We love what we do. When Rob and I were asked by the Canadian Economic Development Assistance for Southern Sudan (CEDASS) to volunteer our skills in branding, public relations, marketing and even farming to help the people of Southern Sudan, we didn’t hesitate to jump on board.

Though it wasn’t something we could have anticipated we would be working on, travelling to Sudan to determine the logistics of starting the first mechanized farm to aid the people of Southern Sudan continues to be a life-changing experience.

We’ve now travelled to Juba, Southern Sudan twice. Our first trip was in March 2008 to determine the logistics of determining what could be grown, cleaning the land, planting and harvesting the first crop. For the next year we created and developed the Jebel Lado brand and utilized our media contacts to get local, regional, provincial and national media coverage of this great project to encourage gifts of money, used farm equipment, tools and supplies. Through our relationships with Petro Canada, John Deere and our client Syngenta Seeds Canada, we were able to secure corporate donations of seed, lubricants and support in sourcing tractors and loading equipment for the journey.

This past March we returned, along with other members of the CEDASS team returned to unload the containers, reassemble the equipment and teach the locals how use the equipment to clear the land and plant the crop. We successfully worked with the local village and the local Ministry of Agriculture to plant more than 150 acres of sorghum, corn and soybeans.

To learn more, view my photo essay, watch Rob’s AgVision TV interview or visit www.cedass.org. View photo essay.