Tamuning, August 11: The Guåhan Sustainable Culture (GSC)  Li’l Sprouts Academy successfully held its first summer program this year for middle school students from around the island. From gardening to building hydroponic systems to traditional outdoor cooking in a hotnu (brick oven),  from bee keeping to spending time with friends, the camp offered many new and exciting learning opportunities. The children enjoyed field trips to the Guam Green Growth (G3) Circular Economy Makerspace and Innovation Hub, the G3 Community Garden, Guam Department of Agriculture and Triton Farms where they learned about protecting earth’s natural resources and native species and more about where their food comes from. Yoga and outdoor sports games kept the children active and occupied.  

The perfect ending to any program is to finish with a celebration. The camp ended on August 5th  with a potluck and fish fry, where students were able to harvest, clean and cook the tilapia from our solar powered aquaculture system. Campers also harvested the microgreens they grew in class, and used them in various dishes that they were able to share and enjoy with their family

In the end, the Summer Camp held this year at Sagan Kotturan CHamoru was one of friendship-building, learning new skills, and addressing the learning loss for students due to Covid-19 along with improving their social and emotional well-being.

Si Yu’os ma’ase to the Office of the Governor from which this program was made possible under the Governor’s Education Assistance and Youth Empowerment Grant.

And special thanks to the guest speakers and organizations that came to speak to our students about so many great topics to include: 

Finance and Savings - Bank of Guam

Invasive Species - Dept. of Agriculture Biosecurity, Chris Rosario

Aquaculture - UOG Sea Grant, Dave Crisostomo

Pests Management -  UOG CNAS, Phoebe Wall 

Medicinal Plants -Yo Amte, Mama Chai

Slingstone lessons - Achó Marianas Guam

Knot Tying - Gotchyour671 Veterans Group

Hotnu demonstration and Museum Tour - Sagan Kotturan CHamoru

CHamoru Chanting - Jeremy Cepeda

Weaving - Tom Torres

Pickling - Natasha Lucket

CHamoru Language - Senot Ron Laguana

Recycling - Guam Green Growth, Tori Manley 

Nutrition - TakeCare, Jonei Delgado

Dealing with emotions - Guam Behavioral Health and Wellness 

Solar Oven Experiments - Claudia Taitano

Microgreens and Hydroponics - Tiny Greens Guam, Michelle Crisostomo

Coconut uses and disaster readiness - AmeriCorps Guåhan Sustainable Culture

Yoga - Mr. Leif

Beekeeping - Hafa adai Honey, Micah Griffith

Comments our parents have shared:

“My child’s favorite activities were learning about plants, the different local fruits and vegetables, how to plant, how to care for the plants, etc. She also enjoyed making new friends.”

“My child never wanted to leave at pickup time and spoke highly of the staff and activities.”

“I was comfortable as my child felt safe there, especially since I was leaving her for 6-7 hours each day (Monday to Friday).”

“This is the best! My son truly enjoyed all his time there.”

About Guåhan Sustainable Culture

Guåhan Sustainable Culture (formally organized as Oceanic Ascent, Education, Inc) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization recognized by the Guam Department of Revenue and Taxation and the US Internal Revenue Service.

GSC provides educational opportunities to people of all ages who are interested in learning about how to live more healthy and sustainable lives while being more food secure. GSC aims to protect our environment, reduce our community’s reliance on imported food, increase access to fresh local food, and nourish our people by engaging community members in cultivating self-sustaining food systems through small-scale family farms and gardens as well as community gardens.