ABOUT US
The Harvest Project (215-322 NPO) is a mobile NPO which enters complex environments where children are at risk of abuse, violence, racism, xenophobia, health risks and inequality. The NPO joins forces with other organisations and institutes within the area to find solutions to aid the children. The Harvest Project's main objective is to teach children how to harvest their own food and learn sustainable lifes kills so they can survive off the land in harmony and respect. The act of horticulture provides a very special therapy for children who live in difficult environments, it provides them with agency and hope.
The Harvest Project in 2018 became partners with a school called Telitubbies Day Care. The school was located in Plastic City in Brakpan, a informal recycling settlement which is home to +- 5000 people a combination of South Africans, refugees and asylym seekers. The settlement is located across the road from the Weltevreden landfill. The settlement has unfortunately gone through a lot of ridicule from outside communities and the municipality resulting in xenophobia and inequality. Due to such conflict the South African children born in the settlment are neglected by the system and labelled migrants.
The school was formed after a young girl was accidentally poisioned while her mother was harvesting in the landfill. The mother left her daughter in the care of a friend, while not under proper supervision her little girl drank drain cleaner and was dying.
There was a lady named Jessie Nkosi visiting Plastic City and she saw this lady running up the street with the little girl. They managed as a community to get transport to rush her to hospital as public ambulances will not do urgent calls in the settlement. The little girl survived and became the school mascot. The school was also later named after her and became Blessings Eco Preparatory School (213-691 NPO). Jessie with her sister Hlengiwe immediately decided they want to help the mothers of Plastic City and the children so they opened Tellitubbies with no income. It was amazing what they managed to do for this community with love where the system didn't care about the situation. The Harvest Project alongside Blessings managed to improve the lives of the children and the school. Blessings Eco Preparatory School was chosen by Shoprite to be one of their WeActForChange projects and the school received training, a food garden, nutritious meals and a new container school all sourced by different organisations. To receive the sponsorship we needed the DA municipality to stand with us and they refused. The school was moved to private land and due to no municipal support the school is financially run by the Harvest Project. It is a NPO school so we do not ask for school fees as the familes can't afford it.The Harvest Project and a NPO Filmhouse called Intent Conscious Media has worked together to produce a documentary tiled THE HARVEST which shares the true life stories of children born in recycling camps as well as the amazing story of the school and the founders
It also discusses the unfortunate fact that the discrimination of children for who they are is still a prominent issue in South Africa and the world. The film also highlights how the school and The Harvest Project teach the children how important they are and that they are worthy and that they live each day in celebration and memory of the children who died for equality, an education and fighting for who they were throughout history across the world. The film will be released on the International Soil Day, the 5th Dec 2019 at the Bioscope in Johannesburg. The Harvest Project needs assistance with funds to be able to keep this school going. Any donation will aid towards our feeding scheme in Plastic City which caters daily for 300 children, school requirements ,transport, municipal costs etc. Also one can donate R350 towards a tree donation for The Harvest Children's Community Food Garden where children are taught how to harvest their own food. Within Jewish Custom the term 'Lo Tash'chit' means you should feel for trees as you do for humans, to plant a tree in memory of a loved one or in celebration of a birth is a very special donation. We also plant trees in memory of children activists. You will receive a certificate and the donated name will be engraved on the plaque in the garden with the tree number.
