<p>What happens when a search engine gives up its right to ever profit and puts every euro into restoring the planet instead?</p><p></p><p>In this episode, host Alexander Watson sits down with Christian Kroll, founder and CEO of Ecosia, and Pieter van Midwoud, Ecosia's Tree Planting Officer, just days before the company celebrates a landmark milestone: 250 million trees growing across more than 40 countries.</p><p></p><p>But this conversation goes well beyond the number.</p><p></p><p>Christian unpacks why he legally signed away his shares to a purpose foundation - making Ecosia unsellable and profit-free for individuals - and why he's now building Europe's first independent search index as a matter of geopolitical sovereignty. With US big tech dominance increasingly weaponizable, Ecosia may be quietly becoming critical digital infrastructure for the free world.</p><p></p><p>Pieter pulls back the curtain on what 250 million trees actually means on the ground: 80% survival rates, 2,000 native species, independent audits by botanical gardens, satellite monitoring, and a portfolio that deliberately keeps 50% of projects in the hardest-to-finance category because some ecosystems can't wait for a business case.</p><p></p><p>Together, they explore:</p><ul><li>How Ecosia's circular funding model reinvests returns from agroforestry and renewable energy back into restoration</li><li>Why carbon markets alone will never solve nature finance and what stable, non-speculative funding actually looks like</li><li>The parallel between the energy transition and land use: where regenerative agriculture is today, and what needs to shift</li><li>What project developers need to know to connect with Ecosia's tree planting program</li><li>Why eating less meat and switching your default search engine are two of the most underrated climate actions available right now</li></ul><p></p><p>This episode is for nature project developers, corporate sustainability teams, impact investors, and anyone who wants to understand how technology and landscape restoration can work together, not against each other.</p>