Learn how to plant one in your own backyard ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌







Dear friend,

Gardens can be life-changing for people facing hunger.

Kitchen gardens, permagardens, keyhole gardens, and pasture gardens — these are some of Mercy Corps’ approaches to helping families struggling with food insecurity. We provide the training and resources people need to create gardens that can provide nutrition or boost income, even in places facing extreme weather.

Often, what grows out of these gardens is more than just food — it’s health, security, and opportunity.

Here’s more about how gardens are creating new possibilities for people in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Kenya, and Uganda.
   
   
     
Marie-Claire in the DRC
 
Marie-Claire says she no longer needs to go to the market for vegetables since her garden provides them in both dry and rainy seasons. "We just go into the garden, get vegetables, and cook them for the children."
 
The DRC has one of the highest numbers of severely food insecure people in the world. Marie-Claire, a farmer and mother of nine children, participates in a Mercy Corps program that gave her training and resources to start a garden that grows vegetables year-round. She says she is grateful for the health, safety, and improvements the program has brought to her community. Learn more about how our work addresses hunger in the DRC ▸
     
Margaret in Kenya
 
Margaret and her daughters Salley (age 5, left) and Tabitha, (age 10, right), tend to the vegetables growing in their garden. Margaret says: "⁠(⁠The training we’ve received with Mercy Corps) means my community will be developed, our children will be healthier, and our living standards shall be raised."

She adds, "My garden also enables me to save money that I would have used to buy vegetables from the market, now instead I have little more unused money for my savings."
 
Margaret is a local shop owner in her small village in Kenya where she sells food to livestock farmers for income. But because of the severe drought, many of her customers have migrated to other areas. With training from Mercy Corps, she has started a garden near her home, where she grows vegetables like spinach, kale, chard, green onion, and herbs.

She also serves as a community health volunteer, making her a role model in her community on cooking, farming, and nutrition education. Learn more about how drought is affecting countries like Kenya across the Horn of Africa ▸
   
   
     
Kodet in Uganda
 
With Mercy Corps’ support, Kodet has developed a pasture garden — a large plot of shrubs and grass to feed his animals — making his livelihood less vulnerable to dry spells. Kodet says, "During the dry season, what affects the people affects the cattle as well. The hunger that people feel is also the same as the animals feel."
 
Kodet is a farmer and father of eight in Uganda where severe drought has nearly dried up his crops leaving his family and his livestock hungry. One of the ways Mercy Corps is helping farmers like Kodet better cope with the drought is by providing seeds and training to start pasture gardens to feed their animals.

It has been eight months since Kodet began feeding his cattle and goats from his pasture garden. The animals are noticeably healthier and more productive, which means more milk for his children and a higher profit when it’s time to sell. Learn more about how our DREAMS program is helping people in Uganda ▸

The seeds we plant together — Mercy Corps teams, communities, and supporters like you — are part of a lasting commitment to building a brighter future.

We are so grateful to have our supporters by our side as we build pathways to new possibilities for millions of people around the world who are facing the challenges of climate change, poverty, and hunger.

Thank you,

The Mercy Corps team

P.S. Did you see this story about keyhole gardens in Timor-Leste? It includes downloadable instructions on how to start one in your own backyard! Read now ▸