Forest Restoration
209-acre first phase reintroducing native and canoe crop species like ʻulu and aʻaliʻi. This land spent over a century in sugarcane and macadamia nut cultivation.
( Restoration, Cultural Gathering Forest )
ʻIole
Restoring Native Forest to Revive ʻIole's Ahupuaʻa for Future Generations
- ( Location )
- Hawaiʻi Island
- ( Ahupuaʻa )
- Kapaʻau, ʻĀinakea, ʻIole
- ( Project Type )
- Forest Restoration
Overview
ʻIole is a 2,400-acre ahupuaʻa in North Kohala, land that spent over a century in sugarcane and macadamia nut cultivation before this project began. Terraformation Hawaiʻi leads the first phase of restoration here under the name Ulu Lāʻau o ka ʻĀina, alongside partners Hawaiʻi Community Foundation, the University of Hawaiʻi, and Arizona State University. Combining native forest restoration, ʻulu and tropical fruit orchard cultivation, and silvopasture on the same land, the project aims to establish ʻIole as a center for knowledge exchange and hands-on learning for North Kohala, extending impact beyond Hawaiʻi Island through pathways for faculty and students to engage.
Forest Restoration
Total Project Area
209 acre parcel
Project Start Date
2025
In Progress
10,000+ planned trees
Join the movement
Grow ʻIole's Forest, Every Month
Choose a monthly or yearly tree subscription below and watch a Hawaiian forest take root, one native tree at a time.
Every subscription helps start a native forest at ʻIole. Your support funds the whole restoration journey from seed collection to long-term care and forest monitoring.
Approach & Phasing
A phased, community-rooted approach to restoring ʻIole's native forest, one acre at a time.
Community-Led
Kohala High School students, university researchers, and North Kohala community members are part of every phase of the project, so that ʻIole becomes a center for knowledge.
Two Ways of Knowing
Hawaiʻi Community Foundation, University of Hawaiʻi, and Arizona State University bring Indigenous knowledge and modern science together.
Successes
7,000 trees and counting
800 native trees have been planted with over 6,000 additional trees and 3,000 understory plants to be planted later this year.
Community-powered restoration
Kohala High School students, university researchers, and North Kohala community members contribute to the project.
Reviving native species
The first phase reintroduces native and canoe crop species, including ʻulu and aʻaliʻi, to land that spent over a century in sugarcane and macadamia cultivation.
Share your treeFollow @terraformationhawaii
Planted a tree at ʻIole? Take a picture!
Post your photo on Instagram, tag @globalterraform and @terraformationhawaii, and use #ReforestTheFuture so we can find it and share your tree with the wider forest community.
I planted a native tree at ʻIole in North Kohala with @globalterraform and @terraformationhawaii. 🌱 Learn more and begin growing a forest at terraformation.com/plant #ReforestTheFuture
Interested in learning more about Terraformation's Tree Subscription program?
Our team will reach out to you to answer any questions you may have about starting a partnership with Terraformation.
Contact UsNews and Highlights
HAWAIʻI Magazine
Restoring Hawaiʻi's Native Forests One Tree at a Time
A look at how a Terraformation tree subscription funds the growing, planting, and ongoing care of native Hawaiian trees — a meaningful way to give back to the Islands.
Read More
Hawaii Business Magazine
This Big Island Startup Turns Degraded Land into Thriving Ecosystems
Terraformation started by planting 7,200 trees and plants. The ultimate goal: restoring 3 billion acres across the globe.
Read More
Esri · ArcWatch
Shaping the Approach to Reforestation
Discover how Terraformation uses Esri's GIS technology to accelerate large-scale native forest restoration worldwide, empowering partners with tools to plan, monitor, and scale.
Read More