As Palestinians continue to face mounting settler violence, the land they call home has also experienced death and destruction.
Since 2020, an estimated 4,000 olive trees have been uprooted from the West Bank by Israeli officials, which adds to the cumulative 800,000 olive trees that have been uprooted since 1967.
According to the Yale Review of International Studies, this number is equivalent to razing all the trees in New York’s Central Park 33 times.
Along with uprooted trees, some farmers have had to burn their trees for fuel and warmth amid the violence.
Olive trees play a prominent role in Palestinian culture and business, symbolizing the attachment Palestinians have to their land. In fact, the area is home to some of the world’s oldest olive trees, some dating back as far as 4,000 years.
They are also a main source of income for an estimated 80,000 Palestinian families, account for 70% of fruit production in Palestine, and contribute to about 14% of the economy, per a fact sheet by UNOCHA.
And that’s why nonprofit Treedom for Palestine continues to plant them.
For this year’s International Day of Peace — in accordance with the theme “Cultivating a Culture of Peace” — the organization is planting its tenth Freedom Farm, which will add 2,500 olive trees to the West Bank’s landscape.
Each of these Freedom Farms is planted with the support of the Palestinian Farmers Union — a collective of about 20,000 small-scale farmers.
The Freedom Farms empower families with the means to sustain themselves and their land. Each family’s farm is filled with 250 olive trees, which are irrigated and fenced, ensuring long-term sustainability.
“Planting olive trees is an act of peace and prosperity in the darkness of war,” Palestinian Farmers Union president Abbas Milhem said in a statement. “We’re not giving up on a peaceful future. Each tree is a step toward securing the future of our land and our people.”
One of the most recent farms planted by the group was for Zainab Awad Haj Ahmed, a nurse-turned-farmer. After achieving her dream of obtaining her nursing degree, she took on a caregiver role for her ailing father-in-law, a farmer of about 2.5 acres (or 10 dunams) of land.
Together with her brothers-in-law, she has become a resilient steward of the land.
“I’ve always cared for people, and now I care for the land,” Zainab said in a statement. “These trees are our future. They’ll provide for my family and help us stay connected to our roots, no matter what challenges we face.”
Treedom for Palestine approaches their Freedom Farms by planting them a safe distance from settlements and practicing sustainable farming by only irrigating them during dry summer months.
The group is also dedicated to gender equality, ensuring that 50% of Freedom Farms are planted for women farmers.
“There’s so much sadness in my country and my life, but this olive tree farm has brought hope, security, and a bit of happiness to our family,” another recipient, Saja Abu Daher, shared in a testimony.
While women are underrepresented in peace-building efforts worldwide — including in Israeli-Palestinian conflict negotiations — empowering women through the cultural and economic avenue of olive farming is a welcome approach to building resilience in conflict regions.
Plus, it’s a net-win for the land and economy.
According to Treedom for Palestine, 2,500 olive trees produce $360,000 in olive oil annually (that’s about $36,000 for each individual family farm). They also sequester 90 million pounds of carbon over the trees’ 500-year lifespan.
“In a land where olive trees are being torn from the soil, we’re planting them back — better and safer,” Cyrus Copeland, Treedom for Palestine’s executive director, said.
“We are planting prosperity, gender equality, land protection, and community rejuvenation.”
Zainab’s farm was planted in memory of Allard K. Lowenstein, a renowned anti-apartheid activist and former U.S. Representative to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights.
Everyone involved in its creation hopes it is a building block for peace. They’re doing it in honor of all who came before them — and with the faith of what a brighter future may hold.
“In these tumultuous times, our focus is on the future,” Copeland continued. “Our goal of planting 1,000 Freedom Farms in the West Bank is a testament to our belief that real change comes from planting, not fighting. We invite the world to plant with us.”
Header image courtesy of Mohammad Juber/Treedom for Palestine
