Seeds for Progress Foundation

30/09/2020

Seeds for Progress Foundation’s mission is improving the access to high-quality education, a basic human right that contributes to social development and sustainable economic growth by creating opportunities to advance the quality of life, for thousands of students, hundreds of teachers and their families in the rural communities of Nicaragua’s and Guatemala’s coffee-growing regions.

Donors/Partners

Among the main partners are Mercon Coffee Group, AMERRA Capital, FMO, Tinker Foundation, Starbucks, J.M. Smuckers, Peet’s Coffee, illycaffé, Lavazza, Paulig, Caffe Nero, Macquarie, Rabobank Foundation, Embassy of Japan in Nicaragua, Embassy of Germany in Nicaragua, University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education.

Key activities

Currently serving over 4,700 students and 270 teachers, Seeds for Progress focuses on the field of education.  They emphasize the development of life skills at the preschool, primary and secondary levels as well as technical training for adults.  To achieve their goals in these educational areas, Seeds for Progress’ work includes three major components:

  • Improvements in school infrastructure;
  • Investments in Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) for Education;
  • Pedagogical Training and Mentoring. 

Signature projects/tools

Seeds for Progress’ overall strategy of Integral Development through Education focuses on four educational levels:

  • Early Childhood Development (Preschool)– Their methodologies include training, monitoring, and providing educational books, games, learning kits, and any other necessary resources. 
  • Strengthening of Literacy and Math Skills (Elementary)– The first three grades of primary school are crucial to educational development. Seeds for Progress seeks to not only strengthen literacy, but to also motivate students to achieve good attendance and have a genuine interest in learning. To do this, they use Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) as one of a primary teaching tool.
  • Coffee School Curriculum (Secondary)– This program is a being developed as a high school program that seeks to improve access to life skills (including entrepreneurial skills) and to develop possibilities for students living in an agricultural context.  Students learn about coffee production through a dynamic curriculum and project-based learning integrated across school subject areas.
  • Technical Training and Entrepreneurship Courses (Post-Secondary)– Seeds for Progress also provides technical education courses with a focus on coffee to young people in rural communities.
  • Learning Bridges during Harvest Season- Is a program that offers childcare with educational and motivational activities from children ages 0-15, contributing to their well-being while preventing child labor during the coffee harvest.

Priority Countries and corresponding areas of activities

Nicaragua and Guatemala. Education and health care in rural coffee communities