Grow Ahead

Grow Ahead is an organization that connects people directly to small-scale farmer organizations to support them as they combat climate change in their communities. We partner with local farmer-run cooperatives to support community-led reforestation projects that benefit people and the planet. 

Industrial agriculture and food production are major contributors to climate change. Small-scale farmers do a lot for the environment — not to mention that they feed the majority of the developing world. Scaling and spreading agro-ecological strategies for combating climate change and feeding hungry communities must be a global priority. Despite the serious threat that climate change poses to humanity, and to small-scale farmers in particular, proven solutions like planting in agroforestry systems and using cover crops and compost to boost soil organic matter and fertility receive little government or market support.

Grow Ahead partners directly with small-farmer organizations to plant trees in agroforestry systems. The campaigns we support plant trees, income-generating crops like coffee and cocoa, and food together in a food-forest system. These systems allow farmers to restore water and nutrients to their soil, which increases food production and pulls carbon out of the atmosphere.