This Earth Month, we are excited to share stories of environmental stewardship happening around the world and to encourage you that when people come together, transformation is possible!
Like most of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Kilibi watershed was once lush, teeming with wildlife and fertility. However, tree cutting for agriculture and charcoal production left the land barren. Soil erosion and poor farming practices reduced the land's fertility to the point that families were struggling to feed themselves.
In 2020, Plant With Purpose began work in Kilibi, promoting environmental healing, organic regenerative farming, and land restoration--alongside spiritual renewal and economic empowerment activities.
These training sessions are catalysts and sources of inspiration; however, it is the community that takes the initiative. Inspired by Plant With Purpose workshops and his own success, Pierre launched community awareness campaigns about the importance of preserving forests and protecting endangered species. Together, the community decided to protect the threatened forest. Tree nurseries were started in Kilibi, organized and cared for by Purpose Group members to restore their community forest.
Kilibi village schools also participate in environmental education by planting their own school gardens and supporting community tree-planting campaigns.
Today, the village chief, Pierre, shares proudly about his community’s efforts to limit deforestation and reverse the loss of wildlife in the watershed.
"As village chief, I have always considered the forest a considerable resource that we must leave to future generations,” said Pierre. “In the past, our community exploited the woods for charcoal and agriculture, which led to the disappearance of several local species, also resulting in soil erosion and the decline in the fertility of our fields.”
This small forest is a public space managed by the community through the leadership of Pierre, the village chief of the Kiliba watershed. “We have now designated a sacred space where tree cutting, uncontrolled hunting, and bushfires are strictly prohibited,” said Pierre. “Today, the community is beginning to see the results of this change--natural regeneration is visible, new tree and bird species have returned, and our water sources, which had dried up, are gradually flowing again.”
