WE ARE NOW RECRUITING FOR THE 2012 HABESHA WORKS PROGRAM!

HABESHA Works is a green jobs training initiative that teaches basic skills in urban organic agriculture and agro-business development.  The program will begin with an intensive 12-week class that will introduce various concepts and explore opportunities for business development in this emerging green industry.  Some course topics include:

PRINCIPLES OF ORGANIC GARDENING

GARDEN DESIGN AND MANAGEMENT

ORGANIC PRODUCE: HEALTH AND NUTRITION

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES IN URBAN AGRICULTURE

Upon successful completion of this course, selected students will participate in additional hands-on apprenticeship training that includes the construction of an urban organic farm and advisement on developing business plans.

CRITERIA FOR PARTICIPANTS

Between ages 18-25 (Preferred but not required)

8th grade level reading, writing and comprehension skills

Ability to attend classes twice a week for a minimum of 6 hours per week

Ability to perform rigorous physical tasks

Previous experience in gardening, landscaping, or farming is a plus (not required)

We are now accepting applications for the 2012 HABESHA Works Program.  We will begin interviewing applicants in mid March and notify accepted participants by April 4.  We will have two information sessions (March 14 & March 28) at the Dunbar Neighborhood Center Room 207, 477 Windsor St. ATL, GA 30312, from 6 – 7:30PM.  In order to be considered for the program, you must attend at least one of the information sessions.  Please CLICK HERE to fill out the application online and begin the processing of exploring the opportunities in urban agriculture!

CLASS TIMES
Wednesdays from 6-8 PM &
Sundays from 3-7 PM

CLASS SCHEDULE
Starting:  Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Ending:  Sunday, July 8, 2012

The Journey of Self-Discovery Has Begun Again…
Black To Our Roots 2011-2012

Orientation September 2011 @HABESHA Gardens Complex

About the Program

Black To Our Roots is a year-long youth leadership and rites of passage program that promotes cultural education, media production, community service, and fundraising.  This program was specifically designed to reduce the negative impacts of poor education and community apathy that exists in so many urban environments.  This year-long program provides youth with the tools to become active participants in the unity and development of in their local communities and the global African community.  The program culminates in a 4-week travel study to Africa during the summer in which students apply their learning to community service projects, while exchanging ideas with African youth.  Annually, for the past 8 years, HABESHA has facilitated the Black To Our Roots program, and has assisted over 60 youth in making this journey of self-discovery.

The Youth Participants...

The Adult Participants...

Black To Our Roots program targets High School youth from underserved urban communities and assists them to:

• Raise money for their travel to Africa through creative business exercises that teach entrepreneurship and organization
• Create compelling video programs and artistic performances that explore important issues within the African Diasporan community
• Travel to various places within the US of historical and cultural significance in the exploration of the African American experience.
• Connect with the earth through gardening and camping, which teaches basic survival skills and sustainable living practices.
• Establish bonds with other youth in the African Diaspora that are long-lasting and meaningful
• Study the achievements and history of African communities around the world, fostering cultural awareness.

Hiking @Hard Labor Creek State Park

Planting collard greens @HABESHA Gardens

SUPPORT BLACK TO OUR ROOTS

Our youth need your help to achieve their praiseworthy goal.  We currently have a total of 35 youth from both Atlanta and Baltimore who have begun the journey of self-discovery with plans of traveling in July.  The cost of each child’s travel to Ethiopia and Ghana is $4,000.  In addition, they have expenses associated with the program including their curriculum and U.S. field trips, as well as many youth need assistance with personal travel expenses, including passports and health supplies. We are looking for tax-deductible cash and in-kind donations, such as office equipment and supplies, space for events and auctionable items, in general.  Our organizational goal is to raise $75,000 over the next 6 months to add to the individual fundraising effort that each youth must do to travel!  Only students that have demonstrated sustained commitment to the program are eligible to travel, and we want to show them that there is abundant support for their life dreams.  We appreciate your assistance in rewarding their efforts.

The mission Sustainable Seeds is to expose youth to interactive learning of mathematics, science, and the environment through the design and maintenance of an urban organic garden. Sustainable Seeds is a curriculum that engages elementary school youth in interactive learning in the areas of mathematics, science, environment, and health and nutrition. It is a learning model created to increase academic achievement, while also exposing youth in the urban environment to agriculture and healthy living practices. Through activities centered on the maintenance of the garden, youth are taught about the process of food cultivation.

Through hands-on indoor and outdoor activities, students learn the process by which scientific experiments are designed and conducted, and recognize the importance of the scientific methodology in the exploration of topics such as pollination, water and soil quality, vegetation type, land use, and composting.  In order to facilitate an interdisciplinary application of Physical Fitness/Health, Language Arts, Mathematics, and Environmental Science, the program incorporates the following activities:

Fresh carrots from the garden

Physical Fitness/Health

*Learning proper stretching and breathing to be done before physical activity

*Benefits of participating in gardening/outdoor activities

*Health benefits of organically grown foods

*Environmental benefits of use of renewable energy sources

Transplanting flowers for Butterfly Garden

Language Arts

*Helping to compose a newsletter for distribution to parents and community members

*Describing and drawing plants and other organism from the habitat area

*Creating posters and fliers advertising urban gardening project to community and schools

Teaching the wonders of the seed...

Mathematics

*Identifying geometric patterns in the natural habitat

*Measuring, charting, and graphing growth rates of plants

*Using problem solving during field and class activities

Composting to create fertile soil...

Science

*Identifying plants, insects, and animals native to Georgia

*Studying the basic elements of types of renewable energy sources (solar, wind, hydroelectric)

*Identifying components of soil and water types and how they function in an ecosystem

*Studying the process of photosynthesis

HISTORY OF HABESHA

HABESHA Inc. was formed in 2002 under the leadership of the organization’s Executive Director, Cashawn Myers.  As a Clark Atlanta University graduate student, Myers was inspired by a professor’s remarks concerning the lack of positive opportunities for youth living in public housing units neighboring the university’s campus.  This occurrence convinced Myers to start of a summer cultural enrichment program called Plant a CEAD, (Cultural Enrichment and Academic Development).  The program later evolved into the Black to our Roots program (see more details below).  From this base, the organization expanded its activities to include education and awareness around sustainable agriculture, entrepreneurship, holistic health and technology.  HABESHA’s success has led to the establishment of an affiliate branch in Baltimore as well as the Atlanta-based HABESHA Gardens Complex.  The work of the organization has also been featured on Georgia Public Broadcasting and CNN.

Core Values

PAN-AFRICAN HABESHA, Inc. is committed to promoting principles and values that emphasize African culture and heritage.  Through our work we seek to offer African-American children insight into African history and cultural practices from across the Diaspora.  In this way, we are engaging youth in developing positive self-image and awareness.

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT HABESHA also promotes leadership so that young people are prepared to enter the world as responsible citizens.  This occurs by offering young people opportunities to participate in civic engagement projects that encourage them to become stewards of their communities and participate in the betterment of their environment.  The organization’s leadership model includes activities that emphasize economic success, entrepreneurship and academic excellence.

SUSTAINABILITY Though our programming we seek to shape young people’s perspectives on environmental sustainability by promoting practices and principles centered on the concept of Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.  Additionally, our work has introduced youth to sustainable technologies and also includes the idea of a sustainable lifestyle, which take into consideration the importance of personal health.