Annual report 2016 | You are growing global communities

February 3, 2017

 

It’s been a tumultuous year. While change affected governments and policies in Canada and around the world, the shifting global conversation on climate may be the most significant and troubling. We’ve seen that conversation move from a rare international agreement reached in Paris in 2015 to a state of uncertainty following the U.S. election last fall. As if to make a point, 2016 ended as the hottest year on record.

The people you support are feeling the impacts. Drought and unseasonal rains in Mali, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Timor-Leste, Honduras, Bolivia and Canada have meant major crop failures, and real threats to farmers and the people who rely on them for food. Around the world, farmers are experiencing climate change at the front line of its advance.

Our Seeds of Survival (SoS) program works to creatively address that experience. SoS communities are more resilient because they have the knowledge and tools to enhance seed diversity and grow food sustainably. As this annual report attests, their locally adapted and diverse crops can better withstand unpredictable weather, and their farmers are more likely to thrive in the face of climate change. Resilience is the foundation of Seeds of Survival.

 

Download the annual report

 

Still, resilience is not an end-state. We’ll never be able to check a box that says we completed the task. To be resilient, a community must always be learning and adapting. Your contributions allow USC Canada to invest in deep and long lasting collaborations with our partners. You make this possible.

Your support also allows us to invest in the resilience of USC Canada as an organization. This past year we moved to a new, more flexible office space (still at 56 Sparks Street, of course!), adopted a collaborative Executive Director model, and grew our capacity for monitoring, evaluation and learning so we can continue to improve our work in Canada and around the globe.

Despite the many challenges we see ahead, we enter this new year with great energy, strength, and renewed commitment to our work. We commend our partners and staff for their ongoing dedication, and we extend profound appreciation to you, our loyal supporters, for providing the means, motivation and inspiration we need to grow a better world.