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When Gabi Besser and Michel Bottan moved from New York to Sao Paulo, Brazil, in 2007, they decided to invest in what they thought would be a great way to bring "the knowledge of healing people and planet to the urban communities," they say in a press release.
Instead, they bought a swath of land that had been burned by slash-and-burn to clean up, as well as a water source that had dried up.
Their goal: to restore the land to its natural state, using syntropic farming, which involves planting food forests.
"We saw syntropic farming as a simple way for anyone to become involved in ecosystem restoration by planting food forests and developing an awareness of the vital importance of this in young people," they say.
But choosing degraded land wasn't easy.
Some of the land had been grazing before they bought it, and the soil was very compacted and impermeable.
After strong rainfall, water washed the soil away and no longer flowed away, but after five years the surface water no longer flowed away.
They tried to sell their produce at the local market but found that people didn't value organic locally produced food enough to make this work.
So they put guest houses on Airbnb and for two years kept working on improving the farm.
Selected Grant News Headlines
A customized collection of grant news from foundations and the federal government from around the Web.
State grant helps support clean energy jobs for disadvantaged young adults.An award of $500,000 was given to the Social Enterprise and Training Center, also known as the SEAT center.The program helps...more
The Weeknd was awarded the Key to the City and honoured with The Weeknd Weekend by the City of Toronto.The ceremony was attended by Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow, youth from the Boys & Girls Club of West...more
The initiative saw ZTE donate essential supplies and digital connectivity solutions worth 1 million THB to a Public charity organization, Baan Nokkamin Foundation.This foundation provides foster...more
13-year-old Ricky was diagnosed with leukemia for the second time in his young life.Traditional medications were failing, and Ricky's doctor dismissed the recently approved stem cell treatments...more
Notably, this was the first Children's Entrepreneur Market event held in the country.HATCH Fest honored Juneteenth with three public readings of the Emancipation Proclamation by local community...more
Sit Still Kids Salon Opens in Atlanta's Peachtree Battle neighborhood.Salons specifically designed for children are evolving to provide tailored services for kids with diverse needs.Businesses are...more
Debit cards issued by NYC's summer youth job program tied to $17 M ATM fraud scam: sources.The scam led to ATMS across the Big Apple being banged for big bucks from July 11-13.The cash ended up in...more
The passing of my father was a transformative moment for me.This perspective shift is why I now dedicate much of my energy to youth programs and community development.I've leaned heavily on...more
Dobbs announced the need for volunteers at the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System for Compassionate Contact Corps.Volunteers are matched with veterans that are experiencing loneliness or are...more
Jefferson Parish Young Marines receive national honors.Sgt.Taylor Science and Technology Academy, was named the Honor Graduate for the Young Marines 2025 National Leadership Academy-Senior Leadership...more
Youth News from...
Community Foundation of Abilene
New York Community Trust
Coastal Community Foundation
San Diego Foundation
Community Foundation of Sarasota County
Manatee Community Foundation
Bloomberg Philanthropies
Delaware Community Foundation
Kern Community Foundation
Key Biscayne Community Foundation
Social Entrepreneurship
Spotlight
When it Comes to Social Enterprises, Failure is the Best Platform for Innovation
In the world of social enterprises, failure is a cringe-worthy moment nobody wants to talk about. But, social entrepreneurs can benefit from their failures.
