Since 2020, seven school vegetable gardens have sprung across the Principality thanks to a partnership between the Fondation Prince Albert II de Monaco (FPA2), the Department of National Education, Youth and Sports, Terrae and Monaco Telecom.
More than 2,000 children attending schools in the Principality regularly help tend the potagers, with input from the green-fingered team at Terrae, and the programme has been instrumental in instilling the importance of eco-friendly values and how seasonal shifts work to these young pupils.
“Raising awareness and educating younger generations about sustainable eating is essential,” says Olivier Wenden, the vice-president of the FPA2. “Understanding the seasonality of products, participating in their growth and cultivation creates a privileged link to the land. A connection that we have lost and that it is important to regain to build resilient and sustainable societies. We thank Monaco Telecom for supporting our actions for many years, thus showing the capacity of the Principality’s institutions to work together for the common good and transmission to new generations.”
Earlier this month, Monaco Telecom, the Principality’s primary telecommunications company, generously donated just over €11,000 to help fund the network of urban gardens through a clever scheme that charges customers under the age of 60 who continue to receive paper invoices instead of a digital version €10 per document.
Alongside the funds raised to support the school gardens initiative, Monaco Telecom has also donated €66,000 to other projects managed by the FPA2 in recent years.
“Reducing the company’s carbon footprint is a major challenge,” said Martin Peronnet, Managing Director of Monaco Telecom, during a recent visit to the school garden of the Ecole de Fontvieille. “Our commitment to sustainable and responsible digital technology involves, among other things, widespread dematerialisation, and in particular of our customers’ invoices. This is why, for several years, paper bills have become payable for subscribers under 60 years old. We are committed, in consultation with the Prince’s Government and the National Council, to ensuring that the amounts collected contribute to ecological initiatives.”
Jessica Sbaraglia, the former Swiss tennis star who founded Terrae, also attended the event.
“Our vegetable gardens as well as our Terrae courses give children a greater understanding of biodiversity, vegetables, seasonality, seeds, plants, herbs, compost and insects,” she explained. “We are very proud to contribute to this return to common sense and the values of the earth.”
Click on the images below to see more of the Ecole de Fontvieille garden:
Join the Monaco Life community – sign up for the Monaco Life newsletter, and follow us on Threads, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Tik Tok.
Photo credit: Manuel Vitali / Monaco Communications Department