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Intro to Tropical Agriculture & Development (TAD) Course


Are you looking to engage your community with simple, low-cost agricultural ideas and techniques?

By participating in this course, you will gain valuable foundational knowledge in the classroom and hands-on experience through demonstrations and practical activities. We hope to see you on the farm soon!

Our 6-day TAD course is designed for development workers, missionaries, and local leaders who want to learn more about biochar, biosand water filtration, composting, green manure cover crops, grafting, seed saving, solar dryers, neglected and underutilized crops, livestock nutrition, and other options suitable for smallholder farmers.

Course Topics:

Day 1 | Foundations of Agricultural Development

  • Building a Foundation for Learning

  • Challenges Facing Smallholder Farmers

  • Principles of Community Development

  • Implementation Techniques

Day 2 | Soil Health & Sustainable Farming

  • Understanding Soil Health

  • Biochar & Biochar Production

  • Green Manure Cover Crops

  • Composting

  • Vegetative Propagation

Day 3 | Plants, Seeds & Crop Protection

  • Seed Biology

  • Seed Systems

  • Seed Production

  • Pest & Disease Identification

  • Natural Pest Solutions

Day 4 | Appropriate Technologies

  • Appropriate Technologies: Solar Dryers

  • Introduction to Biosand Water Filtration Systems

  • The 300L/Day Biosand Water Filtration System

Day 5 | Livestock Management

  • Introduction to Livestock Nutrition

  • Livestock Feed Options

  • Animal Housing

  • Animal Care Tips

Day 6 | Learning from the Field

  • Local Farm Site Visits

Special Topics

  • Neglected & Underutilized Species (NUS)

  • NUS Survey & Cooking Demonstration

Course Registration Fee:

  • 5,000 Baht

  • Includes lunch and two coffee breaks during the program. 

  • Excludes lodging, travel to/from the ECHO Asia Farm & Seed Bank, and other personal expenses.

  • On-site accommodation is available.

For more information, please contact echoasia@echocommunity.org.

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Asian National Apprenticeship Program