Timberland Launches Documentary Online to Benefit Partner in Haiti
In March 2016, Timberland kicked off a national tour of its documentary “KOMBIT: The Cooperative,” a film documenting Timberland’s efforts to reforest Haiti, one of the most severely deforested countries in the world. Over the last five months, the global outdoor lifestyle brand brought the tour to more than 250 communities, raising awareness for its impactful partnership with the Smallholder Farmers Alliance (SFA), a Haitian nonprofit farmer cooperative dedicated to improving the lives of local farmers. Now, Timberland has launched the film online available for download or rent, with net funds raised to benefit the SFA.
The documentary chronicles Timberland’s five-year project in partnership with the SFA to create a sustainable agro-forestry model through which farmers voluntarily tend to a network of tree nurseries. In exchange, farmers receive free trees to restore tree cover, border their property, prevent erosion and provide nutrients to the soil. The farmers also receive valuable seeds, tools and training to help increase their crop yields. This mutually beneficial cycle has resulted in 5.2 million trees planted, and benefited more than 3,200 farmer members whose land productivity increased by an average of 40 percent and whose household income increased by an average of 50 percent. The program has also increased access to education, with an estimated 3,400 SFA children now able to afford to go to school.
Several partners contributed to the success of KOMBIT, including Found Object, an award-winning production company that documented the evolution and impact of Timberland’s partnership with the SFA. Timberland also partnered with FilmSprout, a distribution firm that helps social-issue filmmakers create robust screening events for their documentaries.
Through the end of the year, KOMBIT: The Cooperative will be shown at locations nationwide, including San Diego, CA., St. Paul, MN., Portland, OR. and more. The film will is available for rent or purchase through Vimeo for $2.99 and $9.99, respectively. All net proceeds from downloads and rentals will benefit the SFA via Impact Farming, which supports the SFA in Haiti and helps to provide education and agricultural training to empower farmers in developing countries.
To find out if the film is being screened in city near you, refer to the schedule here. To download or rent the film directly, visit vimeo.com/ondemand/kombit.
