Gardens Project and School of Adaptive Agriculture Team Up for #GivingTuesday Farm & Garden Volunteer Day
November 19 (Willits, CA) - The Gardens Project and The School of Adaptive Agriculture, two local programs working to build a more resilient food system in our community, are teaming up this Giving Tuesday for a farm and garden volunteer day. This global day of philanthropy kicks off the season of giving and is fueled by the power of collaboration and giving back to our communities.
Both organizations have a few projects that need some extra hands to get them to the finish line such as building a new community garden at The White Deer Lodge, felting holiday ornaments out of local wool for a fundraiser and helping with repairs around the school grounds (painting the historic school house, tiling the student kitchen, etc.). Tuesday 11/27 will start at 9:30am at the schoolhouse, followed by a two and a half hour work party. Then the day will wrap up with a hearty lunch and discussion of what’s next for both programs. Please bring a dish to share for lunch. If you can join us on this international day of giving, please send an email to office@adaptiveagriculture.org. Please note in your email if you have any dietary restrictions.
If you can’t make the volunteer day, consider other ways to support these important community programs this Giving Tuesday. Visit the Giving Tuesday’s My Giving Story competition site between now and December 7th to vote for the School of Adaptive Agriculture’s video. The top prize of $10,000 would fund two full student scholarships (including room & board) for the School of Adaptive Agriculture’s Practicum Program, which equips next generation of farmers with essential skills in the science, art and business of sustainable food production). Link to vote -> http://mygivingstory.givingtuesday.org/fbcontests/profiletab/MyGivingStory2018/3065527
The Gardens Project is also offering our community the opportunity to sponsor a community gardener this Giving Tuesday. Just $10 a month provides a space to garden, water, compost, seeds, tools, and organic gardening workshops to improve food access for a low-income member of our community. Find out more at gardensproject.org/donate
About Giving Tuesday
#GivingTuesday is a global day of giving that harnesses the collective power of individuals, communities and organizations to encourage philanthropy and to celebrate generosity worldwide. Following Thanksgiving and the widely recognized shopping events Black Friday and Cyber Monday, this year’s #GivingTuesday will take place on November 27th and will kick off the giving season by inspiring people to collaborate and give back.
Founded by the team in the Belfer Center for Innovation & Social Impact at 92nd Street http://www.92Y.org, #GivingTuesday is a global giving movement that has been built by individuals, families, organizations, businesses and communities in all 50 states and in countries around the world. This year, #GivingTuesday falls on November 27. #GivingTuesday harnesses the collective power of a unique blend of partners to transform how people think about, talk about, and participate in the giving season. It inspires people to take collective action to improve their communities, give back in better, smarter ways to the charities and causes they believe in, and help create a better world. #GivingTuesday demonstrates how every act of generosity counts, and that they mean even more when we give together.
Launched in partnership with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, #MyGivingStory is an annual social media storytelling contest held each November in conjunction with #GivingTuesday that fosters a public conversation about generosity and encourages more people to give. Throughout the month of November, people submit their stories responding to the prompt—“Every act of giving has a story. What’s yours?”—into an online gallery, share their stories across their social media networks, generate votes for their stories, and have the opportunity to win grants for their favorite nonprofit organizations
To learn more about #GivingTuesday participants and activities or to join the celebration of giving, please visit:
Website: www.givingtuesday.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/GivingTuesday
Twitter: twitter.com/GivingTues
About the Gardens Project
North Coast Opportunities, Inc. (NCO) is the Community Action Agency that serves Lake and Mendocino Counties, as well as parts of Humboldt, Sonoma, Del Norte, and Solano Counties. NCO was established in 1968 as part of President Johnson's War on Poverty, with the mission of assisting low-income and disadvantaged people to become self-reliant. NCO provides a safety net of emergency assistance, employment, and training services for low-income individuals and families. In 2007 the Gardens Project became one of NCO's programs with the goal of organizing a sustainable movement of school and community gardens and empowering our community to be the leaders of it all.
The Gardens Project seeks to relieve hunger and inadequate nutrition throughout Mendocino and Lake Counties by:
- Creating access to community-based food production and local, nutritious food. We work with local government and private landowners to lease underutilized land around low-income neighborhoods for the creation of new community gardens.
- Educating the community about sustainable food production and healthy eating through garden and nutrition workshops.
- Empowering the gardeners that volunteer to manage their community space through leadership training and mentoring.
A decade later, the Gardens Project has accomplished with our community gardeners:
- Developed 45 new gardens and formed a continuously expanding Gardens Network of over 100 gardens in Mendocino and Lake Counties.
- Produced over 28,470 pounds (over 14 tons!) of fruits and vegetables that feed more than 3,000 people each year in community garden plots alone.
- Taught over 200 gardeners yearly with free garden production and healthy eating workshops.
- Trained more than 75 gardeners to become positive leaders to ensure effective management and longevity of their community gardens.
http://gardensproject.org/
About the School of Adaptive Agriculture
The School of Adaptive Agriculture (SAA) is a vocational training center that equips the current and next generation with essential skills in the science, art and business of food production. Through our workshops and residential practicum program, the School of Adaptive Agriculture has gained a reputation for being one of the premier agriculture schools in Northern California.
https://www.school-of-adaptive-agriculture.org/
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Kelly Hansen
School of Adaptive Agriculture
office@adaptiveagriculture.org
(707) 225-0143
[This archive item was originally published on Monday, November 19, 2018]
