Green Bronx Machine - The Power of a Plant

Globally acclaimed teacher, Stephen Ritz, author of "The Power of a Plant" shows how in one of the nation’s poorest communities, his students thrive in school and in life by growing, cooking, eating, and sharing the bounty of their green classroom. His innovative program began by accident. When a flower broke up a brawl among burly teenagers at a tough South Bronx high school, Stephen saw a teachable moment to connect students with nature. By using plants as an entry point for all learning, he witnessed nothing short of a transformation. Attendance soared from 40 to 93 percent. Disciplinary issues plummeted. In a school with a 17 percent graduation rate and high crime rate, every one of his students finished school and stayed out of jail. More than 50,000 pounds of vegetables later, he has figured out how to bring the magic of gardening into the heart of the school day for students of all ages.

A film by Aaron Kodz.

WE GROW VEGETABLES... AND STUDENTS!
One student at a time, one classroom at a time, one school at a time.

Green Bronx Machine builds healthy, equitable, and resilient communities through inspired education, local food systems, and 21st Century workforce development. Dedicated to cultivating minds and harvesting hope, our school-based model using urban agriculture aligned to key school performance indicators grows healthy students and healthy schools to transform communities that are fragmented and marginalized into neighborhoods that are inclusive and thriving.

[conradroncati]

The work you are doing in the South Bronx and now across the globe is a constant inspiration! Excellent video for a wonderful organization!

[RichardPasso]

The Seeds of our collective future run through the heart, spirit, vision and mission of Stephen Ritz.

[BethPereraPositivelyPlants]

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE what you are doing! Congratulations to you and all your incredible students.

[elibailey]

Fantastic editing and even better message! Thanks GBM

[rhianaortiz]

Wow Mr.Ritz this video and the editing is amazing I love it

[AnandiPremlall]

You rock! So inspired by what you're doing!

[Destinationstravelmagazine]

BEAUTIFUL! LOVE IT! Keep up the great work!

[drummershort]

The real answer to saving our "health care system" (disease care system).

[FireweedFarm]

Wow, great video. It's wonderful to see those impacts. You deserve tremendous credit. Here, you start with some huge problems in this very short video, and then go through the project.


I know some dairy farmers fairly close to the city. (And I have a playlist on the dairy crisis.)