Caption: The invitation to the conference organized by the Center for Middle East Studies During the last week of September, the Center for Middle East Studies at Brown University organized a conference on “Decolonization, Development and State Building in North Africa”. The panels were facilitated by Ph.D. researchers who are interested in the North African

F2F Finance Officer | Lead Empowerment Trainer Photo by: i-Tree One of the High Atlas Foundation’s (HAF) USAID Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) team members, Fatima Zahra Laaribi, was selected from a competitive pool of applicants to attend the “2020 i-Tree International Academy” —a three- month online training organized by the US Forest Service International Programs, Northern Research Station, and

HAF Office Manager & Volunteer Coordinator Caption: High Atlas Foundation, Tassa Ouirgane Nursery “Trees are poems the earth writes upon the sky, We fell them down and turn them into paper, That we may record our emptiness.” -Kahlil Gibran I always believed that trees are the source of life for humans. HAF encourages the Moroccan

Caption: November 19th is the UN International Day of Toilets On the 19th of November each year, the United Nations celebrates the International Day of Toilets. This day is meant to raise awareness about the situation of 4.2 billion individuals who do not have access to hygiene services such as toilets and also showcase their

Errachid Montassir & Said El Bennani HAF Project Managers HAF staff member Hassan Ait Ouatouch  and HAF volunteer Houria Chouhab planting an Argan tree with the members of Mogador Argan Women’s Cooperative in Essaouira – 2019 Photo by: Ilyas Dkhissi The concept of gender as a social construct is often met with resistance. While attempts

Errachid Montassir at the United Nations Headquarters in New York during the Climate Action Summit, September 2019. Errachid Montassir, High Atlas Foundation (HAF) Project Manager and Volunteer Coordinator for the USAID Farmer-to-Farmer Program, won the Water and Energy Award at the Mediathon organized by AMWAJ, CEWAS and Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung. Water and Energy ‘Mediathon’, a capacity-building event,

A wrinkled tree Analogy To care for the people or for your own wellbeing is by no means a contradiction to protecting the environment. While conventional agriculture ensures efficient food production, it still risks the health of many billion people by polluting ground waters, emitting CO2 and further reducing overall biodiversity. But strikingly, the dichotomy

The High Atlas Foundation relies on its partners for successful sustainable development projects. Public and private, local, national, and international – the agencies, companies, universities, groups, and individuals who support HAF make possible the fulfillment of its mission. By Yossef Ben-Meir The High Atlas Foundation would not have survived for the past twenty years without

Tree Monitoring Officer Caption: HAF nurseries, Fes province: tree-planting  skills build good members of society The High Atlas Foundation (HAF) uses land given in-kind by the High Commissioner of Water and Forests and the Fight Against Desertification, local associations, and cooperatives around Morocco to establish organic fruit tree nurseries which provide sustainable projects for the

Planting trees can reduce poverty and slow climate change, The Daily Guardian, By Jacqueline Skalski-Fouts, 29 August 2020. • Arabic: Beirut Taimes, 30 Aug 2020. Photo by the High Atlas Foundation, Morocco. Humanitarian crises have recently been declared in Sudan, Yemen, Niger, Mali, and Somalia—affecting at least 450,000 people—due to flash floods and landslides. Areas with

HAF Project Manager FRÉ Skincare and HAF Partnering with Argan Cooperatives in Essaouira Argania Spinosa is the only type of argan tree around the world; it’s a tree endemic to Morocco and characteristic of North Africa for its biological, nutritional, socioeconomic, and ecological value. Argania Spinosa wood is an excellent source of charcoal. The tree’s

Article: سيدات تعاونية تاخرخورت بتسا ويركان, Beirut Times, By Amina El Hajjami. HAF’s Director of Projects After building an organic tree nursery and a well, and after facilitating participatory meetings and trainings concerning environmental protections with the farmers and the men’s association in Tassa Ouirgane village (Al Haouz province, Marrakech-Safi region), a project financed by the

On July 27-28, a HAF team composed of Field Technician Abdeljalil, driver Mustapha, and I hit the road to Taroudant Province for the distribution of food and hygiene materials, a project implemented in partnership with Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy as an act of social solidarity with people who have been severely impacted, economically and socially,

Yossef Ben-Meir, Amina El Hajjami, and Ellen Hernandez HAF Colleagues The High Atlas Foundation (HAF) has been working with farming families in Morocco since 2000 to plant trees for sustainable agricultural development. The first question we are often asked is “Why plant trees?” Let us address that question as well as exploring other questions about

HAF Intern – UVA student As this was my first opportunity working on a grant proposal, I did not know much about the content and format of proposals previously; however, I knew that writing one was an important skill to acquire. Furthermore, I was able to explore new areas of the High Atlas Foundation’s work.

