Grow Some Good

GROW SOME GOOD, A 501(C)(3) NON-PROFIT BASED IN MAUI, PASSIONATELY PROMOTES A LOCAL, THRIVING, AND SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEM. THE ORGANIZATION'S FARM TO SCHOOL PROGRAM CREATES INTERACTIVE, OUTDOOR LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES IN SCHOOL GARDENS, FORGING VITAL CONNECTIONS BETWEEN STUDENTS AND THEIR FOOD SOURCES WHILE INSPIRING HEALTHIER NUTRITION CHOICES. IN ADDITION, GROW SOME GOOD HAS LAUNCHED A PIONEERING INITIATIVE CALLED NA MALA KAIAULU THAT IS DESIGNED TO CONSTRUCT SUSTAINABLE, INTERGENERATIONAL COMMUNITY FOOD FORESTS THAT OFFER EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES, WORKSHOPS, AND SOCIAL ENTERPRISE PROGRAMS TO SERVE UNDERPRIVILEGED COMMUNITIES ACROSS MAUI.

OUR FARM TO SCHOOL GARDEN PROGRAM CURRENTLY SERVES 75% OF THE TITLE 1 SCHOOLS IN MAUI COUNTY. AS SUCH, 5,000 OF THE 8,000 STUDENTS WE EDUCATE ARE CONSIDERED FINANCIALLY DISADVANTAGED, AS DEFINED BY AN AVERAGE OF 57% OF THEM LIVING BELOW THE POVERTY LEVEL. ADDITIONALLY, 4,300 OF THOSE STUDENTS ARE ELIGIBLE AND ENROLLED IN THE FREE AND REDUCED LUNCH PROGRAM, WHICH SUPPORTS THE NUTRITIONAL NEEDS OF THIS VULNERABLE POPULATION. OF THOSE 8,000 STUDENTS, ROUGHLY 23% IDENTIFY AS ASIAN, 18% AS HISPANIC, 16% AS WHITE, 27% AS NATIVE HAWAIIAN, AND THE REMAINING 16% AS OTHER. FURTHERMORE, THE CURRICULUM USED IN THE PROJECT IS IN PART PLACE-BASED AND ADDRESSES THE TRADITIONAL PLANTS AND FOODS OF NATIVE HAWAIIANS AND OTHER LOCAL ETHNIC GROUPS.

THE KUMU MEA KANU PROJECT IS DESIGNED TO RECONNECT AND STRENGTHEN STUDENTS' RELATIONSHIPS WITH THEIR LAND, FOOD, AND COMMUNITY VIA HYBRID GARDEN LEARNING. BY INCREASING STUDENT EXPOSURE TO VARIOUS MODALITIES OF GARDEN LEARNING, WE STRIVE TO SPARK AN INTEREST IN STUDENTS TO PURSUE EDUCATION IN AGRICULTURAL FIELDS AND SUPPORT LOCAL AGRICULTURE. THIS FISCAL YEAR, GROW SOME GOOD DISTRIBUTED 3,422 STUDENT GARDEN LEARNING KITS TO 123 TEACHERS ACROSS 20 SCHOOLS ON MAUI. THESE KITS CONNECT STUDENTS TO THEIR FOOD AND COMMUNITY THROUGH AN IMPACTFUL PROJECT AND PLACE-BASED LEARNING EXPERIENCE THAT GENERATED 3,967 STUDENT-GROWN ORGANIC FOOD PLANTS. THESE PLANTS WERE THEN DONATED TO THE COMMUNITY THROUGH PARTNERSHIPS WITH THE MAUI FAMILY YMCA, THE MAUI FARM, AND HUNGRY HEROES, WHICH CULTIVATED, HARVESTED, AND INCORPORATED THE PRODUCE INTO TENS OF THOUSANDS OF NUTRITIOUS MEALS FOR FAMILIES IN NEED.

GROW SOME GOOD'S NA MALA KAIAULU PROGRAM (COMMUNITY FOOD SYSTEM PROGRAM) AIMS TO IMPROVE FOOD SECURITY AND PROMOTE SUSTAINABLE PRACTICES IN MAUI BY CREATING A MORE EQUITABLE AND SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEM THROUGH VARIOUS ACTIVITIES SUCH AS YOUTH APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMS, EDUCATIONAL WORKSHOPS, COMMUNITY-SUPPORTED AGRICULTURE PROGRAMS, AND JOB TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES IN SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE AND RELATED FIELDS, ULTIMATELY CONTRIBUTING TO A MORE SUSTAINABLE AND RESILIENT FUTURE FOR HAWAII'S COMMUNITIES.