We are a Global Community

Alongside the passionate staff at IMAP, students learn about and work to improve food security and family nutrition by promoting integrated permaculture systems for food production. They learn about native and heritage plants, and they help raise youth awareness regarding the value of agriculture and food justice.

While engaging in youth dialog and exchange amongst the members of COMPA, students participate in creating spaces for community art and liberal education that fosters equal relations participation, democracy and collaboration through work with youth and children.

Goo'Day is an ecological center outside of Yunnan's capital city, Kunming. It is a guesthouse, a restaurant and a permaculture learning center where students engage with local community leaders in hand-on participatory workshops and projects. The owner Tingting used to be a college sociology teacher, after a decade of teaching, she decided to build her own economically and ecologically sustainable village by growing her own food, she made houses from locally found mud and wood, which is free and recyclable. They use solar power to generate electricity and promote compost toilets for natural fertilizer, and water conservation. All the food waste goes to feed the animals. In this 300 year old Yi ethnic minority village, we get to learn how to live with natural and rethink what is sustainable on our daily bases.

Students on our Taiwan programs often visit members of the The Taiwan Youth Association for Democracy, a leading youth engagement nonprofit that works to empower young people to participate in political and civic life, to learn more about their efforts and programs. Students will engage in local dialog about civic engagement, youth awareness, and public issues. Conversations often delve into activism, political agency, and youth empowerment.

Operación Encina is a reforestation project carried out in Granada, Spain, focused on restoring local ecosystems, environmental education and fighting desertification. Students participating in the program are fully integrated into the community, working with experienced staff and students from a local high school. Participants are taught the key skills required for the project, which include: Growing native trees and accelerating the growth of holm oaks, creating tree nurseries and germinating seeds, the upcycling of plastic waste into planting tools, and the use of ancient water sowing techniques. This initiative provides students a valuable hands-on experience in environmental conservation and community collaboration.