families.” Together and in harmony, they’re thriving.
When Roger visits, even 25 years later, farmers still give him fruit as their way of saying thanks for the support given. Roger tells us that their only regret is that they didn’t plant more trees back then. A farmer who planted 50 trees laments that he didn’t plant one thousand.
“It is important to see how far we’ve come and see that the interventions have been positive, that they have created changes, and that many people benefited. There is not a question about whether this work will end. Rather, we believe that all these good practices are being shared and amplified, creating new opportunities to create partnerships with other actors.”
Climate Leaders
Roger believes deeply in the importance of mentoring the next generation of climate leaders. That’s why working with Wilmer and Leopoldo, his very first experience supervising agricultural extension agents, was so rewarding.
“We need to train new leaders that can continue this work in the future,” Roger says. “We have this ability to learn from experience and to improve so others continue our legacy. We’ve grown as people and there will be others who now can take up the new challenges of the future but at least they’ll have this base, a solid base of principles and values.”
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