Restoring Forests at Scale: Terraformation on Value Beyond Carbon and the Power of Partnerships
- World Climate Foundation
- 15 hours ago
- 2 min read
During the interview with World Climate Foundation, Damian Kuhn, Chief Forestry Officer at Terraformation, outlines the company’s mission to accelerate large-scale native forest restoration worldwide. Terraformation works with governments, communities, landowners and scientists to develop landscape-level projects, combining ecological science with community-driven design.
“The biggest misconception is when people say that the price of the carbon is the price of the forest. That’s not true. The value of the forest is much more than only the value of the carbon”.
While carbon markets remain the most operational source of financing for nature-based solutions, forests provide a wide range of ecosystem services, from water regulation and soil restoration to social and economic benefits.
Terraformation focuses on four pillars:
Building a strong narrative that communicates the full value of forests.
Continuing to innovate with tools such as their TerraWare software.
Expanding concrete restoration projects on the ground.
Teaching, spreading and sharing knowledge to empower local communities and Indigenous peoples.
These efforts, supported by platforms like the World Climate Foundation, aim to accelerate the scale and credibility of nature-based solutions globally.
The interview was recorded at the World Climate Summit & The Investment COP 2025 in Belém.
Watch the full conversation:
Damien Kuhn
Chief Forestry Officer, VP of Forestry, Terraformation
Leading Terraformation’s Forestry, Science, and Partnerships teams, Damien Kuhn develops projects with global partners and organizations that will generate environmental, social, and economic benefits to reach reforestation goals, including the mission of planting 1 trillion trees.
Prior to Terraformation, Damien was Chief Operating Officer at Kinomé and was responsible for developing partnerships worldwide and managing a portfolio of community-based forestry projects in Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America.
An agronomist and forestry engineer by trade, Damien specializes in environmental economics and ethical leadership and has advised governments, international agencies, and companies on forestry, climate, and sustainable best practices. His background in innovating financing of land and ecosystem restoration projects has led him to roles with private and nonprofit organizations, including the United Nations Development Programme.
Damien holds multiple degrees, including an MS in Environmental Affairs from AgroParisTech and an MS in Environmental Science from Wageningen University & Research.