New hope for Jesus (and others)

摘要

In both name and attitude, Jesus Neu-va Esperanza (Jesus New Hope) defies the dry, ochre-colored land surrounding the vivid greea lot where she lives in Honduras. A vegetable garden, trees pushing to the sky and a chicken coop with, built-in manure box, are the proud results of her determination to improve income, food supply and family nutrition. la her village of 140 souls, she is both learner and teacher. To raise small stock, plant trees and sow a garden in the district of Yalle has been no easytask for the 45-year-old campesina. Deforestation has encouraged chronic drought in the region, turning the land into some of the poorest of Honduras. To find water, wood, or lush foliage here is like finding an emerald on the moon. Overthe course of the century this region, in the arid tropics along the Pacific coastline, has been despoiled of its forest land, including its best timber-yielding trees. People go hongry while the cleared land is used for cattle-grazing and for cotton crops'rapidly being replaced by melons for export.