This spring, over 1,400 students (K-12) and parents across five islands participated in Seed and Serve Hawaiʻi, a youth at-home gardening campaign to grow the next generation of sustainability leaders across our islands.

Seed and Serve was coordinated by Blue Zones Project Hawaiʻi, Ceeds of Peace, and Mālama Maunalua. During the pandemic, there was a renewed interest in growing food at home; this campaign was one avenue to spark this curiosity in youth. Gardening and growing food is a clear path forward to growing sustainable, peaceful, and healthier communities, and students were very responsive to the call to action.

Students were given the opportunity to choose from four seed options provided by the UH Seed Lab, including Mānoa lettuce, eggplant, grape tomato and Hawaiian chili pepper. Many parents shared that their keiki were checking the mailbox everyday because it was the first package addressed directly to them! We are looking forward to seeing all the vegetables that students harvest in a couple months.