By Yossef Ben-Meir, Imane Akhezzane, and Ellen Hernandez The Qur’an speaks about water as the life force: the heavens and the Earth were a joined entity, and then they were separated and every living thing was made from water [21:30]. Everything needs water to survive, and among these, of course, are trees. Trees help us

HAF Projects Coordinator It was with great enthusiasm that I took the road to Amizmiz a week ago to evaluate the trees distributed by the High Atlas Foundation to various farmers in this region. Tree monitoring is a process rooted in the activities of the Foundation. This is a crucial and necessary step which allows

The argan oil industry’s impact on rural empowerment is growing nationwide, in part, because of international demand on women’s cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. The National Initiative for Human Development (INDH) launched in Morocco in 2005, which aims to “reduce poverty, grow the economy, and strengthen the kingdom’s social fabric” through participatory development, directly contributes to that industry’s

HAF Project Manager The High Atlas Foundation prioritizes participant ownership of the project identification, design, management, and monitoring processes in all of its work in Morocco. It utilizes a plethora of techniques and tools to ensure that its work is conceived of and driven by its beneficiary base, and this in turn contributes to the

HAF Project Manager High Atlas Foundation in Morocco is involving all of society’s parts and actors to help establish sustainable development and build a shining future where everyone gets the right support needed. As an example, to fight to show this vision, the HAF team is preparing each group of youth, those who are in

HAF Trees Monitoring Officer Earth is greatly negatively affected by climate change. This is observed through rising sea levels, hurricanes, floods, forest fires, and other adverse environmental impacts. Immediate measures must be taken to mitigate or adapt to climate change and save the Earth.In this regard, the High Atlas Foundation (HAF), in partnership with Ecosia

HAF President In 1993, for the month before my traveling to live in the Tifnoute Valley just south of Mount Toubkal, I lived in a small house on the outer edge of the village of Tassa Ouirgane, just north of Toubkal. There, I learned conceptually the delicate balance in meeting developmental and environmental goals at

HAF President Is it hubris, that in the face of worry and challenge and fundamental concerns about the future, that we put aside from what we may have, to plant trees for a tomorrow – a benefit for a distant day? May it actually be our nature to uphold nature, even when we are confronted

Etudiante en master En partenariat avec la Fondation Crédit Agricole du Maroc pour le Développement Durable (FCAMDD), High Atlas Foundation (HAF) a lancé un programme de plantation des arbres fruitiers organiques (amandier et noyer)  et de formation des agriculteurs en techniques agricoles dans la province de Taroudant, commune de Toubkal, région Souss Massa afin d’assurer

HAF Volunteer On February 28, I went on with HAF staff member Hajiba and Mohammed, another volunteer, to the Illou private school to present two workshops on global warming. We were welcomed by the Director, Mrs. Illou, before going to a classroom where we met about 30 second-year students. During the workshop, Hajiba presented the

FHA voluntaire Le complexe de Nzalat Laadam qui rassemble près de 800 élèves comprend des classes allant du préscolaire jusqu’au collège, dans des bâtiments très colorés où des dessins et tableaux décorent les murs. Il se trouve à près d’une heure de route au Nord de Marrakech. Nous avons été formidablement accueillis dans cet établissement.

FHA Stagiaire, Etudiante en Master “Gestion de l’environnemt et développement” Ecosia se dirige de nouveau dans la province d’Al Haouz L’équipe du projet Ecosia, représenté par Mme Hajiba Boumasmar a programmé une visite dans la commune de sidi Badhaj de la province d’Al Haouz dans la région de Marrakech- safi, afin de rencontrer Mr El

HAF Volunteer [Jingxin Wang is a college student from China who attends school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States. She is currently on a “gap year,” volunteering with HAF.] The trip to Nzalat Laadam was just like any other. If it weren’t for the ever-so-imposing red in the background, we could easily be driving

HAF Intern On the morning of the February 17, 2020, I’m going to pass the day with Imane, Karam, Nic and Yossef: international HAF convoy. In the car, the music gives the rhythm to the landscapes which pass before our eyes. Linkin Park and the Norman singer Orelsan are coming on the trip. I learn

HAF Friend The argan-oil trade is a large and growing industry with fierce competition for customers. With big cosmetic brands integrating argan oil into their products, the demand is ever-increasing outside of the local Morocco market. As it grows in global popularity with social media “influencers” and those seeking organic products, women’s cooperatives have risen