Turning Teachers into Gardeners in Washington D.C.

Life Lab has been delighted to work with a very forward-thinking organization in the nation's capital, DC Greens, to train garden coordinators through their Growing Garden Teachers program. DC Greens' innovative approach to regional school garden support was recently highlighted in the Washington Post article Helping Turn Teachers into Gardeners. DC's Healthy Schools Act (DOUBLE CHECK BOTH LINKS. WASN’T LOADING ON MY END)is one of the main forces behind the area's broad school wellness efforts. This legislation provides funding from a soda tax initiative to provide stipends for school garden programs; healthy school lunches; and increased opportunities for physical activity to students across the city.In the past year, Life Lab has conducted two trainings for garden coordinators participating in DC Green's Growing Garden Teachers program. Three staff and garden coordinators from DC Greens have also joined us here in Santa Cruz over the past year for our Plant It, Grow It, Eat It Workshop; our School Food and Gardens Tour; and most recently, our Growing Healthy, Strong, Inspired Teens Workshop. It is inspiring to support and learn from the leaders of such a forward thinking effort!