Errachid Montassir HAF project manager A partnership agreement brought together The High Atlas Foundation (HAF) which works to establish participatory development projects for the Moroccan communities, and Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE), the world’s second largest wind turbine manufacturer and provides onshore and offshore wind services. Both are dedicated to working with the communities and

by Fatima Zahra Laaribi Women’s Empowerment Lead Trainer High Atlas Foundation From February 2016 to the present, 467 women participated in the four-day empowerment workshop conducted by High Atlas Foundation. HAF has achieved this in partnership with the Empowerment Institute, Middle East Partnership Initiative, National Endowment for Democracy, Intrepid Foundation, FRE Skincare and other groups

By Kerstin Opfer Operations manager High Atlas Foundation Marrakech We are living in a time, where the humankind faces an unprecedented challenge – it is the warmest it has ever been on earth since human presence. The dangers of climate change are known since the 1980s but a lack of political will and societal awareness

    Participating in the Annual Farmer-to-Farmer Implementers Meeting in Raleigh, North Carolina By Yossef Ben-Meir, Ph.D. President, High Atlas FoundationHere is what I consider a joyful and fulfilling week: 80 or so people gathered from around the world to consider together wide-ranging issues in relation to supporting expert volunteers, for instance how they, cooperatives,

By Celina Böhmer and Kerstin Opfer Last week the High Atlas Foundation in partnership with Germanwatch, a German NGO dedicated to global equity and people’s livelihoods, conducted a kick-off workshop in Marrakesh with important Moroccan stakeholders of energy and decentralization. This workshop marked the start of the Multi-Stakeholder Partnership (MSP) for an African energy transition

by Celina Böhmer, HAF Intern In January, as part of the HAF team, project manager Said and interns Nisreen and myself, travelled from Marrakech to Fés and then to the Mideltarea. To learn about our first days in Fés, have a look atour former blog articles. Trees ready for being planted, donkeys ready for taking the

by Sofia d’Ávila Heidenreich Lacerda It was on the beggining of my second week of volunteer work at the High Atlas Foudation and my first time on a field trip with them. I had an incredible experience. On January 21st, the staff from HAF, partners, other volunteers and the local people worked together to make

The volunteers from OCP, the HAF team and members of the local association planting the first tree together In the front: a carob tree sapling – ready for being planted! by Celina Böhmer, HAF Intern On Tuesday the 29th of January, the High Atlas Foundation (HAF) facilitated a tree planting activity for volunteers from OCP and

Yossef Ben-Meir, Ph.D. President, High Atlas Foundation I’ve been back in Marrakech from Amman, Jordan, for about a week now, back into the swing of planting trees as far and wide as our teams and partners can before the end of March. I’ve been thinking about this blog, revisiting the truly beautiful experiences during my five day

by Juliana B. Feltrin HAF Volunteer from Brazil Yesterday, I had another great experience as part of the HAF volunteer team. We left the HAF office around 1:00 p.m. and headed toward the mountains. We arrived in the Setti Fatma commune and the landscape was even more beautiful. It was possible to have a great

By Errachid Montassir HAF Project Manager Every year, the High Atlas Foundation (HAF) celebrates its National Tree Planting Day on the third Monday of January, which coincides with Martin Luther King Day, by planting trees with farmers, women, and youth across various Moroccan regions.  This year, the event came on the 21st of January, a

Gabriella Moocarme Project Manager Leadership Development Institute Al-Akhawayn University While Ifrane was getting covered under a white sheet of snow, I was glad to join Abdelillah Ghmiza–a representative of the High Atlas Foundation–for a tree planting day in the warmer region of Meknes on that Monday, 21st of January 2019. The High Atlas Foundation organised the

Financial Manager and Women Empowerment trainer Annually, on the third Monday of January, the High Atlas Foundation (HAF) holds a high-profile day of national tree planting across Morocco.  On this day—the 21st of January this year—Fatima Zahra Laaribi, HAF’s financial Manager, and Abderrahim Baddah, HAF’s nursery caretaker, headed toward Amizmiz, a small mountain town located 60

عبدالهادي كستيح متطوع بمؤسسة الأطلس الكبير دعت مؤسسة الأطلس الكبير الاثنين الماضي والموازي للواحد والعشرينمن ينايرالجاري الساكنة المحلية المغربية لغرس آلاف الأشجار التي قامت بتوزيعها بمناسبة “يوم غرس الأشجار”، وهو حدث سنوي تقوم به المؤسسة، نظرا لما له من مساهمة في التنمية الاقتصادية والاجتماعية والبيئية عبر المملكة المغربية. وكباقي المناطق التي تشتغل بها المؤسسة عرفت

