Impressions of rural Iowa: International activists convene in Conrad for Growing Hope Globally summit

Erwin Garcona, Gabriel Laizer, Martin Curia and Elizabeth Righa were a long way from home when they visited Conrad for the Growing Hope Globally conference and celebration in Conrad over the weekend, but they relished the opportunity to learn about Iowa agriculture firsthand and see a different side of America than what they’d been exposed to in the past.
           
Each international visitor has a fascinating backstory: Laizer, a native of Tanzania, works for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations as a strategic partnerships and outreach coordinator in Washington, D.C., and he’s spent almost all of his professional career fighting world hunger.
           
“While I’m blessed, I know that others are not, and so being in a position that I’m blessed, I ought to do something to help,” Laizer said.
           
Garcona is from Guatemala and works on projects aimed at reducing overall hunger in the region and improving nutrition. He has frequently collaborated with Growing Hope and plans to continue the partnership in the future.
           
Righa, who spoke to conference attendees earlier Saturday, lives in Kenya and serves as a programs manager with the Anglican Development Services Pwani. The group specializes in “holistic development” and works with Growing Hope Globally to devise community-based grassroots solutions to hunger. 
 
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