Captain Planet Foundation (CPF) helps connect children to nature. I support and encourage their initiatives because I have seen positive results in my own child. There are school gardens at my daughter's school and she had been working with teachers and support staff on growing tomatoes and herbs. When the class harvested, the school had a chef come in to provide a demonstration from the foods harvested. The kids all tried a small vegetable salad and a hummus pita pocket, complete with those juicy cherry tomatoes. My daughter had been specifically refusing to eat anything red – tomatoes, spaghetti, even ketchup.
At the demonstration, she actually tried and ate the tomato. It provided a different vantage point and a little positive peer pressure to encourage healthy eating. We then decided to grow our own and have had success in incorporating fresh herbs, tomatoes, peppers and even an edible flower! I highly doubt this interest in homegrown vegetables, herbs and plants would have evolved had it not been for the combined efforts of the school and grants provided by CPF.