Urban Hijau Programs
We have a unique three step process which we use to help our partners. Inspire, train and build.
In order to take care of food security we need to take care of people first. Many of the needy people who need help often have lost hope. The best way to help them is by letting them help themselves. Find local champions from within them and get them to lead the way towards a sustainable future.
- Cash-to-Crop Food Aid
- Green Infrastructure
- Training and Consultations
Cash-to-Crop Food Aid
Cash-to-Crop is meant as an emergency response method to address urgent food security needs.
What became clear at the first Movement Control Order (MCO) was that there was a gap in terms of food supply that needed to be met towards these populations on almost a daily basis. The other major issue was logistics and being able to reach these populations in time which required different NGOs to use their networks.
Urban Hijau responded by offering a portion of its produce to the needy on a regular basis. This approach is called Cash-to-Crop, where cash donations directly translate into crops to the poor.
Our Urban Hijau’s harvest includes a mix of fruits, herbs and green leafy vegetables that use no chemical pesticide, herbicide or fungicide. Many of them are exclusive local varieties that such sectors of the public may not have been exposed to. Examples of our weekly produce that has been previously donated include sawi, bok choy, moringa, tree spinach, green spinach, Arab spinach, ulam raja, mint, sweet potato leaves and tapioca leaves. This is the same harvest we sell to our nearby TTDI residents on a weekly basis and we see no reason that organic food should be the reserve of only those who can afford it as a high-end item.
Green Infrastructure
A more long-term approach employed by Urban Hijau to meet the needs of the vulnerable populations in Malaysia is to design and install green infrastructure near where they live. These sites are managed by trained members of the beneficiary groups with the intention of providing a steady and high-quality supply of staple edibles.
The supply of crops is not just meant as a food source for their own families, but we encourage it as a supplementary source of income. Sale of produce can help to make them empowered as well bring their community together in a joint collaborative enterprise.
At Urban Hijau we try to design a system for the partnering organization which fits the specific needs of the team involved.
It can range from simply designing a on the ground system with various perennials and annuals and teaching them how to set up a process to keep the growing system going on.
For people with a bit more space, we also help to establish greenhouses which acts as a barrier to rain and pests so there is no need for toxic pesticides.
Compared to an open harvest, a greenhouse can produce a greater yield with greater consistency. Given the relative ease of managing such a unit, we encourage the team with access to space to setup in partnership to a sponsor.
For those teams capable of managing a more integrated system, we can also add on other systems to the design like setting up an aquaponics unit or food waste management integrations.
Aquaponics being a closed loop system also involves fish which adds up as an additional protein food source.
Training and Consultations
Urban Hijau believes that knowledge and skills related to sustainability should be accessible to all urban sectors. This does not just include urban residents who wish to grow more edible plants indoors or on their terrace. It also covers those underprivileged urbanites who wish to learn such skills to create a new income source for themselves and their families.
Urban Hijau offers workshops and hands-on activities for groups from needy communities. These events can be held onsite at the farm to provide a five-senses experience for participants. Participants are led through a tour of the farm with an explanation of how the different sustainable elements on the farm work together. Following that, participants are given skills-based knowledge sharing from our Urban Hijau trainers followed by a practical live demonstration. Participants are requested to get their hands dirty in our activities and connect directly with the soil.
Workshops can also be conducted virtually. On these occasions, the participants are sent our Urban Grower’s Kit and after a remote farm tour, will be guided through a hands-on exercise to start their first harvest using the items provided.
Workshop topics cover the basics of urban farming, composting & waste management as well as more advanced courses on maintaining your garden and growing more exclusive vegetable varieties.
Along with training events, Urban Hijau can provide onsite consultation where our team can help communities in creating their own gardens to provide a source of sustenance and livelihood. To proceed with this, our team will work with a NGO partner who can supervise and coordinate the participants from the community. To begin with a consultation, we would need to do an initial survey to understand whether the target site is suitable for creating a garden to meet the expectations of the nearby community. Following this, interested members of the community are recruited to form a unit who can be trained to maintain the garden site following its completion.