About Our Work

Through an earth-based program of healing, self-actualization and connection to community and nature, Green Arrow Co-Lab provides a comprehensive gardening and mindfulness curriculum for youth and young adults who have had involvement with the justice system. Our mission is to support young people harmed by systemic injustice, structural racism and a societal disconnect as they reconnect to themselves and their future opportunities for success.

Our programming is designed for those impacted by the criminal justice system - both inside and outside prison walls; and specifically serves the disproportionate number of black and brown people that are in the system and living in low-income communities. We recognize the roots of disproportionate harm comes from socialized behaviors, racial disparities from the justice system, a disparate educational system, and generational poverty and trauma and impacts current and future wellbeing.

This is a restorative and holistic-healing solution based on bringing the body and soul back to nature and self. By allowing participants to heal traumas and develop a strong sense of self and wholeness they are better positioned to succeed in today’s world.

The program starts with getting our hands in the soil and tending gardens - this is a fundamental beginning to healing. The act of caring for something that cares for you is a nourishing reciprocal bond that opens a space for healing and the ability to thrive inwardly and outwardly.

Our work addresses the gap in services for system-impacted youth by focusing on underlying issues that prevent many of these young people from finding stability and positive long term change. Our key components for youth empowerment include:

Various trauma healing modalities
Sustainable and regenerative agriculture practices
Passion exploration and job training
Leadership development
1:1 Case Management and group healing circles
Outside business partnerships for job placement

Our trauma-informed approach uses cognitive, somatic, and nature-based practices to help individuals regulate their nervous system and build greater resiliency. Gardening becomes the center and the physical touch point of this work.

Our values help orient our organization to ensure programming targets holistic support of youth:

Youth agency: Young people know what they need to heal. We offer tools that promote self agency to support youth-led programming
Cultural ways of knowing: The relationship with land and community are essential to self-identity, belonging, and healing
Finding your passion: When you do what you love you bring more joy and positivity into your own life and into the world
Courageous self-exploration: Knowing and loving ourselves and facing our struggles and challenges is needed to support healthy people, communities and a just society to change the world

Our goal is to work in conjunction with schools, prisons, juvenile detention centers, community-based organizations, and schools. Each program is tailored to its specific location and focuses on each participant as an individual as well as the group dynamic and connection.

To achieve our bigger vision, we are actively developing a Healing Center for intensive healing and transformation that could act as a reentry facility and/or diversion program for those facing possible sentencing.

We’d love to set up a program in your location - contact us to start the conversation!

Learn More about our methods here.

In 2024 we:
🌻 went from 2 to 6 sites
👨‍🌾 impacted over 200+ young people
📓 hired 4 more teachers
🤠 launched our training program

Our Impact

Together, we’ve made an incredible impact in 2024, transforming lives and cultivating resilience through gardening and mindfulness.

Here’s what we accomplished together:

Meet Our Team

Casey Massimino

Founder, Executive Director
An accomplished creative director/producer and core innovative leader for original branded content. In 2018, Casey made a career switch to follow her passion and start Green Arrow Co-Lab. She is also a holistic life coach and trained breath work practitioner.
Emmanuel Rivera

Guiding Fellowship Teacher
Passionate and committed to the uplifting people through mindfulness, meditation, and regenerative nature work. Emmanuel has taught mindfulness for over 9 years, co-designed + built a 600 sq. ft. regenerative, community garden in Long Beach, and worked for 7.5 years supporting under-resourced students in LA schools.
Zoë Rawson

Program Director
Zoë has worked alongside youth and community first as a counselor and then as a social justice advocate for over 20 years. She now supports Arts for Healing and Justice Network in building the capacity, leadership and creative development of youth returning to the community from incarceration.
Edin Madrid

Partnerships, Media Manager, and Teacher
Edin is formerly incarcerated and a passionate youth advocate. He is involved in various community organizations that advocate against incarceration. Edin has his Associate’s degree in Sociology and was accepted to all schools he applied to for a BA. He is attending UCLA for Sociology.
Melody Hwang

Marketing Manager
Melody, a USC graduate with a degree in business and communication design, brings a deep passion for social justice and a love for gardening to her work. With four years of graphic design experience in non-profits and racial justice initiatives, along with hands-on farming at an organic farm in Japan, she is dedicated to fostering the growth and success of Green Arrow.
Aimee Garcia

Expansion Manager &
Executive Assistant
Aimee is a passionate advocate and community organizer with a Bachelor's degree in Political Science from the University of Washington. She has worked on political campaigns, led community programs, and served in leadership roles in both non-profit and grassroots settings, bringing a strong commitment to equity and urban peace.
Selma López

Gardening & Mindfulness Teacher
A dedicated advocate for healing, growth, and transformation. With a mission to help support youth, formerly incarcerated, and individuals impacted by the justice system. For someone who is formerly incarcerated, Selma uses her lived experiences to build meaningful connections and inspire change through the help of different non profit organizations.
Justan Torres

Program Manager & Teacher
Justan received his BASW and MSW from California State University, Los Angeles, where he developed a deep commitment to restorative and transformative justice as powerful tools for healing and community empowerment. He has provided therapy, case management, and arts-and nature-based programming to diverse communities across LA, with a primary focus on justice-impacted youth. Justan integrates outdoor experiences and plant knowledge into his work, engaging communities in ways that foster growth, healing, and lifelong learning.
Maggie Ng

Gardening & Mindfulness Teacher
Growing up on the Westside of Los Angeles, I had never set foot on a farm until I was 18 years old. I moved to rural Massachusetts to attend Hampshire College, where I was employed on the campus farm. There, my love for farming began and has since blossomed into what it is today! I have worked in agriculture for the past ten years, learning the process of growing food from seed to harvest, the joy of giving food to my community, and the art and science of farming and all that it entails. I am overjoyed to be back in my hometown, and to be able to provide gorgeous food, learning opportunities, and green spaces to my fellow Angelenos.
Ricky Rietjens

Gardening & Mindfulness Teacher
Ricky is an ecological designer, educator, farmer, and herbalist with experience in environmental education, ecological restoration, and regenerative agriculture. He serves on the board of the Society of Ethnobiology and Good Karma Gardens, and leads hands-on workshops and community events focused on food systems, medicinal plants, native ecology, and land stewardship. His work reconnects people to food, ecology, and community through place-based ecological education and regenerative practices.
Susana Corona

Gardening & Mindfulness Teacher
Susana is a nature lover and seeker who grew up in Inglewood, CA. She became familiar with community organizing and native plant communities over the years. She is fascinated by the beauty, generosity and healing qualities the Earth offers. She strives to create spaces where community members can easily access nature. Guiding young people in outdoor spaces and helping them cultivate meaningful relationships with the land has been the focus of her work during the past few years. She believes that healing begins with connecting to ourselves, to one another, and to the natural world.