Gardening workshop at the former IPESA, opening to the community, promotes the integration and reintegration of teenagers

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At the Care Facility for Adolescents Institutionalized by Judicial Order (formerly known as IPESA), an activity has begun that will take place every Tuesday and is open to the community of La Pampa, the Provincial Agency News announced.

The gardening workshop that began last week at the Detention Center for Adolescents in Institutional Care (formerly known as IPESA) has a meaning and objective that go far beyond the enormous importance of learning to work the land. The initiative, promoted by the Childhood General Directorate through the General Sub-Directorate of Juvenile Criminal Law, Training, and Institutional Promotion, focuses on several key aspects: community integration, peaceful coexistence, and solidarity.

María Gimena Funes, the General Sub-Director of Juvenile Criminal Law and Training and Institutional Promotion of the Undersecretariat of Childhood, Adolescence, and Family, explained to the APN that the program is designed not only for the adolescents at the institution but also for their families and to the all community. To facilitate participation, transportation has been arranged from strategic points throughout the city of Santa Rosa.

The beauty of gardening
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“The workshop will be held every Tuesday and offers much more than just working the land: it invites participants to reconnect with processes, with care, and with the possibility of producing their own food,” said Silvana Guardia, coordinator of the Program for Adolescents Institutionalized by Court Order.

A metaphor for life
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Funes pointed out that the gardening “is a metaphor for life,” as it highlights the importance of care, protection, and resilience. The young people can appreciate how the land they usually walk on carelessly, without paying attention, can also be a source of life, beauty, and food. In this workshop, they perceive how small seeds can become large plants if they receive the necessary care.

“We hope many people will join because we believe these activities contribute to something as necessary as social pacification. We have very valuable human resources on a permanent basis, so this is a way to take advantage of that capacity for the reintegration of the adolescents who come here,” the official explained. Meanwhile, Guardia pointed out that the program also offers other activities, such as workshops in ceramics, music, baking, pasta making, and physical education.

Time, patience, and perseverance
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That three words are key. In the case of the gardening workshop, the classes are taught by Horacio Suárez, a technician in intensive plant production (a graduate of the National University of La Pampa), who is passionate about this discipline and shares his love of nature with the young people. “For the land to yield the expected fruits, time, patience, and perseverance are needed, but the pleasure of consuming what you yourself produce through your own effort is incomparable,” he said.

Simply tools for living
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In the space, not only its about sharing techniques, but also life skills: from planning a garden, sowing seeds in seedbeds, and pruning, to learning about seasonal crops, natural fertilizers, and pest management. For the institutionalized adolescents, the experience of seeing how a tiny plant withstands the elements, rain, or frost becomes a symbol of the inner strength often needed to face challenging situations and overcome adversity. The next meeting, open to the community, will be held tomorrow, Tuesday, April 7, starting at 9:30 a.m., at 2800 Palacios Avenue, where the facility is located.

Contact [Notaspampeanas](mailto: notaspampeanas@gmail.com)