Don Miller (past volunteer) – Agricultural Adviser, Port Vila in Vanuatu

Don began his assignment in May 2008. Before he left New Zealand, he was working as a consultant soil scientist. This was his third assignment with VSA – he had also worked in Thailand and Vietnam.

What Don did in Vanuatu

Don was working with the Farm Support Association on two land-management projects. One involved using a particular non-invasive tropical grass and other native plants to help stop soil erosion. This built on work Don did as a consultant in Vanuatu between 1995 and 2002. The other project was looking at sustainable land use practices in an area where delicate volcanic ash soils on Ambae were being degraded by the gardening practices being used on very steep slopes.

Making a positive impact

Don helped to devise a modified cultivation system which could be combined with traditional techniques to help increase food production. It's hoped that this will make it possible to feed Vanuatu’s rapidly growing population with locally-grown crops, rather than relying on imported rice. It may also decrease the country’s susceptibility to the effects of climate change, such as drought and cyclones.

Don’s highlights

“One of the good things about heading back to Vanuatua was that I was able to follow up on my earlier work on soil erosion. The results exceeded expectations. One obvious result was the absence of the red mud that used to be inches thick on the beach outside one village. The technique is now attracting interest from islands around the Pacific and Caribbean. This is also satisfying for my original team of Aneityumese workers whose ideas and input were so critical to the success of the project.”

What Vanuatu has taught Don

“You can NEVER carry too much first aid equipment and medicine.”

“A gecko that lives on the ceiling will always crap on exactly the same spot on the kitchen bench every night.”

“Mosquitoes can only smell you from downwind – flies have better antennae!”