Tim Sweeney is a name most people won’t recognize. However, he is the founder and CEO of Epic Games, the company behind the popular video game Fortnite. The game takes place on the infamous Fortnite map, and each new season brings changes to the landscape. Players explore everywhere from urban areas, forests, snowy mountains, deserts, and tropical locations.

Sweeney’s impact on digital landscapes has extended to reality. He has quietly pursued private conservation efforts. He started this venture in 2008, starting in North Carolina. His first major land acquisition was the Box Creek Wilderness, NC, a roughly 7,000-acre area of mountainous forests. He later placed the land under a permanent conservation easement with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Sweeney purchased the land just before the incoming development plans, prohibiting the destruction of the land and simultaneously protecting over 130 rare species.

Sweeney’s efforts have made the news as people have begun to uncover the vast amount of conservation work he has done in the past. The recent news trends, investigating how billionaires use their money, seem to be behind why his conservation efforts are coming to light now.

Sweeney has chosen to keep most of his work out of the public eye, steering away from recognition and focusing more on the environmental impact itself. He has continued to acquire and preserve tens of thousands of acres across the Appalachian region.

Siena Trainor, senior editor 2025-26

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