THE PROGRAM
We believe in the power of food to bring nourishment, healing and opportunity to young lives, and the Sustainable Life Project delivers this to the youths who need it most. SLP partners with local organizations to recruit young adults aging out of the foster care system to participate in paid 6 month culinary internships. Our interns experience working in a fun, fast-paced environment while learning about the production and preparation of healthy, sustainable food. The SLP internship consists of work experience at a Tender Greens restaurant, field trips to our farms and markets, cooking and nutrition classes held at Inner-City Arts in Downtown Los Angeles, and life skills and employment workshops. Students develop culinary arts skills in the classroom, put them to use while working at Tender Greens, and learn about where the food comes from during field trips to Tender Greens’ partners, including Scarborough Farms, La Brea Bakery, Silver Lake Farms and ReRide Ranch, to name a few. Upon completion of the program, interested students are given first priority for a full-time job at Tender Greens. OUR STORY
In 2009, Tender Greens began hiring homeless teens to work in their restaurants and saw how the healing power of fresh, healthy food could transform young lives. The Sustainable Life Project was born out of this experience and the desire to break cycles of poverty. The founders of Tender Greens create the program to provide emancipated foster youth access to safe, consistent education and employment opportunities. Young adults transitioning out of the foster care system face unique challenges that make them especially vulnerable to homelessness and poverty. Distrust, abuse, neglect and general lack of access to resources and guidance often leave them ill equipped to navigate adulthood. Without primary needs like housing, vocational training and legal support being met, these youths frequently don’t have the luxury of dreaming beyond finding shelter and employment. SLP nurtures the personal and professional development of its interns, cultivating the talents, confidence, and mentorships necessary for them to successfully pursue long-term goals.
