Extreme poverty and the environment are not two separate issues. A healthy environment is vital
to a community’s ability to fight poverty. Click the arrows to the left and right to learn more.
Use these icons throughout the map to find out more information
- ECOLOGICAL LATRINES
ECOLOGICAL LATRINES
Ecological latrines prevent waste from seeping into water sources and causing deadly disease. Combined with dirt, ash, and lime, this waste becomes safe to use as compost.
LOCAL OWNERSHIP
LOCAL OWNERSHIP
Plant With Purpose works alongside communities to help them identify their needs and work together to create solutions.
MICROFINANCE
MICROFINANCE
Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLA) provide a way for families to safely save money and access loans for small business development, farm improvements, and family needs. The VSLAs are also an excellent platform for teaching and training on a wide variety of topics.
CISTERNS
CISTERNS
Women and girls walk long distances to find water. Cisterns collect rainwater, lifting this burden and providing a year-round source of water for gardens, cooking, and hygiene.
What you can do
FUEL-EFFICIENT STOVES
FUEL-EFFICIENT STOVES
Plant With Purpose community members construct stoves that use 50 percent less wood, dramatically reducing the need to cut trees as well as respiratory illness and premature death from smoke inhalation.
SOIL PROTECTION
SOIL PROTECTION
Farmers learn to protect their land by building soil conservation barriers and planting a wide variety of trees and cover crops.
WATERSHEDS
WATERSHEDS
As trees are planted, watersheds are restored, and streams begin to flow once again.
PLANTING TREES
PLANTING TREES
Farmers plant fruit and forest trees on farms and hillsides, reducing soil erosion and providing a much-needed source of food and income.
SUSTAINABLE FARMING
SUSTAINABLE FARMING
Communities learn to grow more food on less land while at the same time caring for the long-term health of their land.
DIGNITY
DIGNITY
Farming families can afford to put food on the table and send their children to school with dignity.
CHURCH MOBILIZATION
CHURCH MOBILIZATION
Plant With Purpose works alongside local churches to help meet communities’ needs, foster discipleship, and teach people about God's love.
- EROSION
EROSION
Without trees, topsoil erodes rapidly. Without topsoil, the land lacks fertility and rain runs off the hillsides, decreasing crop yields and increasing hunger.
SLASH AND BURN
SLASH AND BURN
Rural farming families use the slash-and-burn technique to clear land for farming.
RUNOFF
RUNOFF
When the soil’s ability to absorb water is compromised, rainwater runs off barren hillsides taking with it harmful waste which polutes local water sources.
RAINFALL
RAINFALL
As forests disappear, rains become irregular, streams dry up, and wells give out.
CHARCOAL
CHARCOAL
Faced with severely limited economic opportunities, rural families have little choice but to cut trees to sell as charcoal or firewood.
FLOODING
FLOODING
Flashfloods, mudslides, and landslides are threats that follow heavy rains on eroded land, devastating people, crops, and livestock.
LACK OF LEADERSHIP
LACK OF LEADERSHIP
In poor, rural areas, church and community leaders often lack the training and tools needed to care for their communities.
FINANCIAL INSECURITY
FINANCIAL INSECURITY
No access to formal banking services means that the poor are unable to safely save or access credit.
MIGRATION
MIGRATION
With no way to make an adequate living, families are often split apart as family members leave the countryside in search of work.
WATER-RELATED DISEASE
WATER-RELATED DISEASE
The loss of trees means the loss of natural water filtration, which results in an increase in water-related illness, such as typhoid, cholera, or diarrheal disease.