Stories
Discover real-world stories of communities overcoming poverty and deforestation! Plant With Purpose, a Christian non-profit, shares examples of environmental sustainability and stewardship from all around the world. These stories show us how faith, resilience, and sustainable practices transform people’s lives as well as their environment. As rural families overcome poverty and heal the planet, embrace empowerment, renewal, and hope.
Dominican Republic
Benjamín, DR: Leadership is knowing how to serve people, knowing the problems of your community
Benjamín has been a member of Plant With Purpose's program as a Dominican Republic farmer for four years. In that time he has applied his new knowledge and practices and seen his life improve alongside his community's. We had a chance to ask Benjamín a few questions about his experience and outlook. What challenges did […]
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About Our Work, Academic, Living Sustainably
Sustainability Glossary for a Greener Planet
Your guide to environmental buzzwords and important ideas to help restore our world We have created a sustainability glossary for you! In the world of sustainability, there is no shortage of buzzwords. Even the term sustainability is often overused and misunderstood. When terms become extremely popular, it's a good indicator that there is enthusiasm for […]
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DR Congo, Updates
Revisiting the Congo: A year after opening for oil drilling
With significant climate implications. The Congo Basin Rainforest is the second largest rainforest in the world and hosts about 70% of Africa’s tree cover. With a large portion of the rainforest made of peatlands, it serves as a powerful carbon sink. Disrupting it would be a significant loss in our efforts to maintain a livable […]
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Thailand
Nala Jakor: "Working with tree seedlings helps me build intimacy with God"
"I believe that everything has its own time and that life has seasons of high and low," begins Nala Jakor. Farmers who work closely with the land are perhaps the most familiar with the seasonality of life. Nala Jakor and her husband Nakorn have endured several drastic ups and downs. The two of them are […]
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Tanzania
Filomena: "I believed that God would help me."
Before Filomena partnered with Plant With Purpose, she was living an unhappy life. “I was living very unhappy because I had to stay with my in-laws, underneath the same roof. I was unhappy because I was not comfortable doing anything that I wanted. I wanted to have my own house so that I could move […]
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blog, Dominican Republic, Haiti
The environmental connection between Haiti and the Dominican Republic
In May of 2004, an extraordinary rain drenched the mountains of Haiti, in a place I had never heard of before, called Fonds Verrettes. We are used to the hurricanes: Georges, Ivan, Gustave, Ike, Sandy, Matthew; but the storm that brought this rain didn’t even have a name. Over the course of a week, almost […]
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blog, Dominican Republic
Teresa: “I always knew God can do everything."
Teresa talks about the transformation of her life, before and after partnering with Plant With Purpose. “Before, my life was a real challenge. I worked a lot but the money was never enough because I didn't know how to manage myself,” she told us. “I wasted money on things that did not improve my living […]
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Burundi
Espoir: In the years to come, I will not have problems teaching my children.
Espoir and Kaneza live in the Nyengwe watershed of Burundi. While Burundi is one of the countries most afflicted by poverty, Espoir and Kaneza demonstrate a way out. "Before we joined Plant With Purpose Burundi, I was not able to feed my children sufficiently. Our production was very low due to the lack of agricultural […]
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blog, Living Sustainably, Tanzania
Deborah: "I can get water anytime"
Deborah is a 36 year old woman married to a 38 year old husband, a member of a Purpose Group. They had been blessed with 3 children of whom two are daughters and one son. Before she partnered with Plant With Purpose she was a housewife who did labor work in the village. “I was […]
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About Our Work, Burundi, Ethiopia, Mexico, Photo Essays
Ethiopia to Carlsbad: A round-the-globe look at Plant With Purpose
Over the course of the past few months, much of our Plant With Purpose team has been around the globe to connect with our international programs, our supporters, and each other. As we transition into fall, we look back at a few late summer highlights from the Plant With Purpose global community with appreciation and […]
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blog, Mexico, Sustainability
Checking in with the women of Plant With Purpose Mexico
"My way of thinking has changed a bit," begins Maricela Luisa, a Purpose Group member in Mexico. In our programs around Oaxaca, Puebla, and Chiapas, the work is as much about identity and purpose as it is about planting trees. For women in Mexico who have faced marginalization and poverty, this approach leads to some transformative […]
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blog, Burundi
Jordan: From Chaos to Change
In Plant With Purpose's programs, financial or environmental transformation is just an outward manifestation of spiritual change that has taken place internally. Our partner, Jordan, a farmer in Burundi exemplifies this process very clearly. As the lessons he learned from the Seeds of Change curriculum sank in, it not only gave him a new way […]
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Environmental Restoration, Thailand
The Early Stages: Hearing from some of our newest Purpose Groups in Thailand
We love to share stories of transformation. Of course, transformation is a process. When you invest in our programs, the most exciting results become apparent years down the line. However, there are some changes that can be noticed fairly early on. While a newly planted tree will still be quite small a few months down […]
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Academic, blog
Biblical Trees: The Significance of Trees in the Bible
Trees hold immense significance in Christianity, intertwined within biblical narratives, teachings, and imagery. From the creation story to the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, trees in the bible symbolize profound spiritual truths and these biblical trees can offer valuable lessons for believers. Creation and Symbolism: The significance of trees in the Bible is evident […]
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DR Congo, Updates
Churches, Schools, and Purpose Groups keep moving forward in DRC
Just a couple years ago, Plant With Purpose was able to expand its work in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) from two watersheds to seven. In these newer watersheds, much of our work is still in its early stages, but participants are already experiencing the benefit of our partners' efforts seeing spiritual and economic […]
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