Information on frequently requested topics, particular crops with high potential in harsh conditions, appropriate technologies, etc. are published in ECHO Development Notes (EDN) - a highly regarded technical bulletin sent quarterly to missionaries and agricultural development workers, teachers and scientists overseas.

ECHO has compiled the first 50 EDNs into a book called Amaranth to Zai Holes, or the A-Z Book, which is available in both book form and on CD for purchase in ECHO's Bookstore. The 25+ issues of EDN that have been published since the A-Z Book, are also available in booklet form and on CD. Also, all issues of EDN are posted on ECHO's Technical web site.

Thanks to the Internet, information and ideas can be exchanged easier than ever, at a price that is affordable by the wealthy and poor alike. ECHO has taken advantage of this technology, making agricultural information, experiments, ideas, etc. available to the workers in the developing world.

Through the Technical Website (www.echotech.org), agricultural workers can participate in discussions with other agricultural workers about similar problems they are facing. They can also search for plant information sheets, technical notes on various sustainable agricultural topics, and order seeds from ECHO's Seed Bank.

Overseas workers can also contact a member of ECHO's Technical Response Unit (TRU) to request additional assistance in developing ideas for an agricultural project, ways to meet the needs of their communities, what seed crops may do well in their climate zones, etc.

The Technical Response Unit will receive the requests, work with the agriculturalist to acquire information and needs, research the possibilities, and respond with recommendations best suited for that development worker's situation.

ECHO's Technical Staff is made up of missionaries, development workers, and PhDs who have worked overseas in various capacities. Together, our technical staff shares over 100 years of overseas experience in all parts of the world, and is eager to use their experiences and the resources available at ECHO to network hunger solutions.

One of ECHO's best-known programs is to send free, trial packets of seed to overseas missionaries and development workers. ECHO’s seedbank contains over 335 varieties of hard-to-find food plants, multi-purpose trees, fruit trees, and other tropical crops. These plants hold special potential for producing under difficult conditions—where it is too dry, too wet, or too hilly for most crops.

Overseas missionaries and development workers who receive seeds report back to ECHO on performance and acceptance of the plants in their conditions. This information is kept in ECHO's seed database and often shared in EDN. In some cases, a pack of 10 seeds has multiplied into thousands of plants or helped introduce a new crop into several parts of the world.

For more information about ECHO's Seed Bank...click here.