Fiscal Year
2026-2028
Strategic plan
/präpəˈgāSH(ə)n/
Noun
The breeding of specimens of a plant or animal by natural processes from the parent stock.
“The propagation of plants by root cuttings”

The action of widely spreading and promoting an idea, theory, etc.
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The Need

The past 100 years have brought great improvements to much of the world. Yet, there are still places where extreme poverty persists. 8.5% of the world, or 700 million people, still live in extreme poverty, and 85% of these people (560 million) are rural, often farming degraded land suffering from prolonged deforestation and environmental damage.*

These families are our partners.

The Vision - Ready to Scale

We will spend the next three years optimizing our work and infrastructure so many, many more vulnerable communities will experience the restoration of their land and a life-changing reduction of poverty.

Plant With Purpose has developed a high-impact, sustainable development model we call Community Designed Restoration (CDR) that is transforming the lives of smallholder farmers globally. CDR is replicable and highly adaptable, reducing multidimensional poverty rates by 55% while restoring environmental health. When we apply CDR across a watershed, the benefits are experienced by the entire population, not just program participants, and even impacts neighboring communities.

With over 40 years of experience and proven results, we are ready to scale our impact and extend our reach to many more farming families. Through this 3-year strategic plan, we will grow to achieve:

  • One new program country, bringing our total to 10
  • 34.8 million trees planted (116 million total)
  • 840,000 direct program participants
  • 1.5 million people impacted within 82 total watersheds
  • 3.2 million acres of land protected and/or restored
*World Bank

The Watershed Lifespan Study

We currently work in a watershed for 6-10 years. And we are now evaluating how the duration of our work in a given community affects the short and long-term impact. To this end, we are conducting a Watershed Lifespan Study to compare the success of watersheds that graduate in 3, 6, and 9 years. This study will guide how we balance the depth and breadth of future programming, helping us maximize the impact of each dollar invested.

Meet Kagabo from Burundi

My farm production used to be low because I scattered my seeds across acidic, unprotected soil. I would go to work and come home empty-handed to my family because I often spent the day drinking. I was in constant conflict with my wife.

When I joined Plant With Purpose, I was trained in the Theology of Work and the Seeds of Change environmental curriculum. I began to understand how I wronged my family. Today, we are reconciled and work together as a family.

I learned to apply better techniques which increased my agricultural production. If you compared my plot, before and after Plant With Purpose’s intervention, you would see a big increase in yield. For example, I went from growing 250kg of corn each year to as much as 1,500kg.

I have planted many species on my agroforestry plot to make my soil more fertile. This system recycles and draws up the nutrients and minerals within the soil that are valuable to plants. I can testify that Plant With Purpose has completely transformed our community.

My mission now is to serve God and to achieve sustainable development.

Vision

A world where people and planet flourish.

Mission

Together -- Reversing rural poverty. Restoring watersheds. Renewing hope. Rooted in faith.

Identity

Plant With Purpose is a network of global partners restoring the relationship between God, people, and the earth. We are Christians . . . caring for creation and cutting poverty in half.

Values

FAITH – We are unified and motivated by our Christian faith.

COLLABORATION - We are inclusive in our decision- making, implementation, and impact evaluation - encouraging and seeking participation by all stakeholders. We work with people as partners; not projects.

EMPOWERMENT – We believe in the God-given ability and agency of all people to work and create their own solutions.

INNOVATION – We constantly seek and explore new ways to address the complex issues of poverty and environmental damage.

STEWARDSHIP – We are stewards of the Earth, as well as the resources and relationships God has given us.

INTEGRITY – We operate with integrity and transparency to merit the investment and trust of our collective global partners.

RESPECT – Equality, dignity, safety, and kindness will characterize all interactions with our donors, staff, global teams, and program participants.

SUSTAINABILITY – We meet today’s needs without compromising tomorrow’s and ensure that the impact of our work will endure.

Our Unique Value Proposition

Plant With Purpose takes a holistic approach to addressing rural poverty and environmental degradation in a way that equips and empowers local communities to create their own change. Rather than focusing on economic development, ecological restoration, or spiritual renewal alone, our Community Designed Restoration (CDR) integrates all three, simultaneously addressing the root causes of poverty and deforestation within a watershed.

Key Differentiators

Environmental Restoration through Reforestation and Regenerative Agriculture

  • Nearly 80 million trees have been planted and grown in communities worldwide to restore degraded land.
  • Regenerative farming training improves soil health and crop yields.

