Sowing Awareness from the Classroom

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The A Rocha Perú team with the students of the primary school (June, 2025)

During the month of June, more than 100 students from various educational institutions in Pacasmayo took part in educational workshops on the dry forest, designed to awaken their love and respect for the environment around them.

Through games, interactive activities, and practical examples, the children not only learned but also understood the importance of the algarrobo tree and local biodiversity, both essential to the health of their communities and the balance of the ecosystem. Recognizing the value of what grows close to home is also recognizing their identity and their role as caretakers of the land.

The most inspiring part was seeing their ideas bloom: many presented creative proposals to protect the dry forest, showing not only understanding, but deep commitment. With each workshop, the desire to keep sowing hope grows stronger. Because when education connects with the land, it also takes root in the heart.

Medicinal Plants Workshop in Monte Carmelo

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The classroom transformed into a forest full of stories, aromas, and living memories. At the Igoriteshiari Primary School, in the Native Community of Monte Carmelo, a deeply enriching experience took place: educational workshops on medicinal plants, guided by a local elder—an ancestral keeper of the forest’s healing secrets.

Second Medicinal Plants Workshop at the Igoriteshiari Primary School (June, 2025)

Over the course of this trimester, two workshops have been held, benefiting more than 40 kids, from this school. In each session, students learned which plants help soothe stomach pain, which promote sleep, and which ones need to be protected because they’re becoming scarce. Every plant shared carried a story, a family memory, a lesson on how to care not only for the body but also for the environment.

More than just workshops, these were acts of cultural transmission. For many children, it was the first time they heard someone speak with such respect and depth about the medicine that comes from the forest—medicine that has healed generations before them. The elder didn’t just explain the properties of the plants; he taught them to see the forest with new eyes: not as a mere resource, but as an ally to be respected and protected.

Promoted by A Rocha Peru, these spaces aim to revalue traditional medicine as a vital part of local knowledge, to promote forest care, and to strengthen cultural pride in the living heritage of Amazonian communities.

How green does your church’s heart beat?

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From A Rocha Peru’s Green Church Project, we continue to sow ecological awareness within faith communities. As part of this commitment, we are excited to present a new quiz “How Green Is Your Church?” — a simple yet powerful resource designed to help churches reflect on how they are living out their call to care for God’s creation.

This questionnaire is born from a deep conviction: that to worship the Creator is also to care for what He lovingly made. “God has given us the responsibility to care for creation (Genesis 2:15),” says Hannah, coordinator of the Green Church Project. “But how can you know where to go if you don’t know where you are?” she adds, pointing to the importance of having a starting point for evaluation and growth.

The quiz is short and practical, with yes-or-no questions grouped into four essential areas of church life:

  • Worship of the Creator
  • Teaching
  • Community Life
  • Relationship with Nature

Beyond measuring, the goal is to inspire. “The idea is not for people to feel judged, but encouraged. That they can see what they’re already doing well, and choose one area to improve or change,” Hannah explains. Because even the smallest steps can make a difference on the journey toward a greener church.

Though it’s primarily aimed at leaders, the quiz is open to the whole community. “Caring for God’s creation is the responsibility of the whole church, not just our leaders,” Hannah affirms with conviction.

Those who complete the quiz can opt to receive free materials, including a guide for incorporating creation care into worship, an introduction to the theology of environmental stewardship, and personalized support tailored to the church’s needs. “The church decides how much or how little contact they want to have with us,” Hannah emphasizes, promoting a respectful and flexible relationship.

Although this quiz was just recently launched, we have already witnessed the deep impact that creation care initiatives can have when sown with intention. Last year, through the Kawsay mini-project in Ayacucho, we saw the rise of a vibrant and committed movement of creation stewards. Today, that same spirit continues: members of Cristo Rey Church in Huanta, who were part of that experience, have chosen to replicate the project internally this year. It’s proof that a well-planted seed can bear lasting fruit — transforming not just practices, but hearts.

The dream is clear: to build a nationwide network of green churches — connected, committed, and ready to walk together in this ecological journey. “When things feel overwhelming, we need to support each other. We walk together, for the glory of God,” concludes Hannah.

Want to join this network? Take the quiz “How Green Is Your Church?”

