Photo of the Week: Rolando’s Family Breathes Easier

Rolando (center), an employee of TWP's partner organization AHDESA, helps to build, install, and maintain clean cookstoves in Honduras, including the cookstove in his own home. With the use of these stoves, his wife and children are able to breathe easier now that up to 90% of the smoke is removed from their kitchen.

Photo of the Week: Tree Planting in Honduras

In partnership with the National Agricultural University in Catacamas, TWP works with Honduran school children to plant trees in their communities.

TWP Participating in 2011 Smithsonian Folklife Festival

Since 2002, TWP has worked with the Peace Corps in El Salvador to train hundreds of volunteers in reforestation and clean cookstove techniques.

Trees, Water & People (TWP) will be participating in this year’s Smithsonian Folklife Festival as a part of the Peace Corps theme of the festival, which will commemorate and celebrate the service and accomplishments of Peace Corps Volunteers during the agency’s first fifty years.  At the Festival, TWP will be demonstrating several clean cookstoves, including building a Honduran Justa cookstove each day. They will also have tree seeds from Central America, Guatemalan masks, indigenous handicrafts, and traditional clothing on display.

The Smithsonian Folklife Festival is an international exposition of living cultural heritage annually produced outdoors on the National Mall of the United States in Washington, D.C., by the Smithsonian Institution’s Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage. The event is free and open to the public.

 

Kelsey Stamm, a Peace Corps Volunteer in El Salvador, helps tend to seedlings in one of TWP’s Salvadoran tree nurseries.

Project 7 Products Plant Trees, Save The Earth

This gum plants a fruit tree!

Project 7 is a cause-related company that makes everyday goods like coffee, bottled water, gum and mints take on a deeper meaning.  Project 7’s  Save the Earth products help Trees, Water & People plant fruit trees with rural families in Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras.   So far this year, customer purchases have contributed to planting 27,286 fruit trees, benefiting over 2,500 families by giving them access to fresh fruit that can be consumed and/or sold for extra income.  In addition, fruit trees add beauty to each family’s home.

Funds from this joint venture directly benefit TWP partners like  Arboles y Agua para el Pueblo (AAP) in  El Salvador.  AAP is a dedicated team that makes our detailed nursery work possible.

The AAP team take a break from working the nursery.

Their efforts to meticulously collect seeds, make compost,  fill each bag with soil, plant each seed, water 40,000 seedlings daily,  and watch them grow into trees make our nurseries a community-led success. When the time is right and the rains have fallen, our reforestation team facilitates workshops to educate families about the importance of tree planting and how fruit trees can enhance their family’s well-being.

By partnering with forward thinking companies like Project 7 we are collectively helping  thousands of families and making the earth a greener, bountiful, healthier place to live.

Click here to see where you can purchase Project 7 products.

Are you a company interested in partnering with Trees, Water & People? Please call Megan Maiolo at (970) 484-3678 or email megan@treeswaterpeople.org to learn more.

A tree nursery in El Salvador houses over 40,000 seedlings that will soon be planted throughout surrounding communities.

Travel With Purpose: Join us for the 2011 EcoTour to Honduras

A participant on the 2010 EcoTour helps plants trees in a local community.

Join Trees, Water & People for a service learning and cultural work tour to beautiful Honduras.  From August 6th-17th, we will be taking participants to the communities where we work, helping to plant trees and build clean cookstoves.  In addition, guests will visit the Mayan Ruins at Copan.  This is a great opportunity to practice your Spanish, build your resume, and connect with local communities.  The trip is designed so that each participant offsets their entire travel CO2 footprint through the reforestation and cookstove projects completed during the trip!

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TWP and Project Seven Partnering to Plant Trees in Central America

We are excited to announce our new partnership with Project 7, a consumer goods company passionate about social change and dedicated to addressing the seven most critical areas of need in the world today, as determined by Project 7 – Teach them Well, Feed the Hungry, Heal the Sick, Quench the Thirsty, Hope for Peace, House the Homeless, and Save the Planet.  The company’s goal is to bring to market everyday products – the first of which is bottled water – that consumers can easily purchase in order to effect change across the seven areas of critical need.

Project 7 supports Trees, Water & People’s reforestation projects in Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras through their “Save the Earth” products.  With the companies’ support, we will be planting  over 19,000 fruit trees between May and October of 2011, including mango, orange and lime trees.  To purchase Product 7 merchandise please visit their online store or find a retailer!

To learn more about Project 7 please visit their website: www.project7.com.

The layers of this Salvadorian nursery come alive, from seedlings to trees ready to be planted.

Travel With Purpose: TWP Service Learning and Cultural Worktour

Join Trees, Water & People for our 2011 worktour to visit and help with our projects in Honduras!

The worktour will give participants the opportunity to build clean cookstoves and plant trees to offset their carbon footprint for 1 year, as well as connect with local communities and visit the Mayan Ruins of Copan.

The trip runs August 6-17^th, 2011 and costs $1,999 including roundtrip airfare from Denver, all accommodations, meals and in-country transportation. A heck of a deal!

For more information and to sign-up for the worktour, please contact Claudia Menendez, International Program Coordinator for Trees, Water & People, at 970.484.3678 or by email at Claudia@treeswaterpeople.org.

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Helping Guests of Jam Cruise 2011 Become “Conscious Cruisers”

Staff from our international team will be departing soon for Jam Cruise 2011, where they are part of the greening team.  The green team strives to learn and take action on all of the opportunities and challenges inherent in greening this magical musical adventure, working from the inside out to help green this industry.

During the 5 day cruise, the Greening Headquarters becomes a hub for education, passenger participation, carbon offsetting, Positive Legacy donations, Silent Auction displays, and all out good vibes. The green team inspires passengers not only on the ship, but all throughout the year.

Trees, Water & People works with Jam Cruise to help guests become conscious cruisers by selling carbon offsets.  Jam Cruise offsets more than 2,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions though TWP’s stove program.  However, this offset does not include the emissions created by passengers traveling to and from Fort Lauderdale.  Last year, more than 600 passengers offest their carbon, making Clould 9 and the Jam Cruise passengers one of TWP’s largest carbon offset partners!

Double Your Year-End Gift With TWP’s Matching Campaign

The Fairfax Foundation and several of our board members have issued a challenge: They will match whatever gifts we receive, dollar for dollar. This is your chance to see your gift accomplish TWICE as much good in an area that is most in need of your help!  Click here to donate now, and make double the impact for the communities we serve in Central America and Haiti.

Thank you again for your support and best wishes for a happy and healthy 2011!

Quick Overview of TWP’s International Program

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Looking for more info about what we do?  Visit www.treeswaterpeople.org to learn more about our international work and how you can help!