UPDATE – (Monday, September 26)

• The global forest restoration company Terraformation is looking to scale its on-the-ground operations in Hawaiʻi and recently acquired certain assets of the Hawaiʻi island-based Agro Resources company

From a news release from Terraformation on Monday:

Terraformation, a global forest restoration company headquartered in Hawaiʻi, recently announced the acquisition of certain assets of Agro Resources, a Hawaiʻi Island–based agroforestry company with over 20 years of experience in the management of fruit and nut farms, as well as native forest restoration.

“Terraformation is looking to scale its on-the-ground operations in Hawaiʻi, and the acquisition of Agro Resources’ assets provides the pathway with equipment, contracts and an experienced crew,” said Terraformation founder and CEO Yishan Wong.

Headquartered in Kona at the Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawaii Authority (NELHA), Terraformation combines world-leading forestry expertise with decades of experience in hyper-growth tech companies from Silicon Valley to scale forest restoration projects around the world. Terraformation partners with organizations to support them with tools and training to initiate and sustain successful, large-scale reforestation. The company’s forest restoration model focuses on providing partners with durable and scalable solutions to the biggest challenges such projects face: seed supply, training and equipment, funding, and land and water availability.

Terraformation’s first project began on Hawaiʻi Island in one of the driest areas of the island that was once covered with ʻiliahi (sandalwood). The clear-cutting of the forest in that area over a hundred years ago created a desert-like environment. The company is now restoring the 45-acre site with a native Hawaiian dry forest ecosystem; the team has planted 7,000 trees. Terraformation has an additional 900 trees planted in a Hawaiian dry forest ecosystem in Kona and is in the process of planting 25,000 plants at its ʻŌhiʻa Lani site between Waimea and Honokaa.

Terraformation currently operates one of the world’s largest fully off-grid, 100% solar-powered desalination facilities, located on Hawaiʻi Island, a replicable system that could solve freshwater shortages for restoration. It also manages several nurseries and solar-powered seed banks for in situ wild seed collection and storage, and the company is developing an open-source software suite to support restorationists worldwide.

“Agro Resources expands and deepens our expertise to tackle the next level in native ecosystem restoration and agroforestry,” said Johannes Seidel, Director, Hawaiʻi Forestry Operations. “Contributing to Hawaiʻi’s well-established conservation and agriculture community and supporting our state in sequestering atmospheric carbon to reduce the negative impacts of climate change is at the heart of our global journey. Already our existing projects have benefited from the equipment and expertise the Agro Resources team has brought to our operations.”

In addition to its work in Hawaiʻi, Terraformation continues to develop partnerships with global organizations, including Environmental Defenders in Uganda, Action for Nature in Zambia, Eden Reforestation Projects in Kenya, Hope Ministries in Malawi, Humans for Abundance in the Amazon rainforest, and Kilimanjaro Project in Tanzania, as well as other groups spanning India and Ukraine. The work is led by founder and CEO Yishan Wong, previously CEO of Reddit and an early-stage engineer at Facebook and PayPal.

About Terraformation

Terraformation is dedicated to restoring the world’s forests to stabilize our climate, revive ecosystems, and build thriving communities. The company operates as a forest carbon accelerator, supporting early-stage forestry teams to launch, build, and scale biodiverse reforestation projects. In addition to producing high-quality, verified carbon credits, these projects generate complementary sustainable revenue streams to support local economies. Terraformation’s current partner network spans five continents and includes diverse landowners and organizations. It was founded in 2019 by Yishan Wong, former CEO of Reddit.