Trees, Water and People

Trees, Water & People (TWP) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded by Stuart Conway and Richard Fox in 1998, in Fort Collins, Colorado. We believe that natural resources are best protected when local people play an active role in their care and management. The preservation of local trees, wetlands, and watersheds are essential in establishing long-term social, economic, and environmental viability of communities. We have established programs, both domestically and internationally, that incorporate our mission and beliefs, as well as the desires, abilities, and efforts of the people that our work directly benefits.

Programs

Internationally, TWP works throughout Central America and Haiti. Together, with our local partners, we support community-led tree nurseries that produce approximately 300,000 trees annually to aid in reforestation efforts throughout the region. To date, we have planted nearly 7 million trees, improving waterhsed and soil health, increasing biodiversity, and helpind farmers diversify crops.

To reduce deforestation, we have also built more than 70,000 clean cookstoves that decrease the need for wood by up to 70% - as compared to standard open fire cooking - and reduce carbon emissions by at least one ton per year. When vented to the outside of the home, these improved cookstoves also decrease indoor air pollution by up to 80%, a hazard that is responsible for the deaths of 4 million people globally every year.

Nationally, we are actively involved with helping to improve the lives of Native American families living on tribal lands. In these areas, where the winters can be extremely long and harsh, Native families commonly spend more than half of their income on exorbitant utility bills. Working with local partners and tribal governments, we have installed more than 1,000 economic solar heating systems that make use of the sun’s renewable energy to help heat homes during long winter months.

In addition, we have trained more than 200 Renewable Energy Warriors in a variety of applications including wind energy, sustainable building, solar energy and heating, and geothermal.

We are also utilizing our expertise in reforestation to replant tribal lands with native trees, such as the ponderosa pine in South Dakota. In 2015, we planted 10,000 trees at the Pine Ridge Reservation. In 2016, we will plant an additional 17,000 trees at Pine Ridge, training and employing local people to complete the work.