It might seem like a neat idea to get kids out of the classroom and into the fresh air, but creating and maintaining a school garden offers much more to young students than simply that. In the city of Norman, Oklahoma, Earth Rebirth has been introducing elementary and high-school kids to the concept of sustainable gardening, and in particular the magic of growing their own vegetables for food.
Founded by Andrew Sartain in 2011, Earth Rebirth seeks to bridge the gap between economic and environmental problems by looking at the advantages having green fingers has with addressing both issues. After all, producing food at home saves on the cost of living, a healthier diet reduces the risk of health problems and the associated medical expenses, and growing wholesome natural food in your own back yard is better for the environment.
Of course, convincing society to turn away from the modern world’s over-reliance on food processing and investing the necessary time and effort required to grow food is no simple trick. But schools are a natural place to start. In fact, studies have shown that the benefits to the kids involved are considerable. In 2014, Life Lab conducted a survey and discovered that all schools with active gardens agreed that students benefited greatly.
Earth Rebirth’s Garden Your Own Growth
The mantra that drives Earth Rebirth is pretty straightforward: every child will take the opportunity to have healthy food if you give them the opportunity to make it themselves.
Earth Rebirth
With that in mind, the charity aims to bring a garden to every public school in the city of Norman, providing as many young people as possible with the opportunity to develop an interest in plants and gardening in general, as well as a greater knowledge of healthy eating in particular.
The food grown is donated to the school’s own cafeteria, so there is a supply of fresh vegetables for more nourishing meals to the students. Already several schools are reaping the benefits.
Norman High Garden began in September 2014 when Environmental Science teacher Adam Lifsics approached Earth Rebirth to help revive the school’s outdoor garden. Volunteers, students and teachers met every two weeks and the garden quickly began to thrive. In June 2015, an Aquaponics system, which uses fish to fertilize plants, was completed after a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter raised $10,000. As a result, the school garden is self sustainable, enhancing the long-term future of the school garden project.
Meanwhile, Lincoln Elementary teacher Diane Wood decided to create a school vegetable garden after a high percentage of students were identified as being “Nature Smart” on a 2013 Multiple Intelligence Survey. Since 2014, the garden expanded, growing to 16 vegetable beds. Earth Rebirth has been working with students after school, teaching them to garden, harvest and prepare their garden.
Volunteers And Helpers
While the charity is flourishing, there is still much to do. Not least is the task of attracting enough volunteers to ensure the Garden Your Own Growth project maintains its momentum. It needs teams to help each school plan the logistics of their garden, work with students in the garden, and develop a specific curriculum for classes.
To find out more about Earth Rebirth and the work they do, check out their MyCharityMap Profile Page.
If you are interested in Volunteering with Earth Rebirth, visit their official website
To read how Earth Rebirth is part of an educational sea-change fueling the growth of Agritourism across Oklahoma and the US, read our report on MyTravelsMap.
Image: Young students watch the Aquaponcs system in action. Photo from EarthRebirthNow.com. Published through Creative Commons.