ABOUT US
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Thera Metrey is a joint venture between World Hope International and Lehigh University. It was created to be a self-sustaining enterprise with the mission of augmenting the lifestyle of rice farmers in Asia and West Africa. Farmers in these areas do not have access to a reliable stream of year-round income due to the specific conditions required for rice agriculture. The ultimate goal is for farmers to confidently run healthy Mushroom Production Systems even after our involvement in country ends. Our hope is to improve the overall quality of life for these farmers while also maintaining a successful business venture.
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Farming mushrooms is a year round activity that can add over $2000 to a farmer’s annual income. There are currently over 100 functioning Mushroom Production Systems in Cambodia and operations are expanding to Sierra Leone. Despite being home to 25% of the world's mushroom biodiversity, Africa grows less than 1% of the worlds total mushroom output. We are setting out to change this.
OUR TEAM
Khanjan Mehta is the inaugural Vice Provost for Creative Inquiry at Lehigh University. He is the founding Director of the Humanitarian Engineering and Social Entrepreneurship (HESE) Program at Penn State University. Mehta is the faculty advisor for Thera Metrey.
Rachel Hamburger is studying Civil Engineering with minors in Sustainable Development and Environmental Science at Lehigh University. During the 2018 Spring semester Rachel was in charge of the standardization of the Mushroom Production System structures. Over the summer she is studying how to grow spawn in Sierra Leone. She will be traveling to Sierra Leone during Summer 2018.
Isabel Steinthal is receiving an Integrated degree in Mechanical Engineering and Product Development with a minor in Spanish at Lehigh University. Isabel is researching how to grow spawn in Sierra Leone to ensure a healthy and successful mushroom harvest. She will be traveling to Sierra Leone in July 2018.
Audrey Schimmel is receiving a degree in Global Studies with minors in Sustainable Development and Marketing at Lehigh University. In the 2018 Spring semester Audrey studied the cultural impacts of introducing mushroom agriculture to Sierra Leone and the best way to integrate mushrooms into their communities.
Allie Gleich is pursuing a degree in Economics with minors in Political Science and Sustainable Development at Lehigh University. During the 2018 Spring semester Allie studied the micro-economic impacts of introducing mushroom agriculture to Sierra Leone. This summer Allie is working as a Constituent services intern at the US House of Representatives.
Marc Rubin
Gallery
Stay up to date with our breakthroughs and accomplishments throughout our journey
CONTACT US
OFFICE OF CREATIVE INQUIRY ADDRESS: 27 MEMORIAL DR W, BETHLEHEM, PA 18015
