{"id":19177,"date":"2021-01-12T14:07:58","date_gmt":"2021-01-12T14:07:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/highatlasfoundation.org\/?p=19177"},"modified":"2021-01-15T12:32:06","modified_gmt":"2021-01-15T12:32:06","slug":"meet-hajiba-boumasmar-program-coordinator-of-the-high-atlas-foundation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/meet-hajiba-boumasmar-program-coordinator-of-the-high-atlas-foundation\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet Hajiba Boumasmar, Program Coordinator of the High Atlas Foundation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Meet Hajiba Boumasmar, Program Coordinator of the High Atlas Foundation<\/a>, freskincare.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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The High Atlas Foundation<\/b><\/p>\n

The High Atlas Foundation (HAF) is an American-Moroccan nonprofit that\u00a0focuses on\u00a0different areas: youth, women, water,\u00a0capacity building, cuture, and agriculture. HAF’s work in the agricultural sector includes building tree nurseries, planting seeds, planting and distributing saplings and monitoring tree growth. HAF has a focused program on cooperatives funded by\u00a0\u00a0USAID<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0called \u201cfarmer to farmer\u201d to follow up with agricultural cooperatives and women\u2019s cooperatives and provide them with American agricultural expertise. At HAF, we facilitate youth workshops and a special series of\u00a0\u00a0Imagine\u00a0\u00a0<\/i><\/b>empowerment workshops to help women build and run cooperatives. The sessions include everything from managing financials to building interpersonal relationships. We distribute food where needed and we plant trees across Morocco with partners like FR\u00c9. We are aiming to plant 1 million trees all over Morocco by the end of March.<\/p>\n

My role at HAF<\/b><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve worked for HAF for one year and gained a lot of skills and knowledge. I\u2019ve developed a lot both professionally and personally. I have a masters degree in the biotechnology of trees and sustainable development of agriculture. I started volunteering with HAF as soon as I graduated. I\u2019m currently responsible for the tree nurseries: monitoring the logistics, soil, saplings, and more. I\u00a0work with the team that monitors the trees and distributes them. It\u2019s amazing to see the trees grow! I\u2019m also a program coordinator, meaning I\u2019m the liaison with people in the field. And I\u2019m in charge of financials.<\/p>\n

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How FR\u00c9 & HAF grow and plant Argan trees together\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

Argan is the tree that is most in demand in Morocco, and most endangered. We have to save this tree\u2014it\u2019s our heritage. It is challenging to grow argan seeds. FR\u00c9, one of our wonderful partners, supports the Imagdal nursery, which is a special tree nursery just for argan. It has the best conditions for the seeds to grow and the caretaker has the right skills and competence. We have adopted new agricultural techniques and almost 90% of our seeds become saplings. Once they grow, we plant the argan saplings in the Essaouira region.<\/p>\n

FR\u00c9 has planted a total of 33,000 argan trees in\u00a0Morocco\u00a0and has committed to planting another 32,000 argan trees in 2021. These trees\u00a0support the environment and women\u2019s cooperatives in the region<\/strong><\/em>.<\/p>\n

FR\u00c9 has committed to planting 32,000 trees\u00a0in 2021 to support the environment and women\u2019s cooperatives in the region.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Why argan matters<\/b><\/p>\n

Argan is Morocco\u2019s heritage. It is endemic to the country. It\u2019s our gold and it\u2019s our duty to protect and save this resource. There are lots of strategies to conserve the trees here. HAF\u2019s main strategy is to increase the argan tree population by planting more. If there isn’t enough water the adult trees can survive, but they are vulnerable and need the right care and attention in the first 2 years.<\/p>\n

The impact of argan on the environment\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

Humanity has had a negative impact on the environment. But one of the things we can do to save the Earth is plant trees. Planting trees reduces CO2 and produces oxygen. Reducing the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere has a huge positive impact on the environment, as it reduces climate change. Additionally, the roots of the argan tree also stabilize and nourish the soil around it.<\/p>\n

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The impact of argan on women\u2019s cooperatives<\/b><\/p>\n

If women have jobs, they can support their children, family and community. The majority of the women in the cooperatives are illiterate or have limited formal education, but working for a cooperative is a way for them to learn and become financially independent. When we plant trees, we plant them with women\u2019s cooperatives. The argan tree is their livelihood; the women work to produce argan oil from the trees\u2019 kernels. We work with five cooperatives in the region, each of which are made up of 30-35 women.<\/p>\n

The majority of the women in the argan cooperatives have limited formal education, but working for a cooperative is a way for them to learn and become financially independent.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Argan is used to produce cosmetics and cooking oil. These products are produced differently. Most cooperatives prepare both types of oils. The oils sell well. Producing argan for skincare is a complex process and a certification is needed. Most cooperatives start with cooking oil and work their way up to skincare oil.<\/p>\n

The challenges facing women in Morocco in 2021<\/b><\/p>\n

Society still oppresses women. Internally, women have so much power, but they need help to harness their abilities for the betterment of themselves, their families and their communities. At HAF, we help women discover their abilities. I love running the empowerment workshops that help women discover their talents.<\/p>\n

HAF\u2019s vision for the future<\/b><\/p>\n

HAF\u2019s mission is to help local women and youth to implement sustainable development projects that will in turn support rural communities and improve the economic situation in each family. By planting trees, we fulfill this mission. It\u2019s not easy, but it is achievable. I\u2019m grateful to be a part of this mission and to be able to help empower my community and country.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Meet Hajiba Boumasmar, Program Coordinator of the High Atlas Foundation, freskincare. The High Atlas Foundation The High Atlas Foundation (HAF) is an American-Moroccan nonprofit that\u00a0focuses on\u00a0different areas: youth, women, water,\u00a0capacity building, cuture, and agriculture. HAF’s work in the agricultural sector includes building tree nurseries, planting seeds, planting and distributing saplings and monitoring tree growth. HAF<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":19178,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[54,70,106,115],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/6_52f10bee-5934-4f88-a059-22f80af7f738_1000x.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19177"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19177"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19177\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19275,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19177\/revisions\/19275"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19178"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19177"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19177"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19177"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}