Plant With Purpose works in some of the most difficult places in the world where people live — places where environmental degradation, poverty, and instability often intersect. Our mission is to help communities build resilience and hope in the midst of those challenges.

In recent years, life has grown harder across many of our program countries, largely due to the lingering impacts of the pandemic, ongoing conflict, and the accelerating effects of climate change. Yet among these difficult contexts, Haiti remains one of the hardest hit.

Plant With Purpose has been working in Haiti since 1997. Over the past quarter century, our Haitian partners have navigated more than their share of storms — from the devastating 2010 earthquake, to recurring hurricanes, political upheavals, and economic shocks. Generations of exclusion from the global economy, coupled with historic debt and reparations, have kept the country’s baseline level of poverty painfully high.

In recent years, these chronic challenges have been compounded by escalating insecurity. Since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in 2021, Haiti has seen a near-collapse of central governance and a dramatic rise in gang control. Much of the capital city, Port-au-Prince, and key transportation routes remain dominated by armed groups.

The risks of kidnapping, violence, and extortion have made it nearly impossible to travel safely between regions. Even basic supplies, fuel, food, and agricultural inputs, are difficult and costly to transport. For much of 2025, our senior staff were unable to make field visits in regions we work in because of security concerns. In other areas, they consolidated trips to reduce costs and exposure to risk.

“Traveling within the country has become unpredictable,” one partner told us. “It’s not just the threat of violence. Each journey requires prayer, planning, and courage. Yet, the work must continue.”

Despite these staggering conditions, our Haitian team has persevered with extraordinary resolve. Most of our work takes place in remote, rural communities — areas that, while not free from hardship, are less directly affected by the violence centered in the capital. Our localized model, in which village agents come directly from the communities they serve, has proven invaluable.

Even when travel is restricted or communication is sporadic, Purpose Groups continue meeting, farmers keep planting, and local churches sustain the rhythms of spiritual renewal. These community-based systems were designed to function with autonomy — and they are doing just that.

This year, Haiti’s program planted more than 1.1 million trees across its sub-watersheds. In the face of so much uncertainty, each seedling is a defiant act of hope. Reforestation restores soil, protects farmland from erosion, and provides both food and future income for families who need stability more than ever.

In addition, the team continues to reach thousands of participants:

• 15,000 farmers actively engaged in regenerative practices
• Over 500 Purpose Groups building financial and spiritual resilience
• Partnerships with 100 local churches nurturing environmental stewardship and faith-based community leadership

Operating under current conditions is far from easy. The ongoing insecurity has dramatically increased the cost of doing mission work in Haiti.

• Vehicle maintenance, fuel, and insurance costs have surged.
• Flights between regional hubs have become rare and expensive.
• Cash transfers now incur added fees due to limited bank operations.

These are not abstract line items — they are daily realities for our Haitian partners, who must weigh every trip and transaction against safety, cost, and the urgency of serving their communities.

Even so, the work presses on. Our staff continue to explore new sub-watersheds for potential program expansion using our Community Readiness Assessment methodology, discerning where the next areas of partnership might emerge.

The resilience built through Plant With Purpose’s model has proven essential in moments like these. Climate change, already severe in Haiti, is making rainfall less predictable and farming more precarious. Each reforested hillside, each savings group, each church that teaches environmental stewardship — all strengthen a community’s ability to endure crisis.

The impact reaches beyond economics. As one participant shared:

“Plant With Purpose is really committed to helping rural people in poverty make participative and sustainable development. My lands are a skillfully farmed. I have access to my group for savings and loans. I am now living inside a great family. I have pride and dignity, thanks to Plant With Purpose.” — Dales, Haiti

When families can grow enough food, when they can save money and support one another, they are less likely to take dangerous journeys on roads controlled by armed groups. They can stay together, stay safe, and continue to cultivate hope where they are planted.

In the midst of so much disruption, our Haitian team continues to embody courage, compassion, and faith. Their perseverance is a testament to the power of local leadership and God’s sustaining grace.

While we celebrate the trees planted, the farmers trained, and the lives changed, we do so soberly — knowing that every success in Haiti comes at great personal risk and deep sacrifice. Our partners have shown what it means to serve faithfully in uncertainty, reminding us that resilience is not just a program outcome, it’s a spiritual calling.

---

How You Can Pray for Haiti

As we continue to walk alongside our Haitian brothers and sisters, we invite our community to join us in prayer:

• Pray for wisdom and courage for our Haitian staff and participants as they make difficult daily decisions about safety, travel, and ministry.
• Pray for protection over communities affected by violence and displacement, especially those living near gang-controlled areas.
• Pray for lasting peace and restoration across Haiti — that political leaders and communities alike may seek justice, reconciliation, and stability.
• Pray for strength and hope for families facing food insecurity, climate stress, and economic hardship.

The story of Haiti today is one of both heartbreak and resilience. It is a story of a people who continue to rebuild, replant, and renew despite overwhelming odds. It is the story of faith that holds fast in uncertainty and of a global community that refuses to look away.

At Plant With Purpose, we are humbled to walk alongside our Haitian partners in this season. Their perseverance strengthens our own faith and reminds us that even in the hardest soil, hope can take root and grow. 🌿