بقلم عبد اللطيف البناني ضيف شرف مع مؤسسة الاطلس الكبير يوم 21 يناير2019 الواحد والعشرون من يناير كانون الثاني صار يوما مشهودا في المغرب عامة ومؤسسة الأطلس الكبير بصفة خاصة، إنه اليوم الوطني للتشجير الذي يتصادف مع موسم غرس الأشجار شعارهم في ذلك “ازرع شجرة تنشر الحياة والأمل، ازرع شجرة تحافظ على حياة أبنائك وأحفادك

Par Karam Yann Volontaire FHA  Honnêtement je ne savais pas comment commencer cet article, ce qui m’attendait durant cette sortie allait au-delà de ce que j’imaginais. Commençons alors par le tout début. A huit heures du matin, je rencontrai mes deux compagnons du voyage, Kerstin et Juliana pour prendre un grand taxi de la gare

Youssef El Moussaoui HAF Volunteer Once in a lifetime experience. Annually, on the third Monday of January, the High Atlas Foundation (HAF) organizes a nationwide tree planting campaign. On this January 21st 2019, the HAF team planted trees with communities in many places, including Sidi Bouathmane (Ait Imloul). Ait Imloul is an arid village about 20

by Juliana B. Feltrin HAF Intern The HAF National Tree Day was very rewarding. We went to the Sidi Zouine Hospital, to plant trees. We were greeted by Mustafa, the president of Association El Wafa, who told us about the place. We started counting the amount of trees that would be planted, together with children

It was a beautiful day today, the 21st of January 2019, meeting farmers and members of associations, meeting high school students, kindergarteners, and municipal representatives. We loved today, learning from elderly people who planted fig trees 80 years ago, and from volunteers who planted pomegranate trees at a newly constructed school.  We were in villages,

by Rachael Diniega Peace Corps Morocco Volunteer My town’s middle and high school campus with olive trees Fifty trees for the middle and high school, and over one hundred trees for the elementary school, equaling more than 150 chances for youth in my town to dig in the soil, care for another living organism, and

Manon Burbidge Lund University HAF Intern – Marrakech As the sun sets on my three months with the High Atlas Foundation in Marrakech, I return to the experiences I have had, the lessons I have learned and the people I have met. My first two weeks were jam-packed with field visits and outings to diverse

Manon Burbidge Lund University HAF Intern – Marrakech Morocco to Invest $14bn in Renewable Energy Morocco is working towards achieving its goal of 52% renewable energy by 2030 by putting $14bn of investment into the renewable energy sector. Included amongst larger scale projects are installations of off-grid solar capacity which will reach 1000 rural villages

French version Arabic version MEDIA RELEASE                                                    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday 17th January 2019 Tree Planting Day provides economic, social and environmental development across Morocco Moroccan communities are being invited to plant thousands

Celina Boehmer, HAF Intern This week, part of the HAF-Team is travelling from Marrakech to Fes and then to Midelt area to collect and distribute 7100 trees to local communities. Our first stop was Fes, where we picked up the 7100 trees for the communities. We arrived in Fes and went to the Abdelaziz Ben

HAF volunteer, Thomas J. Watson Fellow On Monday, project manager Said Bennani, volunteer Celina, and I began our weeklong excursion to Fes and Midelt for environmental workshops and tree-planting activities.  On Tuesday, we visited the Abdelaziz Ben Driss child protection center to conduct an environmental workshop with the boys, plant trees, and help load 7,100

HAF Intern (from Germany) I was excited about my first field visit and about getting to know what the High Atlas Foundation’s work looks like in action, because before starting my internship, I only saw the social media posts, blog articles, and photos. This day, we didn’t travel long, as we went to two schools

   Under the auspices of the University of Virginia, the High Atlas Foundation’s President, Dr. Yossef Ben-Meir, will lead a four-credit academic internship program from May 27th to July 19th in Marrakech on the practical and theoretical dimensions of participatory development. While completing internships at the HAF and engaging in related coursework, students will facilitate communities’ planning of projects

Yossef Ben-Meir, Ph.D. President High Atlas Foundation I had such a memorable day today in Amman, Jordan, thanks to the Bureau of Oceans,  International Environmental and Scientific Affairs (OES), with whom the High Atlas Foundation has a grants program to benefit local civil associations in this stunning country of thoroughly deep, even biblical, historical culture. I met

Errachid Montassir HAF project The High Atlas Foundation (HAF) and the Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs (OES) continue to spread the vision of protecting the environment amongst the next generation, with the presence of Moroccan civil society members. Lwidan rural commune in Marrakech region was our stop this time, where we

By Nisreen Abo-Sido, HAF Volunteer, Thomas J. Watson Fellow Last week, I joined HAF Project Manager, Amina El Hajjami, and an engineer from Agence du Bassin Hydrauliques on a visit to Tassa Ouirgane village to assess the feasibility of constructing gabions along the river for flood-prevention.  A member of the local association guided us and explained the