Trees for the Future (TREES) is a global nonprofit confronting hunger, poverty, and environmental degradation by serving the people at the heart of our global food systems: farmers and their families. Through its innovative “Forest Garden” approach, TREES provides comprehensive training and support to farmer entrepreneurs who are empowered to transform their lives and communities through regenerative agriculture. Since its founding in 1989, the organization has been responsible for planting 370 million trees, restoring 41,000 acres of land, and benefiting 470,000 people. TREES was recently named a World Restoration Flagship by the United Nations in recognition of its outstanding large-scale ecosystem restoration efforts.
Vice President of Development and Communication Cate O’Kane joined TREES in March 2024, attracted to its mission to grow vibrant regional economies, develop thriving food systems, and nurture the earth. She now leads TREES’ fundraising, partnership, and communications efforts, fostering collaborations that ensure not only financial support, but knowledge, innovation, and thought leadership. In this Q&A, Cate shares insight on how TREES uses tree-planting as a foundation for economic transformation, and how innovative partnerships between businesses and nonprofits can “build systems that work for the long term, ensuring a healthier planet and a more prosperous future for all.”
Bark Media: Most people’s concept of “planting trees” focuses on the environment. How does TREES’ tree-planting program go far beyond that — to influence not only the health of our planet but also people’s lives and communities?
Cate O’Kane: Through our model, planting trees becomes the foundation of economic transformation. It’s holistic, addressing both the environment and livelihoods, and it creates a beautiful, virtuous cycle.
First, we educate farmers about issues with monocropping—growing a single crop in a large field year after year. This common practice depletes the soil and increases risk—if there’s a crop failure or blight, everything is lost. We’re guiding farmers to use their own trees and land to create what we call “forest gardens” using traditional, rotational farming, which regenerates the land and strengthens resilience to climate changes.
When the soil is healthy farmers can grow more, ensuring greater food security and health for themselves and their families. They can sell their surplus—whether it’s fruits, vegetables, tree cuttings used as fodder, or timber from designated plots.
With more income farmers can afford healthcare, improve their living conditions, and send their children or grandchildren to school. Educating the next generation leads to higher earnings, benefiting the entire family. Ultimately, this cycle strengthens communities and economies. If everyone does better, countries and the world as a whole improve. Yes, planting a single tree is important, but what grows from that one tree is truly remarkable.
Bark: How does this process unfold with the farmers and communities you work with?
CO: Everything we do is community-focused. We spend time understanding where our program will work best, in places where farmers own their land, can become entrepreneurs, and run their own businesses. We have in-depth discussions with them about a range of financial realities affecting different aspects of their lives. Often we find that families can’t afford school, they survive on one low-nutrition meal a day, and haven’t grown crops on their depleted land in years.
When they agree to join the program—through Free, Prior, and Informed Consent, a UN convention ensuring voluntary participation—we integrate them into a farmer group rather than as solo farmers. This fosters financial support while also encouraging peer learning and cooperation.
Next, they enter our training program, which I like to think of as a mini MBA in all aspects of agroforestry—composting, crop management, and marketing. Farmers learn how to choose which crops to grow and plan their planting schedules based on optimal times for the local market cycle. Many farmers already have great business instincts; they just haven’t had the opportunity or framework to apply them. By treating them as businesspeople, we help bring out their natural entrepreneurial skills.
Bark: Describe the financial aspect of TREES — how does the program help alleviate poverty and provide a livable income for farmers?
CO: The financial aspect starts from the very beginning. We teach them to maximize their resources, such as producing their own manure and compost instead of using costly chemicals. Our approach also addresses broken systems by either helping farmers create solutions or gain access to existing systems beyond the local markets. In one of our current projects in Kenya, we’re looking at national and international supply chains.
Last year, some of our farmers in Kenya produced 3,000 avocados—an absolute dream for me as an avocado lover! But without a local market for avocados, the fruit would have been fed to some very lucky pigs. Instead, we’re working to connect them with larger buyers in Nairobi or Dubai, where demand for avocados is huge. By finding these pathways, we’re not just supporting individual farmers—we’re strengthening entire communities by increasing overall income.
Bark: What impact have you seen the program have on farmers?
CO: I’m a big believer in the idea that talent is universal, but opportunity is not. The farmers I’ve met have incredible talent—they just haven’t had the opportunity to use it.
One wonderful example is Dorothy, who is now sadly deceased but built an incredible legacy for her family. Dorothy’s husband was in the Kenyan army, so she spent most of her life in the roles of housewife and mother. Although she had never considered herself a businessperson, after she and her husband settled into their retirement home she joined the TREES program and started growing and selling crops at the local market. When we launched the Seed Program—which allows farmers to collect seeds from their crops, undergo quality control, and sell them back to us—she saw an opportunity. Seed supply in Africa is incredibly challenging—another broken system—as access to quality seeds and graftable trees is limited.
Dorothy fully embraced this. She was out there shaking her trees, gathering her vegetable seeds, and transforming herself into a seed entrepreneur. Then she started collecting other farmers’ seeds, splitting the money, and hiring people to help her. She essentially built a small seed factory, complete with a structured process, employees, and a fully operational system. Because of the volume of seeds she provided, we were paying her $1,000 to $2,000 per month.
