Collective Roots Joins The Growing Connection

Collective Roots is partnering with The Growing Connection (TGC), a grassroots project supported by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN. TGC is a global network of very water-and-space efficient vegetable gardens where kids learn horticulture, nutrition, entrepreneurship. Combining GROWTH and CHOICE, TGC participants share their experiences on the Internet, learn about their respective cultures, exchange recipes and, we hope, don’t bomb each other!

As a starting point to introduce efficient, innovative horticulture, TGC gardens use a unique growing system call the EarthBox- a highly flexible self-contained growing system that virtually guarantees success. The EarthBox allows students to be responsible for their own garden unit, and to gather data from a standardized growing environment that can easily be compared to other TGC participants locally and around the world.

The Growing Connection (TGC) is a global project, operating in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, and across the USA. TGC’s first Bay Area demonstration garden is at Google, where the large-scale, water-efficient TGC garden produces organic food for Google employees and guests (supported by Bon Appétit Management Co.). Staff at Google and the Bon Appétit Management Co. are providing technical assistance and other support to Collective Roots, enabling the development of this exciting program—Collective Roots being the first community based site chosen on the Peninsula to host The Growing Connection model program. Bon Appétit has a history of supporting Collective Roots, and has provided generous funding to develop an outdoor kitchen in the model garden developed at East Palo Charter School. The outdoor kitchen will now be a TGC learning and demo site, and will utilize the EarthBoxes for growing culinary and salad herbs for consumption by students participating in garden based learning programs.

The EarthBoxes provide a vehicle for growing that allows Collective Roots to move the garden into many classrooms, including classes that are not currently receiving instruction directly in the garden, but wherein the teaching staff might be interested in adding a horticulture/botany component to support existing units of instruction in core content areas. This project also provides a connection to the Master Gardener program that is supporting the garden at Google. These key partners are invested in seeing the model expand into nearby underserved communities (such as East Palo Alto and Belle Haven). The Growing Connection and its partners at Google and Bon Appétit Management Company are providing technical assistance and support to Collective Roots as we develop this exciting new component of our work.

Now, you can help bring this amazing medium for growing and learning to an eager student or family. Please consider making a donation to support this exciting new option for learning. Please visit our "Donate Now" page and select the EarthBox option from the pull down menu titled "focused giving." Simply click here to proceed!