Founded in June 2015 in El Segundo, California by Wendy Burton (co-chair and primary founder), with the mission to plant Paulownia (Empress Splendor)—one of the fastest-growing hardwood trees—as a climate-impact and investment platform. The company’s founding vision: partner with small farmers in North and Central America to plant and cultivate Empress trees, offering profit-sharing to farmers, investors, and the company while sequestering carbon and restoring soils
World Tree sells revenue-share investments, funding planting of Empress trees in agroforestry settings. The trees are used in premium hardwood markets (furniture, veneers, musical instruments, etc.), and each acre absorbs large amounts of CO₂ annually—roughly offsetting several individuals’ carbon footprints.
As of mid‑2025, World Tree has planted over 6,000–7,000 acres of Empress trees across farms in North and Latin America, working with several hundred partner farmers. Carbon impact is strong: each acre sequesters up to 103 tons of CO₂ annually, yielding both climate benefit and ecosystem improvement (e.g. honey production, soil regeneration).
Focus remains on scaling acres planted, onboarding more farmers, and engaging investors for long-term timber revenue sharing. Revenue to date remains modest—reflecting early stage pre-harvest timeframe—but the organization is valued at tens of millions and seeking global climate and financial impact.