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The Global Food Initiative<\/strong> (formerly the Global Food Crisis Fund) issued a grant of $660 for representatives of Iglesia de los Hermanos (the Church of the Brethren in the Dominican Republic) to travel to Santiago, DR, for a week of training with Medical Ambassadors International. Other recent grants support cultural\/garden exchanges partnering indigenous communities in Lybrook, N.M., and Circle, Alaska, as well as agriculture in Haiti.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Medical training in the DR<\/strong><\/p>\n Six representatives were selected by the junta or board of the church in the DR to attend the medical training. They came from both the Dominican and Dominican Haitian congregations of the church. The training, which took place Aug. 23-27, was the first phase of the training program with more in-depth training to follow. The grant was used to cover lodging, meals, and books related to Medical Ambassador’s Community Health Evangelism program.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Cultural\/garden exchanges<\/strong><\/p>\n Cultural\/garden exchanges will connect two indigenous communities, the Gwich\u2019in community of Circle, Alaska, and the Navajo community of Lybrook, N.M. An allocation of $3,775 will pay for three representatives involved with community gardening efforts in Lybrook to travel to Circle for an exchange of gardening ideas and cultural concerns–Jim Therrien of Tokahookaadi Church of the Brethren, along with two Navajo representatives from Lybrook.<\/p>\n A grant of $3,103.40 funds four representatives involved with community gardening efforts in Circle to travel to Lybrook for an exchange of gardening ideas and cultural concerns with Navajo gardeners–Bill and Penny Gay, members of Pleasant Dale Church of the Brethren in Decatur, Ind., along with two Gwich\u2019in representatives from Circle.<\/p>\n The community gardens in Lybrook and Circle have received grants through the Going to the Garden initiative of the Office of Public Witness and the GFI.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Haiti agriculture<\/strong><\/p>\n An allocation of $4,410 from the Global Food Initiative Fund has funded an evaluation of agriculture projects in Haiti for the 2015-16 program year. The project is nearing completion of year 4 of a 5-year plan. This year’s evaluation is jointly sponsored by the Haiti Medical Project in order to be more comprehensive and to include an evaluation of community health work. To strengthen this year’s reporting, a statistician has been added to the evaluation team. The statistician, a lawyer by training, has worked with Haiti Medical Program doctors in the past to provide mobile clinic statistics. The grant will cover salary, food, and lodging for the evaluation team; fuel costs; report preparation; and a concluding meeting with the National Committee of Eglise des Freres in Haiti.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Art show fees benefit hunger<\/strong><\/p>\n In more news from the initiative, a donation has been received from Janelle Cogan, who organizes an on line art competition where fees are collected and donated to a worthy cause. This is the second time the initiative (formerly as GFCF) has received a donation from this online art show called \u201cColors of Humanity.\u201d<\/p>\n