Native forests are among the world’s most valuable ecosystems. They store carbon in trees, vegetation and soils, provide habitat and food for wildlife, regulate water cycles, reduce soil erosion and contribute to the livelihoods of communities that depend on forest resources. Native forests also contain diverse plant species adapted to their local ecosystems, making species selection an important part of restoration. Yet large areas of native forest have been lost or degraded through land clearing, agriculture, development and other forms of land use, leaving ecosystems that can require years of work to recover.

Restoring these ecosystems requires more than planting trees. Restoration projects need native seeds suited to local areas, nurseries capable of propagating those species, trained forestry professionals, scientific research and knowledge of local ecosystems. Financing is also required across activities such as seed collection, nursery operations, site preparation, planting and long-term monitoring. Technology can help maintain records as projects progress, from seed collection and nursery management through planting and carbon tracking. Together, these elements form the infrastructure needed to restore forests at larger scales while preserving biodiversity and generating benefits for local communities.

Terraformation is a forest restoration company focused on restoring native forests through biodiversity, community participation, science, technology, financing, and large-scale restoration projects. The company works across four areas: narrative and collective action, tools and technology, its Seed to Forest Accelerator, and restoration projects designed for specific regions.

Biodiverse Native Forests

Biodiversity is a major part of Terraformation’s restoration work. The company says its projects contain up to five times more native species diversity than most registered forest restoration carbon projects. Native species can create more varied ecosystems, provide habitat for wildlife, and contribute to forests capable of storing carbon while protecting surrounding ecological systems.

Terraformation works with local communities and forestry professionals to design projects suited to specific regions. Local knowledge forms part of this work, with projects intended to create benefits for communities across generations. The company also focuses on restoring degraded areas into native forests rather than treating reforestation simply as the planting of trees.

Science, Technology and Seeds

Terraformation uses scientific research alongside Indigenous knowledge to guide restoration projects. Regional ecology, native species and changing climate patterns can all influence how a project is designed and managed. The company also works on seed banking, training and financing, addressing some of the requirements that can limit the scale of forest restoration.

Technology is used to track projects from nursery to canopy and maintain records over time. Terraformation’s software, Terraware, is designed to manage stages of forest restoration, including site planning, seed collection, nursery management, carbon tracking and planting. Digital records can also give funders greater visibility into restoration activity and create traceable records for carbon credit reporting.

Financing Forest Restoration

Forest restoration requires capital that can cover activities from seed collection and nursery operations to planting, monitoring and long-term forest care. Terraformation works with companies, investors and restoration organizations through its project portfolio and financing activities, while its Seed to Forest Accelerator gives forest creators access to tools, training and resources for establishing restoration projects.

Terraformation also works to address bottlenecks affecting restoration capacity, including seed shortages, financing and access to forestry technology. The company’s large-scale projects are carried out through partnerships with local communities, while its wider programs seek to expand the resources available for native forest restoration. Through these activities, Terraformation incorporates biodiversity, carbon removal and community benefits into its forest restoration projects.

ABOUT | YISHAN WONG

Yishan Wong is the founder and CEO of Terraformation, a native forest restoration company focused on restoring biodiverse forests and addressing climate change. An engineer and climate activist, Wong previously served as CEO of Reddit from 2012 to 2014 and as Director of Engineering at Facebook from 2005 to 2010. He also worked as an engineer at PayPal earlier in his technology career.

Wong earned a B.S. in Computer Science from Carnegie Mellon University in 2001. In 2017, he began evaluating climate solutions capable of removing carbon at gigaton scale, eventually focusing on native forest restoration. He founded Terraformation in 2020 to pursue this work through forest restoration, technology, financing, and community participation.