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All, Podcast
Memorable quotes from Season One of Grassroots
We’re celebrating a successful first season of Plant With Purpose’s Grassroots Podcast! While we’re on a little break right now, feel free to go back and listen to any of our past episodes here! And if you’re not totally sure where to start, here are a few quotes from our guests to spark some inspiration. […]
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All, Living Sustainably
Worthwhile questions to ask about the things around us
Part of living a more sustainable lifestyle includes rethinking our relationship with the physical world. Sometimes that means reconsidering the importance of the forests in Ethiopia, or the trees in our own neighborhood. Other times, it means reconsidering the physical objects in front of us- our drinkware, the clothes on our back, or the electronics […]
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All, Sustainability
Is This Sustainable or Is This Just Marketing?
What happens when the line gets blurry between sustainability and marketing? Over the past decade, clothing giant H&M has received much criticism for the company’s environmental impact and the working conditions of its manufacturers. After the fatal collapse of a factory in Bangladesh killed 1138 workers in 2013, H&M became the first and largest brand […]
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All, Living Sustainably
The environment and human health
In many ways, the effects that the environment has on human health seem a little obvious. Still, there is a variety of different ways to think about their relationship that all underscore its importance. Here are some of those ways. Biodiversity helps support resilience and nutrition. A lack of biodiversity results in the loss of […]
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All, DR Congo, Meditations
Even though they won’t benefit me now.
One principle of sustainability is doing things with benefits that go beyond your lifetime. In one of his most famous poems, "Manifesto", Wendell Berry suggests doing things that we will not live to see the benefit of: Invest in the millennium. Plant sequoias. Say that your main crop is the forest that you did not […]
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All, Resources
One Planet, Many Neighbors
July 11 marks World Population Day, a day marked to raise awareness of issues related to world population. Though this is not the most well known commemoration, its relationship to the environment makes it worth exploring further. So, what is World Population Day and where did it come from? The United Nations Development Program established […]
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All, Podcast
The Roots of Everything
Downstream problems have upstream solutions. Plant With Purpose’s model of international development evolved from a series of discoveries. First: We discovered that if we wanted to help people improve their lives, we needed to improve their environment, because both were so deeply connected. Second: We saw that helping people out of poverty went a long […]
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All, Podcast
Here's how to listen to and support the Grassroots Podcast
The Grassroots Podcast is officially live! As of July 2, Plant With Purpose's premiere podcast is finally live. Whether you get your podcasts on Spotify, Apple, Google, Overcast, Breaker, Anchor, Pocket Casts, or RadioPublic, you'll be able to listen to our new show for free! We are committed to amplifying the voices of the rural […]
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All, Climate Solutions, Environmental Restoration, Podcast
It Threatens the Most Vulnerable
The impact of climate change and degradation is not felt evenly. Environmental degradation is a cruel phenomenon. It has the harshest effect on people who already suffer a great deal: the world’s poor. Especially the rural poor. While most common images of poverty depict something urban, poverty is mostly rural. Among those who live in […]
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Podcast, Updates
The Roots of Everything
There’s no shortage of problems in the world to solve. As a student, Philippe Lazaro knew he wanted to apply his international interests to help solve some of these problems, but getting started was a journey in and of itself. A slew of internships and volunteer opportunities took him around the world. From the Demilitarized […]
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All, Podcast, Updates
Introducing the Plant With Purpose GrassRoots Podcast!
Here’s fun news- we’re launching a podcast! Over the past few months, our team has been arranging interviews, talking to fascinating individuals, and reflecting on our own experiences on the journey of environmental restoration all for the purpose of putting together a moving and informative podcast experience. The show will be called GrassRoots and it […]
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All, Meditations
Humility: What it is, What it isn't
Humility is an increasingly underappreciated value in today’s culture. In a world where personal branding, hyperbole, and debate are highly visible, humility seems to be a forgotten art. In spite of this, there is something truly refreshing about being in the presence of somebody who is sincerely and genuinely humble. Plant With Purpose holds humility […]
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All, Meditations
Shoulder to Shoulder: The importance of solidarity
Solidarity is an act of hope. Solidarity means moving in the direction of pain in the world, standing with those who are suffering and taking up their cause as if it were your own. Doing so is both an act of hope and an imitation of Christ. Vitor Westhelle once said that “the cross is […]
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All, Resources, Updates
The Power of Investing in Mothers
What changes when you invest in mothers? Mothers are a major part of any family. Whether it be a working mother of two or a stay at home mom, the mothers in our lives have helped shape us. The title of ‘mother’ is not a light load. Mothers are some of the best workers, multi-taskers, […]
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All, Why
Why is Saving Small Amounts of Money Impactful?
Savings change everything. Although saving a couple dozen cents a week does not sound like much, it is significant. The impact of 20-30 women saving thirty cents a week is catalytic. It causes a chain reaction of change which results in benefits for both the individual and the community. The Impact on Individuals Saving money for […]
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