This documentary is about the Green Belt Movement’s experience with grassroots communities to showcase the successes and challenges faced. To date, the project has planted over 3.8 million trees on 3,800 hectares of public and forestlands and brought economic empowerment to the area.

Creators: The Green Belt Movement (GBM) & The Agence Française de Développement

The Green Belt Movement (GBM) is an environmental organization that empowers communities, particularly women, to conserve the environment and improve livelihoods. GBM was founded by Professor Wangari Maathai in 1977 under the auspices of the National Council of Women of Kenya (NCWK) to respond to the needs of rural Kenyan women who reported that their streams were drying up, their food supply was less secure, and they had to walk further and further to get firewood for fuel and fencing. GBM encouraged the women to work together to grow seedlings and plant trees to bind the soil, store rainwater, provide food and firewood, and receive a small monetary token for their work.

The Agence Française de Développement funds, supports, and accelerates the transitions to a fairer and more sustainable world. Focusing on climate, biodiversity, peace, education, urban development, health and governance, their teams carry out more than 4,000 projects in France’s overseas departments and territories and another 115 countries. In this way, they contribute to the commitment of France and French people to support the sustainable development goals.