Programs and Communities

Madit Deng Ring Elyel was born to a small farming family in northern South Sudan.

“Lost Boys Found” is an ongoing, interdisciplinary project that is collecting, recording and archiving the oral histories of the Lost Boys/Girls of Sudan. The collection is a work-in-progress, seeking to record the oral history of as many Lost Boys/Girls as are willing, and will be used in a future book.

Kueth Yul (Nuer) was born in the spring when the nation was in peace talks that very soon collapsed into violence.

“Lost Boys Found” is an ongoing, interdisciplinary project that is collecting, recording and archiving the oral histories of the Lost Boys/Girls of Sudan. The collection is a work-in-progress, seeking to record the oral history of as many Lost Boys/Girls as are willing, and will be used in a future book

Deng Barak (Dinka) was 4 years old in a cattle camp when the war broke out.

“Lost Boys Found” is an ongoing, interdisciplinary project that is collecting, recording and archiving the oral histories of the Lost Boys/Girls of Sudan. The collection is a work-in-progress, seeking to record the oral history of as many Lost Boys/Girls as are willing, and will be used in a future book

Tut is a former Lost Boy of Sudan who reported facing hunger, loss, and fear of uncertain death. Both of Tut's parents were killed by the Muslim government while he was out in a field tending to the cows.

“Lost Boys Found” is an ongoing, interdisciplinary project that is collecting, recording and archiving the oral histories of the Lost Boys/Girls of Sudan. The collection is a work-in-progress, seeking to record the oral history of as many Lost Boys/Girls as are willing, and will be used in a future book.

Interview with Ashley Schimke, Farm to School Specialist for Arizona Department of Education


Ashley Schimke is the Farm to School Specialist for the Arizona Department of Education. Her experience working in the Phoenix community gave her an introduction to the struggles of the less fortunate within the Valley. Working with the Arizona Department of Education Ashley had the opportunity to bridge the gap between the education system and local producers. She seeks to give students the nutrition to focus and learn as well as the education to make healthy choices. Understanding food systems become more of an experience for students, which promotes a continual interest. Her work engages the next generation in an effort to change how they understand their environment and their food.

The original intent of the project was to attempt to mitigate the complex sustainability issue of systematic food waste via creating a guide that would educate users how to create a food saving organization that prevents edible food from ending up in landfills. The guide was going to be based on a nonprofit organization my family and I founded called Epic Cure, that has activated programs that serve to relieve community food insecurity, encourage community connectedness, support environmental health, and empower youth with entrepreneurial opportunity. The development of the guide was going to be based on my personal experience developing and running the organization, as well as my understanding of sustainable systems and frameworks. However, the original scope and plan of this project has shifted considerably since the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus. I have decided to put the guide on hold so that I can step into a space of agency via working in real time, to adapt my organization so that we can continue to operate when we are most needed. This shift is a response to the health and economic crisis that continues to unfold daily. In order to sustain the wellbeing of communities, the adaptation of a food aid service in the time of the crisis is an imminent need. This project shift not only serves to provide emergency relief, but also to identify gaps in the food distribution system and the supply chains that NGOs like Epic-Cure rely on so that we might be more resilient in the face of future shocks to the systems.