WE SCALE

Restoring Landscapes at Scale

Restore the Earth Foundation restores landscapes at scale, working across entire ecosystems where environmental health, community needs, and economic vitality are closely connected.

By restoring large areas of degraded land and reconnecting forests, waterways, wildlife habitat, and working lands, we create resilient landscapes that deliver lasting environmental and economic benefits.

Restore the Earth restores forest and wetland ecosystems on a landscape-scale so that our work has the greatest impact possible for business, the environment and communities.

We are restoring 1 million acres of degraded land in the Mississippi River Basin, North America’s Amazon.

FOREST RESTORATION

Forests are foundational to healthy landscapes.

Well-managed forests support wildlife habitat, stabilize soils, improve water retention and filtration, and strengthen the productivity of working lands. They provide essential resources for communities while improving the resilience of agricultural and natural systems.

Restoring forests at scale improves watershed performance, reduces downstream impacts, and supports sustainable land stewardship for generations.

WETLAND RESTORATION

Wetlands connect vital land and water systems.

They slow and store floodwaters, protect communities, recharge groundwater, filter nutrients and sediment, and stabilize soils. Healthy wetlands improve water quality while reducing erosion and downstream impacts.

They also support fisheries, agriculture, recreation, and rural economies. Restoring wetlands strengthens both ecological function and community resilience

SEE OUR PROJECTS

Why Landscape-Scale Restoration Matters

Restoring landscapes at scale creates reinforcing benefits across soil, water, habitat, and communities.
When degraded lands are restored:

• Flood risks are reduced
• Watersheds function more effectively
• Wildlife habitat expands
• Rural economies benefit from long-term stewardship
• Communities gain resilience and stability

Large-scale restoration transforms fragmented or degraded lands into productive, resilient landscapes that deliver measurable environmental and social outcomes.

Expanding Landscape Restoration

Landscape-scale restoration is already underway across priority regions of the Mississippi River Basin.

The opportunity now is to expand these efforts strategically and responsibly through partnerships with landowners, public agencies, and private supporters.

Together, we can restore more land, strengthen rural landscapes, and ensure lasting benefits for generations.

Learn More About REF’s Restoration Initiatives

Restoration of healthy ecosystems reduces risk, makes communities more resilient, enhances health and well-being, creates jobs, improves livelihoods, provides a sense of place and reaffirms cultural heritage. It’s an opportunity to transform degraded land into assets that create incredible value and be boldly proactive in the fight against climate change.

Landscape scale reforestation is a significant, low-cost way to keep the world within the 2°C warming threshold. And it has the potential to cut global warming by 0.5°C by the end of the century.

Landscape scale restoration is underway – it’s not pie-in-the-sky. And it’s on the global agenda.