About Maadi’s CSA and the Revival of a Community
The past year has thrown a few curveballs our way; it’s been tough on everyone. But despite the obstacles we’ve faced due to the pandemic, CSA has managed to find new life and is flourishing in a way that we can all find inspiration in.
Founded in 1980 by the late Betty Atherton, the wife of the American Ambassador in Egypt at the time, the Community Services Association was born out of a desire to help expats assimilate to life in Cairo. At first, the focus was on teaching newcomers the language and providing counseling to help the expat community adapt to life in a new country. CSA has since evolved into a vibrant community of people from around the world, with a mission to foster inclusive multicultural community participation and a sense of belonging by providing a space for wellness, arts, education, recreation and celebration, for personal and collective growth and integration.
We decided to sit down with our Director, Salma Adly, to find out a little more about what CSA stands for.
Although Salma has been a community member for years, she officially joined the CSA family a little over a year ago, right at the center of the pandemic, bringing with her more than 25 years’ experience in the corporate world.
It was a challenging year to say the least, and CSA was not immune to the effects COVID-19. Many of its old partners had to leave and the space was all but abandoned. But with this came the opportunity to start fresh and to build a portfolio of partners that matched CSA’s fundamental pillars of wellness, sustainability, culture and community.
In addition to the Language Studio, which now offers classes in English, French, Chinese and Italian, as well as Arabic, the recently renovated fitness center is one of CSA’s core services. With a diverse range of programs and classes to suit the entire community, all classes and programs are run by a well-trained team of professionals who are there to support you every step of the way. Our wellness services go hand in hand with fitness, encompassing everything from physiotherapy and holistic healing to a state-of-the-art dental clinic and medical lab.
To complement and expand our mission to support the wellness needs of our community, we have the healthy vegan cuisine provided by Power Plant; an entirely plant-based menu is a hard thing to find here in Egypt, which makes it all the more valuable. The CSA Farmer’s Market and Cook’s Day Off are also great ways to connect with local suppliers and producers for access to some of the beautiful produce and cuisine we have available to us.
CSA is also big on celebrating culture, with a firm belief in the fact that culture and community go hand in hand. Whether it’s Ramadan, New Year, Eid or Chinese New Year, the goal is to bring people together through meaningful events that are inclusive and represent our diverse and vibrant community.
If you take a short walk around you’ll find stunning works of art adorning the walls, a testament to the ongoing support for emerging local artists. The newly inaugurated CSA exhibition space means that CSA can now host weekly events and pop-ups to introduce new local brands to the community.
“The idea is that we want to showcase the best of what Egypt has to offer for people who’ve just come to the country and don’t know where to go.”
But all this must abide by one very important value, and one of our fundamental pillars; sustainability. It’s an issue that’s close to all our hearts, and it’s important that CSA play a role in making our world more sustainable. Through collaborations with both public and private entities, CSA can act as a platform for change and can serve a vital purpose, whether it be creating awareness through events like Earth Day or working with the municipality to plant trees, clean up and beautify areas around Maadi.
“We are always tapping into what’s going on around us; we are in tune with what’s happening now and actively seek to make a difference. We are a proactive community, and we maximize use of our platform to promote and advertise the causes and initiatives we believe in.”
Events like the Sustainability Weekend allow CSA to partner up with businesses who share the same passion for protecting the environment. From Glide’s electric scooters and GIES solar powered water heaters, to Dawar’s clean-up app and Deco Diver’s amazing initiatives to clean up our seas, we were able to come together, as a community, to find out how we can really make a difference.
“I’m most happy to see that it’s not only in my head, it’s a real revival. I’m happy to see people coming to CSA again. There’s still so much to be done and achieved, but I think for the first year it’s been good. From the pandemic and all the obstacles that came with it, this revival happened and it happened nicely. In the context of a pandemic and what the country was going through, we withstood this. So it’s yet another season and I’m excited about it, with new ideas and new opportunities.”
There are some wonderful things still in store for the CSA community, so stay tuned!