Feed Marginalized Families Through Gardens

In June, HDI welcomed 3 new GlobeMed interns from Lawrence University. During their 6-week visit, these undergraduate students worked together with the Community of Potters to build gardens and connections.  

The communities of Masoro and Cyaruzinge are historically marginalized people who struggle with nutrition and food insecurity. When community members have to dedicate most of their income to subsistence, this prevents them from investing in other opportunities, thus keeping them trapped in a cycle of poverty. The only food they can often afford to eat is heavy in starch and low in nutrients.  

After the success of last year’s GlobeMed gardens, the communities asked this year’s visitors to help them build more gardens. Using funds from GlobalGiving, the interns were able to purchase gardening materials and seeds that the communities would not be able to afford on their own. Working alongside enthusiastic community members and HDI staff, the interns built 84 sack gardens in Masoro and 51 kitchen gardens in Cyaruzinge. Every family received at least one garden for personal consumption. These gardens promoted eating a variety of vegetables, including bell peppers, carrots, onions, and celery. 

Thanks to your support, these community members will have more options to eat nutritiously and consistently. We thank our hard working GlobeMed interns for dedicating their summer to this project and the people of Masoro and Cyaruzinge. We at HDI look forward to helping these community members continue to foster their new gardens and continuing our partnership with GlobeMed by welcoming more interns for next summer.