ENVIRONMENT & EDUCATION PROJECTS
Deforestation is one of the greatest threats to life on our planet, disproportionately affecting rural and indigenous communities. In Guatemala, forests are the homes of millions of peoples, majoritarily Maya, who depend directly on the land for their survival.
At New Roots Foundation, we believe that the best way to solve this threat is to provide communities with educational and agricultural resources, in order to create sustainable business practices that lift marginalized peoples out of poverty while protecting and restoring the environment. We do this through sustainable agroforestry, ecotourism, forest conservation, and youth leadership training.
New Roots Foundation focuses on two forested regions of Guatemala: the Northwest region around Laguna Brava and the South Pacific Coast.
WHERE WE WORK
OUR IMPACT
We’ve planted over 1,000,000 trees across Guatemala
New Roots Foundation reforests and restores landscapes by working with partner communities to plant valuable hardwood trees, which could provide millions of dollars in the long and short-term.
New Roots Foundation offers workshops in planting, tending, processing forest products, and valuing local resources.
We help communities diversify through agroforestry
New Roots supplies cacao plants and other shade-dependent products like vanilla and xaté to add short-term value to maturing forests. Our regular trainings and local support ensure these communities are using smart, organic growing methods.
After years of careful tending, we are now working with our partner communities to expand the infrastructure for processing raw cacao using local, sustainable resources.
We support leadership and knowledge-sharing
New Roots partners with local experts and NGOs to bring inspiring workshops to young leaders and community groups.
New Roots provides scholarships to students learning agroforestry.
New Roots funds travel for community leaders to learn from successful projects across Guatemala.
We’ve protected 675 hectares of pristine forest
New Roots helped set aside 675 hectares of biodiverse Laguna Brava as protected land with the help of local communities. We also link forested lands to national ecosystem payment plans to support another 250 hectares.
New Roots works with communities around Laguna Brava to promote the area as an ecotourism destination by designing eco-lodges and outdoor activities.
We believe in strong local governance
New Roots helped establish and legally register 6 community associations to govern land management decisions. These associations partner with New Roots to discuss their goals for planting trees and using income from forest or ecotourism projects to develop their community and conserve their environment.
$1 = 1 Tree
We partner with One Tree Planted to reforest across Guatemala