About us
In December 2008, our founder, Shubhendu Sharma, attended a lecture by Dr. Akira Miyawaki at Toyota Bangalore, where he was working as an engineer. The following year, he volunteered with Dr. Miyawaki’s team to create a forest at the Toyota factory. Deeply inspired by Dr. Miyawaki’s teachings, Shubhendu spent the next few years researching, documenting, and experimenting with his guru’s forest creation methodology. On January 1, 2011, he launched Afforestt as an enterprise with a mission to bring back the world’s lost native forests.
Milestones
September 2025
Afforestt in Armenia
Afforestt creates its first forest in the breathtaking ski slopes of the Armenian Caucasus highlands—a new milestone in high altitude forest creation.
November 2024
Forest Creation in Tunisia
Afforestt trains a group of ecologists, architects, designers, and permaculture specialists in native forest creation at The Residence, Tunis, in North Africa.
January 2024
Afforestt at NEOM, Saudi Arabia
Afforestt is selected as a specialist partner for technical studies, ecological research, and native forest design at the futuristic NEOM development.
July 2023
Afforestt in Mexico
A forest is planted in the unique ecology of the central highlands near San Miguel de Allende, Mexico—marking Afforestt’s expansion into new ecologies.
July 2022
Linear Urban Forests in the US
Afforestt partners with Harvard University to conceptualise and implement Linear Urban Forests in American cities, beginning with a pilot in Springfield, Massachusetts.
August 2021
Forestscaping® for the PSA to GoI
Afforestt revives a degraded stretch along Delhi’s Barapulla drain—restoring a riverine forest, installing stone art, and transforming a drain into a thriving ecosystem.
June 2020
Forestscaping® at CAG
Afforestt designs and implements a unique Forestscape® for the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, blending native forests with stone sculptures and artworks.
July 2019
Dr Miyawaki’s Team Visits India
Nishino-san, from Dr. Miyawaki’s team, visits Afforestt projects and inaugurates our forest at Shell Technology Centre, Bangalore.
May 2019
Beirut RiverLESS, Lebanon
Afforestt plants its first forest in Lebanon, along the Beirut River, partially funded through the SUGI initiative.
October 2018
Afforestt Trains IVN
IVN Netherlands wins an award to plant 100 Tiny Forests. Afforestt trains a team of ‘Master Forest Creators’, hosting 17 Dutch trainees at Maruvan.
June 2018
Maruvan is Born
Afforestt launches Maruvan, a pioneering desert restoration initiative to revive the drylands of the Thar desert in Rajasthan, India.
November 2017
Forest Creation in Nicaragua
Afforestt enters Latin America with its first project for Plasencia Cigars in Nicaragua
May 2017
Forestscaping® at Dream Gardens, Lahore
Afforestt coins the term Forestscaping®—a unique integration of forest, design, and art—launching this service with a landmark project in Lahore.
February 2017
Forest at an Airport
Afforestt creates a thriving native forest within the premises of Bangalore Airport, expanding its urban footprint
September 2016
Forest Creation in Iran
A forest is planted in the harsh conditions of Buin Zahra, Qazvin—proving the method’s resilience in extreme climates.
May 2016
First Project under Dr Miyawaki in Japan
Team Afforestt joins Dr. Miyawaki’s Morino Project in Iwanuma, Japan—a landmark moment of learning from the guru.
March 2016
Afforestt in Singapore
A forest is created for Temasek and the Mandai Rainforest Safari Park. Afforestt also trains the staff at the Singapore Zoo in the Miyawaki method.
December 2015
Afforestt in the Netherlands
Afforestt leads its first international community-based project with IVN Netherlands, planting a forest that would inspire a nationwide movement.
August 2015
Afforestt in the US
Afforestt goes global with its first international project—a forest created in the United States in collaboration with Open Source Ecology.
March 2014
TED Fellowship
Shubhendu is named a TED Fellow and speaks at the TED Conference in Vancouver. The release of his talk brings global attention to Afforestt’s work.
September 2013
Ashoka Fellowship
Afforestt is recognised as a social enterprise as Shubhendu is awarded the Ashoka Fellowship, joining a global community of changemakers.
October 2012
INK Fellowship
Shubhendu is awarded the prestigious INK Fellowship and presents Afforestt’s work at the INK Conference, marking a moment of national recognition.
August 2011
First Residential Project
Afforestt takes root as a company, with its first commissioned project: a backyard forest at a private residence in Whitefield, Bangalore.
November 2010
First Backyard Forest
Shubhendu Sharma independently creates his first native forest in Uttarakhand, India, using the Miyawaki Method. A few non-native species mistakenly planted here become an important early lesson.
December 2008
First Forest with Dr. Miyawaki
Our journey began at Toyota, Bangalore, where working closely with the Guru inspired a lifelong commitment to restoring native forests worldwide.
Since its inception, Afforestt has built its expertise in creating multi-layered indigenous forests through extensive field studies, meticulous research, thorough documentation, innovative design, and practical application. Over time, we integrated into our work the techniques and methodologies of some of the world’s foremost botanists, ecologists, and soil experts, including Subhash Palekar, Peter Wohlleben, and Elaine Ingham.
What began as a small experiment in Sharma’s backyard soon grew into a global movement—combining scientific rigour with a deep respect for natural systems. Over the years, we have evolved into a team of forest-makers, ecologists, designers, and storytellers, restoring ecosystems of arid landscapes, tropical regions, dense urban environments, and temperate climates across continents.
To achieve our goals, we have adopted an approach of unified divergence by focusing our efforts in three directions:
01
Business
At Afforestt Eco Services, we transform landscapes by offering ecological solutions tailored to specific geographies, using our forest creation expertise.
02
Global Community
At Afforestt Institute, we nurture a worldwide network of people passionate about bringing back forests — from practitioners and organisations to curious learners and supporters.
03
Revival
At Maruvan by Afforestt, we work to revive lands challenged by desertification and drought, bringing life back to areas once thought barren.
Leadership
Shubhendu Sharma
Founder
Sunny Verma
Director
Sunny Verma has been associated with Afforestt since 2013, first as a forest creation enthusiast and then as a full-time member from 2015. He has been instrumental in expanding Afforestt into a global forest creation enterprise by conceptualising and leading projects across India and 10 other countries. Sunny plays a key role in research, documentation, design, and execution of projects. His love for forests is reflected in extensive field studies in pristine wildernesses, including Horton Plains in Sri Lanka, Shenandoah National Park in the US, Wadi Al Disah in Saudi Arabia, and Kanha Tiger Reserve in India. Sunny specialises in translating data and observations from natural forests into Afforestt’s forest creation projects.
Gaurav Gurjar
Director
Gaurav Gurjar is a conservation practitioner and Founding Director at Maruvan Foundation. Since 2017, he has also served as the in-house Jungle Ecology expert at Afforestt. Trained in Permaculture at the Permaculture Research Institute, Australia (Geoff Lawton’s PDC), Gaurav blends expertise in forest ecology, earth construction, and wildlife conservation with hands-on project delivery and community engagement. His work has been recognised internationally — he represented India at Terra Madre (Slow Food International) in 2015 and received the Godrej Green Champion award the same year. Gaurav specialises in arid land restoration and the creation of permanent hydration systems.