In 2020, Salesforce founder Marc Benioff backed a global effort to conserve and restore 1 trillion trees, later expanding his climate giving to $300 million

In 2020, Marc and Lynne Benioff put their support behind one of the world's most ambitious forest-restoration efforts: the goal of conserving, restoring and growing 1 trillion trees by the end of the decade. The Benioffs provided the initial financial support to establish 1t.org, a global movement dedicated to accelerating forest conservation and restoration. But their environmental giving soon expanded far beyond that original commitment. In October 2021, the Benioffs and Salesforce announced $300 million in investments aimed at ecosystem restoration and climate justice. According to Salesforce's official announcement, this included a new $100 million Benioff TIME Tree Fund, another $100 million investment through TIME Ventures in ecopreneurs and reforestation ventures, and $100 million in Salesforce grants over the following decade. By then, the Benioffs had already provided $68 million in climate-related grants since 2016. Their environmental philanthropy also extended to ocean conservation, climate technology and community-based forest management, making the trillion-tree campaign part of a much broader climate strategy.Marc Benioff helped launch the global 1 trillion trees effortThe Benioffs' involvement with the trillion-tree movement began in January 2020, when they provided the initial financial support to establish 1t.org. The global movement set out to conserve, restore and grow one trillion trees by the end of the decade, linking governments, businesses, communities and conservation organisations around forest protection. Salesforce's 2021 announcement explained that the initiative was intended to help sequester carbon while restoring and conserving ecosystems. By October 2021, Salesforce had already funded more than 40 million trees towards its own 100-million-tree goal. The company was also a founding member of 1t.org and had made ecosystem restoration one of the central pillars of its climate strategy. The Benioffs' early financial backing therefore helped establish a platform that treated forests as an important part of the global response to climate change rather than focusing solely on corporate emissions reductions.The Benioff TIME Tree Fund added $100 million for forest restorationIn October 2021, Marc and Lynne Benioff announced the $100 million Benioff TIME Tree Fund, designed to accelerate global reforestation efforts associated with 1t.org. According to Salesforce's official announcement, the fund would focus particularly on indigenous and community-based forest management and on helping vulnerable communities and natural ecosystems in emerging and developing countries cope with climate change. The fund formed part of a larger $200 million package of new climate investments from the Benioffs, $100 million for the tree fund and another $100 million through TIME Ventures for ecopreneurs and reforestation ventures. Salesforce reported that the Benioffs had already provided $68 million in climate-related grants since 2016, showing that the 2021 announcement was an expansion of an existing environmental giving programme rather than the beginning of their climate philanthropy.Marc Benioff’s wider environmental giving reached $300 million in 2021The tree fund was only one part of the $300 million environmental package announced by the Benioffs and Salesforce in 2021. Alongside the $200 million in new Benioff climate investments, Salesforce committed another $100 million in grants over 10 years for non-profit organisations working on ecosystem restoration and climate justice. The company also pledged to donate technology and enable its employees to provide 2.5 million volunteer hours to organisations focused on climate action. TIME Ventures was simultaneously committing $100 million to ecopreneurs, building on another $100 million the Benioffs said they had already invested in climate-focused entrepreneurs since 2014. The announcement showed how their environmental giving had developed into several interconnected areas: restoring ecosystems, supporting new climate technologies, helping communities and financing organisations working on climate action.His environmental philanthropy also extended from forests to oceansThe Benioffs' environmental commitments have not been limited to trees. Salesforce's 2021 announcement noted that in 2016 they donated $10 million to the University of California, Santa Barbara, and founded the Benioff Ocean Initiative, a science-based organisation focused on developing ocean solutions. The initiative had funded projects involving technologies designed to intercept plastic in rivers before it reaches the sea, as well as Whale Safe, an AI-powered whale-detection system intended to help ships avoid collisions with whales. The Benioffs also partnered with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and NOAA on the Pacific Islands Research and Conservation programme and became founding members of the World Economic Forum's Friends of Ocean Action initiative, providing nearly $11 million through the Benioff Ocean Initiative. Their environmental giving consequently spans forests, oceans, climate technology and ecosystem restoration, with the trillion-tree campaign forming one of the most visible pieces of a much larger effort to address climate change and nature loss.Catch the latest World News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.