Motivated teens plant seeds of knowledge in Argentina

Teens Damacia Shang and Kelland Hong are taking on a challenge that baffles most parents: How to get kids to eat their vegetables. They’re starting out their community service initiative by doing it remotely with a group of grammar school kids in an after-school English-learning program taught in rural Humahuaca, Argentina.

Damacia Shang of Sage Hill School in Newport Coast and her partner Kelland Hong of Polytechnic School in Pasadena have created Leaf by Leaf, a program that helps children connect with food by having them grow it themselves. The project uses hands-on planting workshops to encourage healthier eating and teach students how food connects to nature and sustainability.

The pair are 2026 Dragon Kim Foundation Fellows who plan to continue conducting their workshops in Los Angeles and Orange County this coming summer.

This first collaboration grew out of a connection with a bilingual teacher in rural Humahuaca, Argentina, whose students, living in an area with limited access to diverse foods, were eager to participate. The program allows them to connect across countries through a shared learning experience using the school’s computer and large monitor, so all the kids can interact with Shang and Hong.

The multi-part online workshop series focuses on environmental education, planting and youth-created art. During the first workshop, they educated students about the connection between food and the environment.

In the second workshop, the teens guided the students as they plant their own greens, reflect on their planting experience, and continue learning about the connection between food, nature and sustainability.

This session included an illustration activity for a planned children’s book, Leaf by Leaf, that the teens are creating. They have already written the text, and each student will be assigned a two-page spread to illustrate by hand. Their drawings will become part of the final book, allowing the students to contribute directly as young artists and storytellers. After the workshops, they will collect the students’ drawings and work with a local student artist to transform them into a finished children’s book.

“The book will be created by youth, for youth, and we hope to publish and distribute it at our future workshop venues, youth centers, libraries and other community spaces,” the duo said. “We see this as a meaningful way to extend the impact of the workshop beyond a single event and share children’s perspectives on food, plants and the environment with a wider audience.”

They receive three weekends of leadership training and hands-on guidance from mentors from the community, plus a grant of up to $5,000 from the foundation to implement their social service projects in their local community.

“We are proud of these motivated high school students and look forward to them bringing attention to important issues they have identified in their communities,” said Dragon Kim Foundation CEO and Co-founder Daniel Kim.

The teens are members of the 10th Fellowship cohort of the Dragon Kim Foundation, an Orange County, California-based nonprofit whose mission is to inspire our youth to impact their communities while discovering and pursuing their passions.

For more information, visit http://dragonkimfoundation.org.