A Solidarity Project is already underway at the White & Yellow Cross Senior Citizens’ Kitchen Garden, marking the first youth-led initiative under Young Minds, Big Ideas. On Saturday, March 1, 2025, a group of seven young people officially launched the effort, beginning a 12-month transformation of the garden. Alongside growing fresh produce, the project’s young leaders are introducing sustainable features, including an accessible raised garden bed, a hydroponic system for leafy greens, and an irrigation system to make gardening easier for elderly residents.

“𝑊𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑙𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑠𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑔 𝑝𝑒𝑜𝑝𝑙𝑒. 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑓𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑖𝑜𝑟𝑠 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑠𝑖𝑔𝑛𝑖𝑓𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑡, 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑜𝑛𝑙𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ 𝑎𝑐𝑐𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝑠ℎ 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑒 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑓𝑢𝑙 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑎 𝑛𝑒𝑤 𝑔𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑒𝑎𝑔𝑒𝑟 𝑡𝑜 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑛 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟,” 𝑠𝑎𝑖𝑑 𝐵𝑟𝑒𝑔𝑗𝑒 𝐵𝑜𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑘𝑒𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 White and Yellow Cross Care Foundation.

The project is funded by the European Commission through the European Solidarity Corps (ESC) which is a program that supports youth-led local initiatives (Solidarity Projects) and cross-border volunteering in Europe. The budget also covers a fixed cost for coaches to mentor participants throughout the initiative.  Josiah Halley of Arrowroot Farms will serve as the agricultural coach for the young participants. In this role, he will guide them through farming techniques and sustainable agriculture. Meanwhile, youth development coach Shanica Romney will help them translate their experiences into job-market-ready skills, preparing them for future career opportunities.

While Young Minds, Big Ideas is deeply rooted in local engagement, its vision extends beyond St. Maarten. In January 2025, SMDF received official accreditation as a Lead Organization, making it the only organization on the island authorized to send young people abroad for volunteering opportunities within the European Solidarity Corps program. Plans are already underway to send the first four volunteers to Europe in late 2025. Young people interested in these opportunities are encouraged to contact SMDF, while youth organizations looking to support and mentor participants are invited to collaborate in preparing them for this experience.

“𝑂𝑢𝑟 𝑔𝑜𝑎𝑙 𝑖𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑎 𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑔 𝑝𝑒𝑜𝑝𝑙𝑒, 𝑟𝑒𝑔𝑎𝑟𝑑𝑙𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑠, 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑓𝑖𝑛𝑑 𝑜𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑛 𝑑𝑜𝑜𝑟𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚—𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑏𝑟𝑜𝑎𝑑, 𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑖𝑝𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑖𝑛 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑡ℎ 𝑒𝑥𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒𝑠, 𝑜𝑟 𝑒𝑥𝑝𝑙𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑔𝑟𝑎𝑚𝑠. 𝑂𝑣𝑒𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑛𝑒𝑥𝑡 𝑓𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑦𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑚𝑖𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑢𝑖𝑙𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎 ℎ𝑢𝑏 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑜𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦𝑜𝑛𝑒,” 𝑠𝑎𝑖𝑑 𝑀𝑎𝑘ℎ𝑖𝑐𝑖𝑎 𝐵𝑟𝑜𝑜𝑘𝑠, 𝑀𝑎𝑛𝑎𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝐷𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 𝑎𝑡 𝑆𝑀𝐷𝐹.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐲 𝟕, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓. Youth organizations interested in launching youth-led initiatives, as well as young individuals eager to explore opportunities abroad, are encouraged to contact SMDF for guidance and support. For more information, reach out via [email protected] to learn how you can get involved.

Young Minds, Big Ideas is an initiative by the St. Maarten Development Fund dedicated to creating meaningful opportunities for young people. Whether through volunteering abroad, engaging in local community projects, or gaining job experience through internships and study visits, YMBI empowers youth to explore new pathways for growth. The program is designed for young people aged 18-30, with current opportunities funded by the European Commission through the European Solidarity Corps.