On January 31^st, 2020, I had the chance to travel with my colleagues Errachid and Amina and a former HAF volunteer Youssef to meet the women of Tassa Ouirgane Cooperative who are managing a HAF fruit tree nursery.I facilitated a workshop on climate change and environmental laws with five women and two men. The women were so dynamic and interactive; they talked about the climate change problems in their village Tassa Ouirgane and about their role in saving their area. They also mentioned the importance of tree planting to save the environment.

As a way of implementing one of the recommendations of a USAID farmer-to-farmer volunteer, Hassan Ait Ba, our nursery caretaker, trained these women on how to plant walnut and almond seeds and how to irrigate them to get good results in a short period of time.
In the afternoon, we went to Imskar’s village located at the top of the mountain to meet more than 30 farmers, thanks to Rachid, the president of a youth’s association in Imskar. The farmers were so nice, friendly and welcoming. During our meeting, we talked about HAF, its programs and how it serves Moroccan communities.

My colleagues and I had the opportunity to exchange with the farmers, and to know more about their needs for potential activities.
Then, I facilitated a workshop on climate change and environmental laws. This workshop was the best ever, for the farmers were so interested and they participated a lot. They talked about raising awareness and its importance even in other areas like sending girls to school and enabling them to practice a job or to learn a craft.

Furthermore, one of the old farmers, named Da Moussa, talked about the region from 40 years ago. He told of how it used to rain much more, so there was sufficient water to irrigate, and thus the people had a nice life. This is not the case nowadays because of drought and inadequate access to water for irrigation.
As a farewell, the farmers served us tea with Imskar walnuts, some of the best ones I’ve ever had.