Dorothy completely transformed her family’s financial future. Her son will inherit the thriving business she built, and her grandchildren are now attending university. The impact of financial success extends beyond income—it creates lasting prosperity for families who have never had it before.
Bark: What is the Village Savings and Loans Association program and why did TREES introduce it in 2020?
CO: One of the most broken systems in the communities where we work is financial access. During interviews with farmers in Tanzania, we found that not only did they lack financial services, they also had little experience managing savings. Their income had always been just enough for daily needs, so the concept of saving hadn’t been relevant. Now, with more income, they need a safe place to store their money and a structured system to manage it.
The Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLA) provides smallholder farmers with loans, bank accounts, and a secure place to store their money, allowing farmers to manage their own capital while also building financial literacy. Members pool savings and issue loans to one another, reinforcing community support and economic collaboration. These loans often go toward entrepreneurial ventures, such as a beekeeping business, or a motorbike for a courier service to transport goods to market.
Another exciting aspect of VSLAs is the role of women. Many of the regions we work in have deeply patriarchal structures, but these associations are shifting that dynamic. As we saw with Dorothy, financial independence is empowering women and, in turn, transforming families and communities. When women control money, they prioritize food, education, healthcare, and community well-being. So beyond financial inclusion, VSLAs are driving societal change, breaking long-standing norms, and fostering gender equity in ways that create lasting impact.
Bark: How is empowering people to break the cycle of extreme poverty part of creating a more equitable global economy and sustainable planet?
CO: B Corps and social businesses believe in collective effort and that helping others ultimately helps ourselves—without this belief, none of what we do makes sense. As Robert Ingersoll said, “We rise by lifting others.” A stronger global economy benefits everyone by creating robust supply chains, increasing access to goods and services, and reducing the need for aid. A more equitable global economy means that when people have more money, they invest in education, start businesses, and contribute to society.
The ripple effects of sustainable farming are undeniable. One farmer using regenerative, sustainable practices encourages others to join. Often, before we even finish working in a community, more farmers are asking, “Can I join?” This demand led us to create the “Plant It Forward” system, where experienced farmers mentor new ones, creating a scalable and self-sustaining model. We’re currently working with about 60,000 farmers—a small fraction of what’s possible. Our hope is that others adopt and scale the forest garden approach, contributing to a more sustainable planet and a more inclusive global economy.
Bark: How do collaborations with for-profit businesses benefit the work of nonprofit organizations like TREES?
CO: For us, working with the private sector keeps us forward-looking. The private sector invests heavily in research and development, while nonprofits often lack resources for innovation. By working together, we can bridge that gap. Supply chain development is one area where this synergy is particularly powerful. Many companies have perfected logistics, sourcing, and distribution—imagine if a company with expertise in supply chains sent a team to Kenya for three months to work alongside our farmers. Instead of avocados being wasted or fed to livestock, these companies could apply their knowledge to build efficient, sustainable supply routes.
Of course, funding is essential to support programs and drive change. I recognize that some for-profit companies worry that nonprofits see them as ATMs. But that’s not how I see it. Partnerships should be strategic, not transactional. Businesses shouldn’t just donate—they should recognize the long-term value of engaging with a new market and treat these communities as entrepreneurs, suppliers, and business partners, not just beneficiaries. The reality is that businesses stand to gain immensely from these partnerships.
Bark: Can you share more about how you’ve seen these kinds of partnerships benefit businesses?
CO: Research shows that social enterprises and companies investing in corporate social responsibility often see higher market value and profitability. A study from Project ROI found that companies engaged in these efforts generate 20% more revenue than those that don’t. This shared value approach—the win-win dynamic—is the most important reason businesses should collaborate with nonprofits like ours. There’s also strong evidence, including a recent Deloitte study, showing that young professionals want to work for companies that align with their values. By partnering with us, businesses demonstrate these values in action.
For businesses, this isn’t just philanthropy—it’s strategic. It provides firsthand insights into emerging markets and allows companies to expand their global reach with real, on-the-ground experience. I’ve seen this model succeed in medical, health, and education supply chains. It could transform food and agriculture, as well.
Creating a more inclusive, sustainable global economy is a shared responsibility. When businesses, nonprofits, and communities collaborate, we don’t just solve immediate problems—we build systems that work for the long term, ensuring a healthier planet and a more prosperous future for all.
Bark: What’s one of your favorite anecdotes from your work with TREES?
CO: If you’ve ever had a garden, you’ve likely dealt with slugs or bugs eating your plants. We work in the Lake Victoria watershed in East Africa, an area rich in biodiversity, with fish, insects, and birds thriving alongside our forest gardens. One of the first things we establish in a forest garden is a living fence—about 4,000 thorny trees that form an impenetrable barrier. In some areas we use Calliandra, which weaves together to create a natural fence.
A few months before I arrived in the region, we received a report that proved the importance of this early step in our process. A living fence had successfully kept out not just wandering children or livestock, but an actual hippo that had come up from Lake Victoria and tried to enter the garden. So next time you’re frustrated about pests in your garden, just remember, at least it’s not a hippo!