Economic Empowerment through Purpose Groups

  • Purpose Groups help families save money and invest in their futures while also receiving training that helps to increase their farm outputs and income.
  • Access to microloans promotes entrepreneurship, resilience, and financial stability. Increased economic security leads to better education, health, and opportunities.
  • Families working with Plant With Purpose have cut their level of multi-dimensional poverty by 55%.

Spiritual Renewal and Faith-Based Transformation

  • We work with nearly 1,400 local churches to foster spiritual growth and community engagement.
  • Integrating faith and environmental stewardship facilitates lasting behavior change and addresses the broken relationships -- with self, others, creation and God -- that often lie at the heart of poverty, promoting holistic healing and transformation.
  • A biblical perspective on the intrinsic value of creation is encouraged, fostering a commitment to enviromental restoration; increasing farm outputs and income.

An approach based on mutual learning and collaboration

  • While our staff brings significant expertise to our programming, we also learn with and from our partner farmers.
  • Plant With Purpose applies rigorous monitoring and evaluation to ensure our programs continue to improve and generate documented impact.
  • We are first and foremost facilitators. Our role is to empower, guide, and create spaces where communities can lead their own transformation. It is an approach rooted in collaboration, learning, and adaptation.
  • Appreciative collaboration is both a reflection of shared Christian identity and a practical imperative; partner communities are fully invested in the work, ensuring that it continues long after we depart.
This integrated approach ensures that, metaphorically, when trees grow up, poverty comes down, and communities experience lasting transformation.

The members of the
Plant With Purpose Global partnership

By the Numbers

Purpose Plan Pillars

The Purpose Plan is built on six pillars grouped in three integrated themes—Equip, Optimize, and Scale. These are steadfast, overarching, and supportive principles intended to last through the three-year planning horizon. They guide our actions, work plans, and strategic priorities for the duration of the Purpose Plan implementation.

Equip

We will equip our people and partners to manage projected future growth.
Investing in our People
Plant With Purpose is emerging from a five-year period of rapid growth. While exciting, our team and resources have been stretched thin. In this season we will strengthen our team with an intentional focus on management training and leadership development. A top priority will be planning and managing a coming leadership transition with excellence.
Investing in our Partners
Plant With Purpose is a global partnership comprised of independent, local organizations. Plant With Purpose USA will continue to invest in the global network, assessing impact, implementing strategies and leading fundraising and related accountability. By FY28 we aspire to enhance both the capacity, competence and leadership and organizational strength of the Global Partners -- ultimately co-creating a more robust global partnership.

Optimize

We will focus on efficiency, evaluation and refinement in order to optimize our impact through effective systems and operations.
Strategic Simplicity
Clarity, Efficiency, Learning. We seek the optimal path to sustainable growth and impact. This is not about doing more; instead, it is about identifying what works best and aligning resources, strategies, and systems to ensure our work is optimized for efficiency and efficacy.
Focused Innovation
We recognize that innovation emerges from all levels and all corners of our global partnership. Our role is to identify, refine, and share innovative ideas, intentionally creating space for the innovation process.

Scale

We will apply critical and expansive thinking to prepare to scale our impact beyond addition, to multiplication.
Impact Beyond Growth
We will think beyond our current funding and delivery models to achieve the maximum impact for the largest possible portion of the 560 million people experiencing rural poverty. This pillar challenges us to think outside the box and intentionally propagate the impact of Plant With Purpose within the broader development field in unique and innovative ways.
Intentionally Outward
Sharing insights and learning with organizations and individuals beyond Plant With Purpose will be increasingly important to achieving our vision. We will foster collaboration, innovation and transformational change in partnership with others. This intentionally outward focus will strengthen connections and multiply the impact of our work.
“If you want to go far, go with others.”

Financials: growth Planning

To execute this strategic plan, we will grow from $15 to $20 million in annual revenue by the end of Fiscal Year 2028. We will focus heavily on increasing core donor streams (blue) and foundation donor streams (green) while monitoring bilateral funding opportunities and preparing the teams to seize opportunities that arise in that sector. Foundations (and ultra-high net worth individuals) present a growing sector with current momentum and many new opportunities on the near-term horizon. Many of the initiatives focused on core donor growth (including church engagement and mass donor acquisition) will likely pay out in the mid-term, yielding higher returns starting as early as 2028 (possibly sooner).

The following chart is a growth plan based on the most likely case scenario. We will revise our goals annually based on progress against the target; and while 25% growth is ambitious we are excited and open to see what God will continue to do in and through the Plant With Purpose family.