The “Women of Hope” Project: Hydroponics with a Heart

The “Women of Hope” Project: Hydroponics with a Heart

While many of us tend to think about hydroponics gardening as yet another one of those technical, construction oriented fields that’s somewhat male-dominated, others are suggesting that the role of women in indoor and greenhouse growing is now emerging at a time when families around the world can be empowered by these kinds of local food systems.

We recently heard about something called the Women of Hope project, which involved a woman who left a career in the airline industry to move to Afghanistan to try to bring more choices to women in local communities there. This project involved enrolling over 50 Afghani women in a hydroponics class where they could learn about all of the ways that “hanging gardens” or similar setups can provide food for a household.

This kind of inspiring project illustrates some of the best uses of hydroponics where people need access to good, fresh food. The merging of food production with scientific education around biology, chemistry and physics is a unique part of what hydroponics brings to a community. This kind of projects dovetails with the idea of empowering women who may be trapped in a cycle of under-education and lack of power in a society. But while these kinds of projects show how hydro gardening can be used in international support, the truth is that anyone around the world can benefit from these kinds of “green projects” – for more on the best ways to outfit an indoor or greenhouse garden on a hydroponics principle, keep an eye on our site and check out all of the resources for beginners and other growers.