From Christian “Karim” Fowkes, RPCV Taza (1998-2000) : I returned to Morocco this summer to show my wife why Morocco holds such a special place in my heart. We traversed the country, making our way to Taza and Tazekka National Park. In Taza, we were welcomed by my former Parks counterpart, Aziz Rahmouni, and his family. Early the

We are truly honored that the Advisor to His Majesty the King, H.E. André Azoulay, has joined the Advisory Board of the High Atlas Foundation.  His years of service to the Kingdom of Morocco marks incredible achievement for its people, the region, and beyond, especially in regards to his tireless promotion of peace and prosperity. 

In response to the needs expressed by rural Moroccan people, the High Atlas Foundation launched a campaign to plant one million fruit tree saplings on June 23, 2006.  These saplings will be planted in ten nurseries around the country to benefit hundreds of rural villages that neighbor Morocco’s nature protected areas.  Our announcement of this

The High Atlas Foundation hosted its second annual reception on September 21, 2006 at the Urban Center in New York City. The speeches were passionate and inspiring, and the High Atlas Foundation raised critical support to plant one million trees in the next two years. The High Atlas Foundation sincerely thanks Carol Bellamy, H.E. André

On September 26, the High Atlas Foundation and its NGO partners in Morocco distributed over 200 pounds of school supplies to the elementary schools in the villages of Tagdid and Mejjou, in the Valley of Agoundis, Rural District of Ijoukak, in the Province of Al Haouz.  Thank you so much to the students of Smithtown

On Friday, June 8th the High Atlas Foundation held its second annual gathering at the residence of Morocco’s Ambassador to the United States, H.E. Aziz Mekouar. Ninety guests, including nonprofit leaders from Morocco, returned Peace Corps Volunteers, and private and public sector officials joined the Board of Directors for this special evening for rural Moroccan

The High Atlas Foundation launched its campaign to plant one million fruit trees in Morocco during the next two years, in response to the priority needs expressed by rural Moroccan communities. We’re partnering with many different groups to reach our goal.  Some partners include: government agencies, corporations, foundations, and people like you. In just three

We are thrilled to tell you that we reached our goal of 100 donations to our GlobalGiving project by December 15th, which means we will receive an additional $5,000 in funding from an anonymous member of the GlobalGiving community.  Thank you for helping to make this possible! Donations made to this project will support one of ten

HAF will be hosting Happy Hours in the upcoming weeks in both New York City and in Washington, DC.  Come to meet HAF Board Members and other people who are interested in making a difference for Morocco. We look forward to sharing with you more about our community development work and new initiative to plant

On February 9th HAF hosted a “Friend-raiser” at Marrakesh Palace in Washington, D.C. Over seventy people attended, including Moroccan Ambassador to the U.S., His Excellency Aziz Mekouar, embassy staff, former Peace Corps Volunteers, supporters, and new friends. The event celebrated HAF’s successful launch of its One Million Tree Initiative, marked by the planting of an

The High Atlas Foundation is excited to invite you to Happy Hours during the upcoming summer months! Please join board members and volunteers to learn more about the High Atlas Foundation, our projects in Morocco, and the exciting plans we have underway for our annual NYC reception (which will be held this year on September

On the evening of September 27th the High Atlas Foundation held its third annual reception at the French Institute Alliance Française. Ambassador Richard Holbrooke was honored for his many contributions to Peace Corps and to international development.  We had a wonderful turnout, which brought together former U.S. Ambassadors to Morocco, former Peace Corps Volunteers and

The High Atlas Foundation is pleased to announce that Kate McLetchie has been hired as its first Country Director. Kate is based in Rabat and oversees HAF’s projects, partnerships, and operations in-country. This is an exciting next step for HAF and Kate’s work in Morocco will allow us to better respond to the needs of

On a recent trip to the Imenane Valley, I was struck once again by the contrasting beauty of the snow capped mountains and the harsh realities of living in remote, rural Morocco. Far from major cities, secondary schools, and modern medical facilities, communities in rural Morocco depend on traditional agricultural practices to sustain themselves. I

The High Atlas Foundation is excited to announce partnerships with GlobalGiving, and with Elizabeth Letts and Ali Alalou, authors of the newly released children’s book The Butter Man. In partnership with GlobalGiving, HAF is raising funds to support potable water projects for five villages in some of the most remote and impoverished villages of the

During the month of February the High Atlas Foundation and its partners planted 33,000 fruit trees (cherry, apple, peach, and quince) with villages in the Imenane and Azzadene Valleys in Morocco’s High Atlas Mountains. Did you know that Central Park has just over 26,000 trees?  For those of you who have wandered the Park’s many

