Before You Die, Plant a Tree: Practical Lessons for Peace Building from Cambodia

While vacationing in Cambodia, Dr. Penfield discovered the unique grassroots peace initiative of Peace Bridges, a faith-rooted NGO (non-profit) led by Cambodians dedicated to long-term peacebuilding. A few years later, she joined them for a year to serve as a volunteer consultant and to glean insights and practical lessons for her community work in the United States in confronting systemic racism. She was especially interested in the ways in which creating partnerships with local agencies, churches, and community organizations and then providing nonviolence training to their respected leaders was helping to nurture community development and empowerment.

This descriptive case study of ongoing peacebuilding comes alive through a rich source of historical and cultural data, participant observations, personal experiences, and interviews with peacebuilders that Dr. Penfield draws upon. The title of the book was chosen for its literal, environmental, and spiritual meaning. It is a saying coined by Peace Bridges and used to inspire their partners to join in a mass planting of seedlings to restore the environment and leave behind life for the future. Before You Die, Plant a Tree is also an invitation for each of us to partner with others in our communities to repair and restore what is broken in our relationships with each other and the environment, leaving behind more justice and peace for future generations.