SayPro, in partnership with the United States Peace Corps, supports the creation of youth-run farmer’s markets to promote entrepreneurship, nutrition, and community engagement. SayPro empowers young people with training in agriculture, business, and leadership. Peace Corps volunteers assist SayPro in designing hands-on programs where youth learn to grow, harvest, and sell produce. These markets not only provide fresh food to local communities but also offer practical skills and income for young participants. SayPro turns schoolyards and empty lots into vibrant centers of innovation and healthy living.
SayPro introduces school gardening projects that feed into youth markets. Peace Corps volunteers help SayPro set up irrigation systems, composting stations, and planting schedules. Students take responsibility for cultivating crops and organizing market days. SayPro provides support in pricing, marketing, and financial literacy to ensure the markets are sustainable. These experiences teach responsibility, teamwork, and problem-solving. SayPro helps young people see agriculture not as a chore but as a source of pride and possibility. These markets become stepping stones to future careers and civic involvement.
SayPro encourages intergenerational mentorship by pairing youth with experienced farmers and gardeners. Peace Corps volunteers help SayPro coordinate workshops and farm visits that expand knowledge and foster community ties. Markets become spaces for sharing stories, traditions, and culinary practices. SayPro celebrates diversity through food, and ensures that local flavors are honored and preserved. The farmer’s markets are not just economic hubs—they’re cultural exchanges where ideas and values grow alongside vegetables and herbs.
SayPro tracks the success of youth-run markets through revenue earned, food distributed, and participant engagement. Peace Corps volunteers assist SayPro in documenting stories of transformation and growth. SayPro shares these models with educators and NGOs to replicate success in other regions. Each market supported by SayPro demonstrates its values of innovation, empowerment, and sustainability. SayPro creates platforms where youth lead, communities unite, and the soil becomes a classroom. These programs nourish both bodies and futures.