HAF is excited to announce that it was selected to be a member group of the National Peace Corps Association (NPCA). Founded by Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs) in 2000, HAF is committed to actively engaging the RPCV community as a way of helping others to keep alive their connection to Morocco and offer them

On April 10th, United States Ambassador to Morocco, Thomas Riley, visited a High Atlas Foundation fruit tree agriculture project outside of Marrakech that was supported by the Ambassador’s Empowerment Fund of the United States Embassy in 2005. The project planted 7,000 fruit trees (cherry, apple, prune, and peach) to advance the socio-economic and environmental conditions

Celebrate this Earth Day (Tuesday, April 22nd) by purchasing a Moroccan market basket through HAF’s newest partner Jeanne Beatrice Market Baskets. Laura Benson started the company as a way to promote an environmentally-friendly alternative to paper and plastic grocery bags. Each year in the United States alone 14 million trees are required to produce paper

On the evening of June 13th, the High Atlas Foundation hosted a reception and book signing at the residence of H.E. Aziz Mekouar, Moroccan Ambassador to the United States. Over 100 guests joined together to honor Tim Resch, President of Friends of Morocco, and to celebrate 45 years of Peace Corps service in Morocco. It

In an effort to keep you informed about our ongoing projects with communities, we will post “Notes from the Field” blog updates on a regular basis. We look forward to sharing our work with you, and  reading your comments! Imenane Valley In partnership with the Global Diversity Foundation, HAF recently completed a three month participatory monitoring and evaluation

Join HAF Board Members, supporters, and friends this Ramadan to break fast together in NYC. We will be hosting two gatherings – one a traditional Moroccan fitoor (complete with harira soup, chebekia, and dates!) and a second one filled with delicious Moroccan appetizers. We’ll catch up, meet new friends, and get geared up for the October 15th NYC reception. We

To give you a taste of HAF’s upcoming October 15th NYC art exhibit, sale, and silent auction,  we will profile each week one of the four talented featured artists. We hope you will join us on the 15th to view their work and make a purchase if something special catches your eye! All proceeds to benefit HAF’s community development projects with Moroccan

HAF’s October 15th NYC art exhibit, sale, and silent auction will feature five different signed and matted prints from The Butter Man book, by the illustrator Julie Klear Essakalli. Inspired by the beauty and rawness of many Atlas Mountain trips, Julie based her illustrations on a remote Berber village she discovered in 2004. Zig Zaoun is a perfectly nestled, magical, untouched farming

* * * P R E S S   R E L E A S E * * * Date: October 3, 2008, New York, NY Contact: Kate McLetchie, Country Director at (646) 688-2946 or kate@highatlasfoundation.org The High Atlas Foundation (HAF) will host a Moroccan art exhibit, sale, and silent auction on Wednesday, October 15th 2008 from 6:00pm

The common thread that connects most of Hamid Kachmar’s work is intricacy.  He evokes the interconnectedness, interrelations, and interdependency of the world where we live nowadays. As an example, he points to the fact that this exhibit/sale is a fundraising event in New York City to help rural families half way across the world in

On the evening of October 15th the High Atlas Foundation hosted its fourth annual New York City reception at the New York Palace Hotel’s Urban Center. Over eighty guests joined us for a Moroccan art exhibit, sale, and silent auction – proceeds from the evening will go towards implementing HAF’s first potable water project in the

On November 13th 2008, U.S. Ambassador to Morocco Thomas Riley and Mrs. Nancy Riley hosted a reception at their residence in Rabat for the High Atlas Foundation. The event  officially launched three new partnerships to strategically grow and expand HAF’s objectives to advance community development in Morocco using a participatory approach. Ambassador and Mrs. Riley and the

President John F. Kennedy founded the Peace Corps in 1961 with the vision of 100,000 volunteers in the field each year and the goal one decade later of one million Americans with first-hand knowledge of the world. Today, approximately 8,000 Peace Corps volunteers serve in 74 emerging countries around the world. How can Peace Corps

HAF’s project to bring clean drinking water to five Moroccan villages is competing in GlobalGiving’s Everybody Can Win! Challenge. Help HAF win up to $27,500 in prizes by making a donation before December 15th. Every gift counts – just $15 provides clean drinking water for one person! Donate Today! GlobalGiving’s Everybody Can Win! Challenge GlobalGiving’s Everybody Can Win! Challenge is