By Said Bennani HAF Project Manager As a High Atlas Foundation (HAF) Project Manager, my main objective is to work with Moroccan communities and HAF nursery caretakers—of more 13 nurseries around the country—to ensure proper care of the trees, from the time we plant a seed until it becomes a seedling. In partnership with Ecosia,

By Camelia Harkousse, HAF intern July 25, 2019 On July 23, 2019, Ms. Fatima-Zahra Laaribi participated in a webinar dedicated to Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) projects funded by USAID. The objective of the seminar was to give an opportunity for stakeholders involved in future similar projects to benefit from lessons learned and experiences gained by fellow NGOs

Errachid Montassir HAF project manager “The world is facing a grave climate emergency – disruption is happening now and faster than top scientists predict,” The UN Secretary-General, Mr. Guterres also made an impassioned call for greater support to help develop the green economy. Abu Dhabi hosted the Climate Meeting on June 30th and July 1st,

– Taking a Leap: The risk of development, on a human level, Scoop World, By Sarita Mehta (HAF Intern), 17 July 2019. • Arabic: Al-Watan Voice, 23 July 2019. As a child, I frequently remember many lazy summer days spent lugging my purple Huffy bike up the cement dunes of my suburban neighborhood. Following the parade of my two older

Camelia Harkousse HAF Intern On Monday July 1st, a group of students who are on a conflict resolution and peace-building class at George Mason University (GMU) and their professor, accompanied by HAF President Dr. Yossef and HAF Director of Project Ms. Amina, visited the Aboghlo women’s cooperative in T’nine Ourika. This cooperative could be stated

HAF Intern, UVA student She stands out in my memory as the most beautiful girl in the room. Her eyes bright with desire and friendship. She wore bold jewelry–a big ring and matching necklace. She was silly and wanted to talk and take pictures. She ran down to the creek first and asked me to

Alissa Brenn HAF Intern, graduate student On a sunny Friday morning, the High Atlas Foundation took us on a field trip to the village of Tassa Ouirgane in the Al-Haouz province. Our small but very international group consisted of students from the George Mason University in Virginia, student volunteers from all over the world, and

By Kerstin Opfer, High Atlas Foundation Electricity and energy are two of the key challenges in Africa – 2/3 of Africa’s population still has no access to electricity. Additionally electricity demand is assumed to triple until 2030. Increased use of renewable energy (RE) can help address these challenges. Africa has a considerable and largely untapped

HAF Intern, UVA student Something I have been thinking about is the relationship between top-down and bottom-up development. Community-led, participatory development plays an undeniably important role in global development within economic, political, and social spheres. I’ve seen HAF initiate local economic development through cooperative building and agricultural support for rural farmers; grassroots political movements can

HAF Intern, UVA Student I went to Ait Ourir, a city about 30 minutes outside of Marrakech to visit the Riad school. The school is surrounded by a six-foot wall that is covered by murals mainly pertaining to environmental issues. The school currently has 1,222 students, with boys and girls ages 5-12 years old, 480

HAF Intern, UVA Student This week was spent with young Moroccan women at Cadi Ayyad University in Marrakech in the Imagine Women’s Empowerment workshop. The attendees were mainly University of Virginia students, me, and 5-7 Marrakech University students, and it was very powerful to witness the evolution of the confidence and comfort level among the

This week we took part in the four day IMAGINE workshop at Cadi Ayyad University in Marrakech, with a small group of Moroccan students. I wasn’t sure what to expect from the sessions at the beginning, since there were so many different experiences in the room. Having led and participated in women’s empowerment workshops at

Camelia Harkousse HAF Intern On Wednesday 26th of June, the group accompanied by HAF Project Manager Errachid Mountassir visited a primary school in Bouchane Rhamna, where the children are learning about environmentalism. The pupils presented for the audience a play in classical Arabic. It was about forgiveness and tolerance. I was astonished how skillfully they

I didn’t think I would need to learn how to imagine at the Imagine workshops this week, but a rerouting and adjustment of my own mind became necessary. I am a pro at these workshops; engagement, listening, asking questions, empowerment. I mean I lead these activities for girls through my sorority, class service, and even

HAF Intern This week was all about women empowerment, we had a women’s workshop for four days and it was my first time to experience it. I did not know what to expect and how it will turn out… The workshop was led by HAF empowerment trainers – Amina El Hajjami, Fatima Zahra Laaribi and

HAF Intern, UVA student SCATTERED. For the past week, I’ve been trying to put into words, or just one word, what the four-day women’s empowerment workshop meant to me and I feel scattered just trying. All at once, the workshop was challenging, easy, meditative, analytical, goal-oriented, present-focused, relaxing, irritating, draining, and energizing. I’ve written down

– The Hidden Gems of Morocco, The Daily Angle, By Sarita Mehta (HAF Intern), 19 July 2019. • Arabic: Al-Watan Voice, 11 July 2019. How cooperatives may be a key factor in social and economic empowerment in the Middle East and North Africa To many people, this coming July 6 marks the passing of another Saturday. But to over 1

Morocco is on its way to being the hub of solar energy in Africa. Brooklyn Wenbo Wu HAF Intern Promoting the use of solar energy is an effective way which not only provides more access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all, but is also a feasible method to address climate change. However,

Some of the kids want to travel the world. Some of the kids want to start a business. One kid wants to play soccer AND own a bakery. These are lofty and ambitious goals for juvenile delinquents. But not for the boys at the Center for the Protection of Children in Fes. At this center,

SANAE BENAADIM HAF VOLUNTEER On the 15th of June, the team left HAF office in Marrakech in the morning toward Anamer village in Seti Fadma commune which is about 55 km out of the Red city. The team included Said El Bennani, HAF’s Project Manager, and Hassan Ait Ouatouch, HAF’s Project Assistant, Ilyas Dkhrissi (social