Our Story

Creating Sustainable Landscape Restoration at Scale

Eden: People+Planet combines philanthropic support with carbon market mechanisms to implement carbon-eligible landscape restoration that transforms both environments and communities. Our evolution reflects our commitment to addressing climate change through systemic solutions that ensure lasting impact over 40-year timeframes.

Create Lasting Change

Our Journey

2005-2014

Origins & Historic Accomplishments

Eden began near Hawassa, Ethiopia in 2005, at the request of President Hailemariam Desalegn. These foundational years focused on community employment through tree planting, establishing our deep connection to local communities and demonstrating the potential of nature-based solutions.

This early experience proved invaluable in developing our understanding of community-centered restoration and the need for sustainable funding mechanisms to create lasting change.

2015-2023

Evolution & Learning

As we expanded across multiple countries, we recognized that addressing climate change required more than traditional philanthropic approaches. Our experience implementing large-scale restoration projects revealed the need for sustainable funding mechanisms that could support long-term commitments to landscapes and communities.

This period of growth and learning led us to explore carbon markets as a tool for creating self-sustaining landscape restoration at scale.

2024-Present

Strategic Transformation

In 2025, responding to significant changes in the global funding landscape, Eden made the strategic decision to focus exclusively on carbon-eligible landscapes that combine philanthropic support with carbon market mechanisms. This transformation includes:

  • 40-year commitments to landscapes and communities
  • Blended finance approach ensuring project sustainability
  • Focus on carbon-eligible landscapes with verified impact
  • Development of nature-based solutions to climate change
  • Implementation of standards-based carbon methodologies

Through our subsidiary Compassionate Carbon, we develop high-integrity carbon projects that deliver verified climate impact alongside core benefits for communities and biodiversity.

The Path Forward

Our strategic direction focuses on creating sustainable landscape restoration through blended finance:

  1. Complete the transition to carbon-eligible landscape restoration
  2. Refine carbon project development methodologies
  3. Strengthen internal capacity for carbon project implementation
  4. Build sustainable revenue through carbon credit generation
  5. Position Eden as a leader in nature-based solutions
  6. Demonstrate how blended finance enables lasting impact

This evolution ensures we can continue our mission through market-based mechanisms that create self-sustaining conservation at the scale our planet requires. While we’ve closed our philanthropic-only operations, this responsible adaptation positions us to achieve greater impact through verified carbon projects with exceptional core benefits.

Create Lasting Change

Your support helps develop carbon-eligible landscape restoration projects that combine personal responsibility with systemic solutions. Through our blended finance approach, every dollar of philanthropic support is multiplied through carbon credit generation, creating sustainable funding for 40-year commitments to communities and landscapes.

Join us in proving that nature-based solutions to climate change can create lasting transformation for both people and planet.

Multiply Your Impact