– Morocco: Literacy program empowers women toward sustainability, Esi-Africa. For International Women’s Day, the High Atlas Foundation team is honored to share with you highlights and milestones from the first year the Family Literacy program we are implementing in the Marrakech-Safi and Beni Mellal-Khenifra regions of Morocco, which is financed by the European Union. This program is multi-faceted, including Imagine empowerment workshops, literacy

فاطمة المريني، مراقبة ميدانية للأشجار لطالما اعتقدت أن مساعدة الناس هي غايتي ، فكلما ارتسمت ابتسامة على وجه شخص ما اشعران روحي ترقص من الفرح والبهجة . لقد خلقنا من أجل التعارف والتشارك من أجل مساعدة ومساندة بعضنا البعض  ، فكيف سيكون الإنسان إنسانا دون التحلي بمشاعر الرفق واللين والشعور بمتاعب الآخرين  فكما نحب أن

Houria Chouhab F2F Field Officer I joined the High Atlas Foundation´s (HAF) Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) team in December 2021, and my first field experience was a visit to the Ahl Rhoufrane Cooperative in the Bouchane municipality, in the Rhmana Province with my colleague Ibtissam Niri. On our way there, my colleague explained that the members of

Cheikh Akmach HAF Site Coordinator, Dakhla-Oued Ed-Dahab region The women stand up after the ´Room Exercise´. Credits: Hajiba Boumasmar/HAF On the 5th of January, the High Atlas Foundation´s (HAF) women’s empowerment trainers Hajiba Boumasmar and Hana Ezaoui embarked on a journey to the distant Bir Gandouz Commune to conduct a women’s empowerment workshop for the

Arabic Version Houria Chouhab F2F’s Volunteer Technical Members of Msalla Cooperative engaged in one of the workshop’s exercises. Photo Credit: HAF/ F2F staff member. In the weekly meeting of the High Atlas Foundation´s (HAF) Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) team, one of my colleagues told me about an Imagine women’s empowerment workshop with the Msalla cooperative in the

Mustapha Tarhbaloute, HAF Tree Monitoring Coordinator On February 21, Executive Director Tomer Malchi and Chief Technical Officer Ben Cohen from the not-for-profit organization called Cultivaid visited the team members of the High Atlas Foundation and community tree nurseries that HAF supports. We started with the nursery at the Jewish cemetery in Akrich, where we saw

By Emilie Changeux, HAF’s Intern On February 22nd, the World Research Institute, Realize Impact, and Barka Fund organized an amazing webinar on the future of sustainable restoration finance. Presenting a number of experts and entrepreneurs who have developed methods to help fund mid-sized sustainable restoration organizations in Africa, this meeting was incredibly educational to the

Cheikh Akmach HAF Site Coordinator, Dakhla-Oued-Ed-Dahab region On January 2nd, 2023, the High Atlas Foundation (HAF) Dakhla team embarked on a 143-kilometer-long journey to visit the Bir Anzarane municipality. This is one of the three communes selected for the implementation of the Participatory Planning and Implementation of Community Initiatives in Oued Ed-Dahab Region, in collaboration

Jennifer Anne Sopoci F2F US Volunteer F2F intervention during an Environmental Forum at the ENCG in Beni Mellal. Photo Credit: HAF On February 6, at the coordination of Aziz, we were able to go to the University Sultan Moulay Slimane School of Science and Technology to meet with research students and hear about their climate

Jennifer Anne Sopoci F2F US Volunteer During the theoretical part of the Climate-Smart Agriculture training course. Photo Credit: HAF On February 2, we conducted the workshop for approximately 3 hours. We spent the first half of the workshop discussing the basics of climate change, global warming, and agriculture’s role in the production and sequestration of

Jennifer Anne Sopoci F2F US Volunteer In a meeting with members of Sanad Cooperative and HAF team members. Photo Credit: HAF Prior to my arrival in Morocco on January 30, I had spoken with Aziz Taouri, the president of the Bio-Agri Atlas Farming Cooperative of Oulad Mbark. We discussed the drought that Morocco has been

من إعداد: مونية بمادي نظمت دورة تكوينية حول التربية المالية لفائدة مؤطري أقسام محو الأمية وتعليم الكبار وذلك أيام 12 و 13 و 14 و15 و16 دجنبر لسنة 2022 بمقر بنك المغرب بمراكش  وتضمنت حصص التكوين التي يسرها فريق بنك المغرب بتنسيق من السيدة زينب العلوي الشريفي المحاور التالية  اليوم الأول تم الحديث عن الميزانية

Hajiba Boumasmar HAF Program Manager A remarkable candle was lit with a group of women in Bir Gandus commune. Forty civil society representatives attended the women’s empowerment workshop conducted by HAF trainers Hajiba Boumasmar and Hana Ezaoui under the program “Participatory Planning and Implementing of  Community Initiatives in Dakhla Oued Ed Edahab Region,” in partnership

By Ellen Hernandez, HAF Writer and Editor The women in Tafraoute village take responsibility for everything from cleaning, cooking, and child-rearing to exterior home upkeep and farming chores. The majority of men have left to seek employment in big cities, such as Agadir or Casablanca. As a result, they report, the women have adjusted to

Dear friend, We at the High Atlas Foundation are so proud to share with you our updated House of Life brochure for 2023 and this beautiful 9-minute short film called Seeds of Memory, which spotlights our work in and near Akrich. A decade ago, we were transplanting the first fruit tree saplings grown there—at the pilot interfaith nursery in

