YSA

Everyday Young Hero

January 10, 2023
By Michael Minks

Steven Hoffen (14, New York City) is an award-winning documentarian who is especially interested in building a better future for humanity. Created during the COVID-19 pandemic, the ninth grader’s debut film, Growing Peace in the Middle East, documents the amazing story of Jewish and Arab women in Israel being brought together through hydroponic farming and sustainability. To date, the short has earned nominations and wins in over 70 categories globally. As a result of the documentary, in 2021, Steven founded Growing Peace Inc., a non-profit organization that is working to help people around the world access food and become self-sufficient. To date, Growing Peace has raised all the funding and installed a hydroponics garden at a food bank in Tel Aviv that helps Eritraean and Sudanese asylum seekers. This garden can produce up to 25,000 servings per year. Growing Peace has also installed a garden at the Ladies of Hope Ministries, and the YM/YWHA of Washington Heights in the Bronx.

Steven’s goal is to raise awareness and educate communities about hydroponic gardens. The hydroponics systems that Steven has installed via his non-profit Growing Peace Inc, provides an abundance of healthy fresh food that is especially important in communities that lack local grocery stores or access to fresh produce. Hydroponic gardening can help create food equality and justice and brings communities together, connecting neighbors and creating green spaces.

Each of Steven’s projects has a purpose to address food insecurity in underserved communities. At the food bank in Tel Aviv, asylum seekers were hardest hit during the pandemic as they had no social/governmental aid to rely upon. At the YM/YWHA Of Washington Heights, Steven partnered with UJA to install a garden whose produce will feed seniors who are low-income living at Wien House while serving as a tool to educate neighborhood children in the after-school programs about sustainability.

Steven has been responsible for installing hydroponic gardens in various locations where people from underserved communities suffer from poverty and food insecurity. Partnering with local community organizations has enabled Steven to raise awareness of the benefits of hydroponic farming. He is currently planning to work with other food pantries in NYC to install hydroponic gardens because of the interest in the system at the YM/YHWA of Washington Heights. In addition, Steven will be working with K-5 students, using the hydroponics garden to educate students on sustainability and the environment.