Meet Darmawan

This field of flowers is helping him reverse the trend of the best and brightest in his Balinese village of Tangkas moving to the big city for better paying jobs.

These flowers…grown organically…and other organic crops such as rice, papaya, mushrooms and vegetables can be sold for a higher profit…thanks to the tourists who are willing to pay a premium for them.  The extra profit helps drive the economics that give young people more incentive to continue living in the village.

Darmawan is university-trained and in a sense is an agro-entrepeneur.  He comes from a long line of farmers who have lived in Tangkas for many generations.  He’s pioneered many of these organic techniques himself, but unlike many farmers, he brings a sophisticated knowledge of marketing and distribution to the farm.  In addition, he’s teaching the young people in his village how to do the same through a training program called Integrated Farming System. Max and his buddies Joe and Alex will be working with Darmawan this summer. Will keep you posted.