The Yrkja Fund was established in 1992. The initial capital in the fund consisted of proceeds from the sale of the book Yrkja, published to commemorate the 60th birthday of Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, then president of Iceland. The initial capital was around 50 million ISK.

At the request of Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, the interest from the fund is used to purchase plants for elementary school children. The response from the schools in Iceland has been very positive, but around 7.000-8.000 children participate in the planting of Yrkja trees annually, with around 30.000 trees planted each year.

The Icelandic Forestry Association supervises the Yrkja Fund, in collaboration with the Fund‘s board.