IOIA accepts applications for the annual Andrew Rutherford Scholarship Award,
which provides full tuition for an IOIA-sponsored organic inspector training course during the following year.

Both prospective and experienced inspectors are eligible to apply for the Rutherford Scholarship. It is awarded to an individual on the basis of need and potential as judged by the IOIA Scholarship Committee. Applicants can choose to attend any IOIA-sponsored training. The Scholarship pays for tuition, room and board but does not cover transportation or other expenses.

The late Andrew Rutherford was a farmer, organic inspector, and organic agriculture researcher from southern Saskatchewan. He served on IOIA's initial steering committee and then several years as a Founding Board Member.

Francisco Lorenzo Lopez is the recipient of the 2008
Andrew Rutherford Scholarship.
QUE ESTOY HACIENDO ACTUALMENTE: Considerando que las área verdes, son muy importantes para las ciudades y centros urbanos como puntualiza la Organización Mundial de la Salud, sosteniendo que para una mejor calidad de vida de las personas se requiere un promedio de 10 a 15 metros cuadrados de área verde por habitante, o como lo afirma Iván Restrepo en el diario Electrónico La Hora de México, que uno de los indicadores utilizados en el mundo para medir la calidad de vida que disfrutan los habitantes de las ciudades, es el promedio de área verde per- cápita, entre otros temas relacionados a mi profesión, estoy como líder de un movimiento de la sociedad civil que trabaja en la protección de las áreas verdes en la ciudad de Quetzaltenango republica de Guatemala, una actividad que en mi país tiene sus riesgos , pero tengo la firme convicción que el cuidado del medio ambiente tanto en las ciudades como en el área rural es un trabajo que vale la pena asumir la responsabilidad con todos sus riesgos, si deseamos un desarrollo sostenible y con valores sociales.
MIS PLANES FUTUROS: Tomando en cuenta que Guatemala y los demás países de Centro América actualmente han firmado tratados de libre comercio con países donde no solo importa la calidad de producción sino que también la calidad ambiental con que se produce, aspectos donde los pequeños productores sin lugar a dudas enfrentaran dificultades serias para producir y vender en los mercados de países desarrollados, por ejemplo de acuerdo a PH.D. Olman Segura, el 42% del total de las exportaciones de Centro América van hacia Los Estados Unidos y que además un 49% de estas exportaciones dependen de los recursos naturales, como parte de mi especialización ambiental estoy muy agradecido con IOIA al permitirme participar en sus cursos altamente calificados, porque con este entrenamiento estoy seguro que podré aportar muchísimo al desarrollo rural donde se requieren profesionales muy calificados y comprometidos con el uso racional de los recursos naturales y la producción libre de químicos ideal para el consumo humano.

WHAT I AM DOING AT THE MOMENT: Consider that it is very important for cities and urban centers to have green spaces. As noted by the World Health Organization, maintaining an average of 10 to 15 square meters of green space per person provides a better quality of life for the inhabitants, or as Iván Restrepo notes in the electronic newsletter The Hour of Mexico, one of the indicators used in the world to measure the quality of life which the inhabitants enjoy in the cities is the average green space per capita. I am like a leader of a movement in the civil society that works to protect green spaces in the city of Quetzaltenango in the Republic of Guatemala. This activity, in my country, has its risks, but I have the firm conviction that the care of the atmosphere means as much in the cities as in the rural areas and is a work that is worth the trouble to assume the responsibility with all of its risks, if we wish to have sustainable development with social values.

MY FUTURE PLANS: Guatemala and the other countries of Central America at the moment have signed the Free Trade Agreement with countries where the quality of production matters little and the quality of the environment are not taken into account. These aspects make it difficult for small producers to produce and sell in the markets of developed countries. For example, according to Safe Olman, PhD., 42% of the total of Central American exports go towards the United States and in addition, 49% of these exports depend on the natural resources. Because of my environmental specialization, I am very thankful to IOIA for allowing me to participate in this course to help increase my qualifications. With this training I am sure that I will be able to contribute much to the rural development. It is important to require professionals to be qualified and engaged in the rati onal use of the natural resources and the production of food for human consumption free from chemicals.

The recipient of the 2008 Organic Community Initiative Scholarship is
Mohan Joseph Ghale of Nepal.

My name is Mohan Joseph Ghale and I am an agricultural entrepreneur from Kathmandu, Nepal.
Since my early childhood, I have been exposed to agriculture and started vegetable, flower seeds business in 1988. My business, Dikpal Trading Center has imported various vegetable and flower seeds form USA and distribute all around Nepal and some part of Northern India.
I have started the process of expending our business into the Organic agriculture in Nepal. In Nepal, there is no support from the government and very little information available in organic agriculture. Therefore, I have applied for Organic Community Initiative Scholarship and planning to attend Independent Organic Inspectors Association training in April 2008. I want to help promote and develop our own Nepalese organic farming by promoting heirloom seeds and protect, select our native organic seed, which is available in Nepal. I am looking forward to provide technical assistance to farmers in the field all over Nepal.

The Deadline for returning Scholarship applications is October 1.
Scholarship recipients are notified by December 15.
Download applications for either scholarship program from the links below.