Plant With Purpose
April 9, 2009
On this Maundy Thursday, it’s important to remember that our Lord exhorts us to refrain from building cheaply. On this day we are reminded that the Lord requires more of us than we are often willing to give.
The reason for this sort of introduction, is to help us get into the mindset of what I might actually mean to help those in extreme poverty around the world break free from their chains of hunger and be transformed at a very practical level. The most basic level, the ability to have access to food, water, basic services.
What if there was an organization that could marry their expertise in building and development with their depth of biblical understanding.
Well my friends, I am here to tell you that there is at least one organization running that race Floresta USA.
Yesterday announced a new online initiative Plant With Purpose. You can view an introduction video here.
Plant With Purpose is a bold approach to capture the groundswell of interest in addressing environmental and social justice issues worldwide. The new online community offers visitors a closer connection with nearly 200 villages being served around the world.
“People today are becoming more aware of the urgency involved in restoring our environment, and they feel empowered to make an impact that will last for generations to come,” said Scott Sabin, Executive Director of Floresta. “Plant With Purpose provides an immediate opportunity for people to transform the lives of the rural poor by restoring their land and offering them economic opportunities.”
One of the programs, Grow a Village, allows donors to support a share of a village for only $30 a month. Additionally, people can shop for program needs such as water cisterns, environmentally safe stoves and latrines, and livestock. Web site visitors can virtually tour communities, donate to a need, and then automatically view the impact of their contribution as the Web site tracks the program’s funding.
“Grow a Village allows people a more tangible way to get involved,” said Doug Satre, Floresta’s Director of Outreach and Development. “Donors are able to view pictures of the rural farmers, the indigenous program staff, and descriptions of the villages so they feel connected and become more educated on the challenges these people face. Alternatively, visitors have the option to make a general donation.”
Floresta has planted 4 million trees and made over 6,500 small business loans worldwide since 1984. The organization currently has programs in six countries, including the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Mexico, Tanzania, Burundi, and Thailand.
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One thing many Americans don’t realize is how important domestic energy is to our country’s economic recovery and overall security. Currently, half of our electricity comes from coal—which happens to be our most abundant fuel resource. In fact, we recently kicked off the America’s Power Factuality Tour—a country-wide road trip in search of the people, places and technologies involved in producing cleaner, domestic electricity from coal. We started in Wright, Wyo., at the Powder River Basin, which produces more coal than any other site in the U.S. Take the tour for yourself and see our most abundant domestic fuel at work. factuality.org
Thank you so much for your post! Sorry about the delayed response, we are looking forward to entering the conversation here on your blog. The launch of Plant With Purpose has been an incredible one! we have had an extremely positive response to the new webpage, video, and social media’s. Thank you again for your support of our mission.
Corbyn
Outreach Coordinator
Plant With Purpose