Houria Chouhab F2F Volunteer Technical and Field Assistant Nowadays, many of the communities’ nurseries and farmers in Morocco use solar-powered water pumps in order to irrigate their trees and saplings. This allows them to manage their farming in a climate-friendly way. Akrich Tree Nursery Credit: F2F staff. In March 2022, the Assalam Association, the Adrar

By Ibtissam Niri HAF M&E Program Assistant and Empowerment Coach “Is this the same nursery land that I visited in 2020?” This is how my conversation started with Hassan Ait Baa in front of the nursery door during my visit to the Imegdal nursery. “No, it’s another one. This nursery emerged as a result of

Rachel Bartkowski Marrakech, Morocco My entire life I’ve grown up with the consistent pressure to figure myself out. As I near my final semester in university, I naively thought I’d have all my questions answered by now. I don’t. This pressure of urgency has always loomed over me, and as I transition into an adult,

French version Dear fellow change-maker, On behalf of the High Atlas Foundation (HAF), I am honored to present to you our new carbon offset program brochure for 2023. This year, we are planting four million seeds and saplings with communities across Morocco, and we are eager to be a part of your institution’s sustainability efforts. Together, we can

By Zineb LAADAM HAF Field officer On February 9th, 2023, HAF’s Imagine empowerment facilitators met with 18 women from M’salla Cooperative in Jnanate village, located in the Beni Boufrah municipality of the Al Hoceima province. These women are joining the ranks of 2,373 others from around Morocco that have benefited from the 101 Imagine workshops

Hanna Tuoriniemi HAF Intern (Image from the UN Sustainable Development Platform’s official Facebook page) On January 18th, the United Nations preceded their 2023 Water Conference to be held in March with a multi-stakeholder thematic webinar entitled Preparing for the Water Conference and the Water Action Agenda. The event proved to be an effective catalyst for

By Aleksander Esmann On December 16, 2022, Germanwatch, in cooperation with Power Shift Africa, CESAO-AI and Misereor, organized a webinar about “Renewable Energy Transitions in Africa.” The webinar was intended as a forum for actors in the renewable energy sector in Africa to discuss challenges, issues, and policies and to exchange their experiences and knowledge.

By Youssef Mazdou, HAF Program Assistant Students of the legal clinic learning English. Image Credits: Youssef Mazdou In January 2023, the High Atlas Foundation (HAF), in partnership with the Faculty of Legal, Economic and Social Sciences of the Cadi Ayyad University in Marrakech and the Legal Clinic Association for Studies and Research, organized weekly English

Arabic Version World Interfaith Harmony Week An Interview with Hmed: The Caretaker of the Jewish Cemetery in Sefrou Sefrou, Morocco By Amal Mansouri Hmed, 75 years old, is the caretaker of the Jewish Cemetery in Sefrou. Photo: Amal Mansouri/HAF Located in the foothills of the Middle Atlas Mountains, 27 kilometers south of Fes, the city

By Mounia Bammadi, a master’s student in administrative law and management science, and a student of the legal clinic in Marrakech. Students of YU with students of CAU in training participatory planning On January 13, 2023, the High Atlas Foundation in Marrakech organized a participatory meeting within the framework of the exchange of cultures and

By Fatima Zahra Laaribi The president of the High Atlas Foundation (HAF), Yossef Ben-Meir, and HAF´s Lead Women’s Empowerment Trainer, Fatima Zahra Laaribi, hold presentations at the UCL Faculty of Laws at the Bentham House in London, United Kingdom. Two presentations about the work HAF does in Morocco and the methodologies it applies, including its

Cheikh Akmach HAF Site Coordinator The 2nd International Congress on Entrepreneurship, Creativity, and Managerial Innovation was held on November 9th, in Dakhla, with the participation of researchers and academics from Morocco and abroad. Ph.D students specializing in entrepreneurship management participated in the conference. Photo Credits: Cheikh Akmach/HAF Organized by the National School of Business and

English Version أسبوع الوئام العالمي بين الأديان حوار مع الأب جون كلود غون، قس كنيسة السيدة العذراء (نوتردام دو لا سومبسيون) في الصويرة  الصويرة، المغرب “كان هدفي الأسمى هو بناء علاقات وصداقات على المستوى الشخصي، وليس فقط بين المؤسسات. لحسن الحظ، آتت جهودي ثمارها وأنا فخور بأن أقول إنني الآن أعتبر جزءا من مجتمع الصويرة.

Arabic Version World Interfaith Harmony Week An Interview with Father Jean-Claude Gons, the Priest of Notre Dame de l’Assomption Church in Essaouira Essaouira, Morocco “My ultimate goal was to build relationships and friendships on a personal level, not just between institutions. Thankfully, my efforts were fruitful, and I’m proud to say that now I am

English Version أسبوع الوئام العالمي بين الأديان مليكة ومحسن: حراس الذاكرة المسلمة-اليهودية في الصويرة الصويرة، المغرب مليكة، المشرفة على كنيس حاييم بينتو، الصويرة، المغرب. الصورة: مؤسسة الأطلس الكبير يُحتفظ بمفاتيح أحد أشهر المواقع اليهودية المقدسة في المغرب لدى عائلة مسلمة، وقد ظل الأمر كذلك لسنوات. على بعد أمتار قليلة من مدرسة تلمود توراة (سابقا) بمدينة