Meet the New Guardians of the Dry Forest

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In La Libertad, in northern Peru, one of the country’s most threatened and least understood ecosystems survives: the dry forest. Though it may seem barren at first glance, this landscape holds immense natural and cultural wealth. Among emblematic trees like algarrobo, faique, and sapote, unique species—many of them endangered—depend on this environment to survive. However, the forest faces a constant threat: illegal logging, unsustainable firewood extraction, wildfires, and the progressive loss of vegetation cover have put its ecological balance at risk. This degradation not only harms biodiversity but also impacts the local communities who rely on the forest for water, shade, food, medicine, and a deep sense of identity.

Virgilio and Victor, the new guardians of the dry forest

In response to this reality, A Rocha Peru has taken action with a deeply community-based vision. Since April, we have formalized the creation of a Local Park Rangers team, an initiative that seeks to generate solutions from within the territory, led by those who know and love it.

Through targeted training, patrol protocols, and technical support, this team—currently led by Virgilio and Victor—conducts regular patrols through the forest. Between May and June alone, they carried out over 35 patrols. Their presence helps prevent logging, detect threats, and raise awareness among other members of the community.

But beyond surveillance, what’s being cultivated is a renewed sense of belonging and collective responsibility. As they walk through the forest, these rangers aren’t just protecting trees—they are safeguarding the memory of an ecosystem that has endured droughts, neglect, and abandonment.

At a time when ecosystems are disappearing in silence, initiatives like this speak out. Because when the care of creation starts from within, with empowered local actors, conservation is not only possible—it is sustainable and transformative.

Sensory Garden for Harmony and Well-being

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On March 11, A Rocha Perú, Monterrico Christian School (MCS), and the Christian organization Cristo para la Ciudad signed a cooperation agreement to develop a mini environmental conservation and social responsibility project for the year 2025. This initiative, part of the Green Church program, will be supported by our new coordinator, Hannah Wilkinson, and will involve MCS high school students as part of their educational curriculum.

Hannah signing the agreement with the MCS (March 11, 2025)

The aim of this project is to co-design and implement a Sensory Garden, depending on feasibility and the students’ final design decisions for Vidas que Valen, a ministry located in Villa El Salvador and led by Pastor Walter Matos of Iglesia Bautista El Fundamento. This ministry provides support for families with children with disabilities, offering companionship and assistance in their daily lives. The initiative was inspired by the pastor’s own experience with his son, who had a disability, and his desire to create a space of well-being and recreation for families facing similar challenges.

Through this agreement, A Rocha Perú will provide technical guidance, conduct environmental strategy workshops, and offer ongoing support throughout the process. As part of MCS’s educational commitment, students will not only design the garden but also actively participate in its potential construction, aiming to create a space of peace and restoration for the families of Vidas que Valen. The garden’s inauguration is tentatively scheduled for September 2025, depending on the project’s development.

This collaboration brings together faith, education, and environmental stewardship, serving as a living testimony to the transformative power of working together. We joyfully celebrate the beginning of this journey to bring God’s creation closer to those who need it most!

New Algarrobo Trees for a Thriving Future

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In the sun-scorched landscapes of La Libertad, where dry forests face the mounting pressures of climate change and deforestation, a quiet yet powerful story of hope is taking root—one tree at a time.

Planting Algarrobos in Pacasmayo  (February, 2025)

Between January and March 2025, our seed nursery has played a vital role in cultivating native species like algarrobo, as well as nourishing edible plants such as chili peppers (ají escabeche and limo ), papayas, lemon, orange, ice-cream bean plants (pacay) and spinach. Each plant is grown with purpose—some to restore fragile ecosystems, others to feed and support local families. This season alone, over 100 algarrobo seedlings raised in the nursery have been successfully planted across Pacasmayo and Pacanguilla, bringing life and resilience back to the land.

Algarrobo seeds germinating in the nursery (February, 2025)

Our commitment goes beyond reforestation—it also lives in our relationships with the communities around us. This season, we donated 22 chili pepper plants to the families of San Demetrio, and gifted flowers to the women who bring warmth and care to the Micaela Bastidas community kitchen. These gestures, though simple, help enrich local biodiversity and strengthen the bonds between the nursery and the people who live near it.

Every seed sown, every tree planted, and every plant shared is a reminder of what’s possible when we combine patience, dedication, and collective action. Together, we’re nurturing not just forests—but a future rooted in hope.