Issue link: https://takingitglobal.uberflip.com/i/1545356
Hai Minh Le, Quebec MycoNurseries is teaching youth to grow their own food and reduce food waste by harnessing the power of mushrooms. They are developing a sustainable future by growing oyster mushrooms on landfill-bound coffee grounds, donating their harvest to members of the community facing food insecurity, and teaching youth to grow their own food by using what is available. During the Sprout Ideas Fellowship, Minh optimized the sustainability of how the mushrooms were grown by replacing the usual grow bags with upcycled plastic containers and worked with community partners to collect additional food waste to grow more mushrooms. She also reached more people through her workshops by hosting community events where youth could learn more about fungi and sustainability through a colouring night and a mending workshop. By the end of the Fellowship, they harvested over 5kg of oyster mushrooms (doubling last year's output) and hosted over 20 growing workshops. The Fellowship program provided Minh with the opportunity to develop her networking and outreach skills, which she used to secure partnerships with various groups on campus and with Grow Mushrooms Canada. MycoNurseries: Fungi for Sustainability We hope to make our workshops accessible to a wider number of youth, and have this public space become a mushroom garden where people can come experiment with various types of waste and mushrooms to feel more curious and connected to nature. EDUCATION