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<\/p>\n“Can we create a far better future for communities by implementing catalyst and formative agricultural projects that have profound socio-economic and environmental benefits?\u00a0 This is a moment of decision, before the end of March and the 2013 tree planting season passes.\u201d\u00a0 – HAF President, Yossef Ben-Meir<\/p>\n
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Time to Plant with the People<\/strong><\/p>\n A Message from HAF\u2019s President<\/p>\n Dear Friends,<\/p>\n The High Atlas Foundation<\/a>\u00a0is on course for a smashing planting season in Morocco, but we could do even more, and we must do all we can by the end of March.<\/p>\n HAF is dedicated to the ENTIRE agricultural process \u2013 from\u00a0tree nurseries<\/a>\u00a0to\u00a0organic certification of fruit<\/a>(doubling prices for farmers), to markets and export, and all the training and partnership-building required along the way.\u00a0 The HAF model\u00a0empowers women<\/a>\u00a0and youth associations, entire villages and communes.\u00a0 The projects are the people\u2019s and create revenue streams for new community investments in\u00a0irrigation<\/a>,\u00a0clean drinking water<\/a>,\u00a0<\/a>schools<\/a>, and\u00a0business and education cooperatives<\/a>.<\/p>\n Two year old walnut trees purchased to be planted in orchards cost about 12 dirhams.\u00a0 HAF community nurseries enable the people to pay only 2 dirhams (1\/6 the cost), and transfers the new skills to local people, generating employment.\u00a0 HAF is distributing now to family farmers 20,000 walnut trees and planting 100,000 more seeds in the Toubkal commune nursery, launched in 2006 in memory of\u00a0Kate Jeans-Gail<\/a>, a former Morocco Peace Corps Volunteer.\u00a0 We can do so much more, and we are \u2013 planting two other community nurseries in the Al Haouz province,\u00a0olive orchards<\/a>\u00a0and cactus fruit plants in Rhamna, and with 9 rural elementary schools and students \u2013\u00a0Sami\u2019s Project<\/a>.<\/a><\/p>\n I ask: Who would like to enable community nurseries in the Azilal province \u00a0in the Communes of Ait Mhamed and \u00a0Ouaouizerth (where the late Ambassador Chris Stevens served as a Peace Corps Volunteer)?\u00a0 HAF-communities can implement them, but loving people and groups need to fund the costs.\u00a0 I am asking: Can we make a far better future for communities by implementing catalyst and formative agricultural projects that are fully economic and environmental?\u00a0 It costs $30,000 per site – for needed irrigation, green houses, training, and seeds..<\/p>\n Is there a collective HAF voice out there that hears me?\u00a0 The time is now and short, and the course of the future for so many people will know a far better and empowering day.\u00a0 It is so unfortunate if we must wait another a year, when the people are now ready, when potential and the inevitable for shared prosperity are postponed.\u00a0 When entire communities come together and agree on a priority human development need and project, they should not be denied, or even delayed.\u00a0 After all, it is women without means, and girls and boys laboring, and the well-intentioned without recourse.<\/p>\n HAF is in Morocco to provide a participatory way, and the people have responded, and so let\u2019s implement, let\u2019s build it, let the seeds be many, for the love and sake of humanity.<\/p>\n Happy planting wherever that might be,<\/p>\n Sincerely,<\/p>\n Dr. Yossef Ben-Meir<\/strong> “Can we create a far better future for communities by implementing catalyst and formative agricultural projects that have profound socio-economic and environmental benefits?\u00a0 This is a moment of decision, before the end of March and the 2013 tree planting season passes.\u201d\u00a0 – HAF President, Yossef Ben-Meir Time to Plant with the People A Message from<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":2082,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[46],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/tree-final-2-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2081"}],"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=2081"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2081\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2082"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2081"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2081"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2081"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nPresident<\/strong>
\nHigh Atlas Foundation<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"