TIERRA de RAICES
Currently On Hiatus - Check back later! :)
Tierra de Raices is our in-house environmentalism program with biweekly meetings that are fun opportunities to gather with like-minded green-thumbed folks and discuss subjects related to sustainability while playing in the dirt. This group is focused on community education about sustainability and advocacy for a community garden to increase food access.
PROGRAM ORIGIN:
A pair of sisters, Karla and Karina Coronado, had the idea to start a composting initiative and structure it as an free intensive diy summer workshop. The sisters applied for a local $1000 Micro Grant geared toward youth projects and proposed a set of workshops that would be open to community members of all ages with Raices Cultura as their fiscal sponsor. The grant funding covered individual composting buckets, a commercial weight scale and thermometer, gardening tools, and food at each meeting. The workshops would inform attendees about the basics of composting and sustainability. Together, this group of engaged community members would start a composting pile and create planting beds to grow fruits and vegetables at Raices’ backyard space. The summer intensive grew into the formal program Tierra de Raices at Raices Cultura with new participants joining the original members with weekly compost bucket drop-offs and compost pile maintenance.
CURRENT PROJECTS
tierra de raices zine project
We are currently working on a publication for Raices Cultura and its first issue will be dedicated to Tierra de Raices and environmentalism! This issue will feature the work of artist Kylie Knight, a Coachella-Valley based painter and printmaker. Kylie’s signature vibrant style will grace the pages of our ‘zine’ - marrying information with art in an unapologetic and inspiring way! The first issue of our publication is set to launch in late October 2020 with a limited print run in Spanish and English, as well as a digital version to share wide and far.
COmmunity garden project
One of our goals is to create a community garden with access to fruits, vegetables, and art for everyone. Tierra de Raices is growing beyond the walls of our creative hub on 7th Street! Through a strategic collaboration, Raices Cultura is teaming up with local DIY garden enthusiasts to establish a community garden project. The project is an environmental justice initiative that will encompass education, direct-action, and community building. Coming to downtown Coachella in 2021-2022!
TIERRA TEAM STRUCTURE
Science team - soil testing
Outreach team - involve middle or high schoolers
Record keeping team - weights/temperatures/type of added organic material
Critter team - insect abatement
Documentation team - video and photographic documentation of progress