Instituto iSocial

What Instituto iSocial does

Instituto iSocial is a Brazilian social technology startup founded in 2019 by Mauro Moraes and headquartered in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais. The company operates a three-sided platform that connects individual volunteers, civil society organizations (CSOs/ONGs), and private or public entities, matching volunteers to social initiatives based on skills, personality, and preferred causes across all 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals. Distribution is mobile-first, with dedicated iOS and Android applications on Google Play and Apple App Store, complemented by a web interface at isocial.org.br.

The core technology consists of a text-based matching/recommendation system that processes volunteer profiles, organizational initiative descriptions, and cause preferences to suggest relevant projects. Around this core, iSocial has built a portfolio of adjacent modules: the Carbon Free Program, an NFT marketplace for the generation and commercialization of carbon credits tied to social impact; the Benefits Club, a gamification and incentive program rewarding CSOs for engagement through notifications, social media mentions, bonus donations, and in-app credits; and a Financial Module that enables in-app donation processing. In 2022, the company integrated with Pronatura, an environmental organization, forming a single entity to combine technology-led volunteer matching with on-the-ground environmental action. The platform is LGPD-compliant under Brazilian Federal Law No. 13.709/2018.

Revenue mechanics are not publicly disclosed. The two documented streams are transaction fees on in-app donations between users and civil society organizations, and transaction fees from the commercialization of carbon credits to private organizations via the NFT marketplace. iSocial reports 11-50 employees, operates as a private for-profit entity, and has a single disclosed institutional relationship with FCJ Venture Builder dated 2021, with no cash investment amount recorded. Geographic footprint has expanded from a single Brazilian region at founding to nationwide Brazil coverage, with stated plans for global expansion.

Name

Instituto iSocial

Legal name

Instituto iSocial

Website

https://isocial.org.br

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Instituto iSocial is a Brazilian social technology platform that matches individual volunteers with civil society organizations based on skills and causes, and runs an NFT-based carbon credit marketplace for private organizations pursuing net-zero and ESG goals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Volunteer Management Software

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Business Associations (813910)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAGALAL

Fair Trade & Ethical Supply Chains (Certification, Traceability, Producer Support)

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Social Enterprises & Impact Organizations

Keywords

• Volunteer matching platform
• Carbon credit marketplace
• Civil society software
• Social impact platform
• NGO volunteer management

Headquarters

HQ city

Belo Horizonte

HQ country

Brazil

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. In-app Donations: Platform facilitates monetary donations between users and civil society organizations, with iSocial providing bonus percentages for engagement
2. Carbon Credit Commercialization: Generation and sale of carbon credits to private organizations through NFT marketplace, connecting net-zero initiatives with environmental impact

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Instituto iSocial operates a social technology platform that connects individual volunteers with civil society organizations (CSOs/NGOs) by matching them based on skills, personality, and preferred causes. The platform also generates and commercializes carbon credits to private organizations through an NFT marketplace via its Carbon Free Program, aligning environmental sustainability with social impact.

Product overview

Instituto iSocial operates a unified social technology platform consisting of a core volunteer matching system and mobile applications. The platform connects volunteers with civil society organizations based on skills, personality, and cause preferences. It includes a Carbon Free Program for carbon credit generation via NFT marketplace, a Benefits Club incentive program for CSOs, and a Financial Module for in-app donations. The company partnered with Pronatura in 2022 to integrate environmental sustainability with social impact initiatives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• iSocial Platform A social technology platform that connects volunteers, civil society organizations (CSOs/NGOs), and public/private entities. Matches potential volunteers with social projects based on skills, personality, and preferred causes, enabling collaboration across all UN Sustainable Development Goals.
• iSocial Mobile App Mobile application available on Android and iOS that enables volunteers and organizations to access the iSocial platform on mobile devices, check-in at action locations, and participate in social initiatives.
• Carbon Free Program Generation and commercialization of carbon credits for private organizations through an NFT marketplace and employer net-zero actions. Connects people with net-zero initiatives and aligns carbon credit initiatives with social impact.
• Benefits Club A gamification and incentive program for civil society organizations (CSOs/NGOs) that rewards organizations based on their platform engagement, including notifications to all users, social media mentions, bonus donations, and in-app credits.
• Financial Module A financial module enabling organizations to implement donation processing and receive in-app donations from users, with bonus incentives for high-performing organizations.

Quantifiable outcome

• Carbon credit generation aligned with social impact

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• PronaturacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022iSocial and Pronatura integrated in early 2022, forming a single organization to accelerate environmental sustainability impact. The partnership brings together technology, collaboration, and partners for environmental causes. Pronatura is an important environmental organization focused on sustainability.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Cloverly: Carbon offsetting API platform enabling businesses to embed carbon credit purchases into their products. Comparable in commercializing carbon credits to corporate buyers, but delivered as an API rather than a volunteer-facing marketplace.

Direct peers

• Catchafire: Skills-based volunteer matching platform connecting professionals with nonprofits. Directly comparable skill/personality-based matching model targeting the same volunteer-organization marketplace dynamic.
• Pachama: Carbon credit marketplace connecting corporate buyers with forest conservation projects. Closest direct peer to iSocial's Carbon Free Program, though focused on nature-based credits without iSocial's social-impact overlay.
• VolunteerMatch: Long-standing US-based volunteer-opportunity matching platform for individuals and nonprofits. Closest US analogue to iSocial's core matching product, with a similar two-sided marketplace model.
• Doare: Brazilian online donation platform enabling individuals to donate to vetted NGOs. Comparable Brazilian market presence and NGO/individual donation facilitation, overlapping with iSocial's Financial Module.
• Idealist: Nonprofit jobs and volunteer opportunities platform for mission-driven individuals and organizations. Comparable volunteer-cause matching model with a global footprint, though focused on jobs/paid roles as well as volunteering.
• Atados: Brazil-based volunteer matching platform connecting individuals with NGOs and social causes. Most direct geographic and functional peer to iSocial, operating in the same Brazilian market with a similar volunteer-organization matching model.

Broad incumbents

• Goodera: Enterprise volunteer engagement platform connecting employees with nonprofit opportunities. Comparable in connecting volunteers to social causes via a managed platform, though targeting corporate programs rather than individual-volunteer grassroots matching.
• Benevity: Global corporate volunteering, giving, and grant management platform used by large enterprises. Comparable in serving both volunteers and NGOs/companies at scale, though focused on corporate CSR programs rather than grassroots Brazilian NGOs.

Regional players

• Sou da Paz: Established Brazilian civil society organization working on social and environmental causes. Comparable mission focus on social-environmental impact in Brazil, though structured as a traditional NGO rather than a technology platform.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/instituto-isocial
• Instagraminstagram.com/isocial.org.br
• Facebookfacebook.com/iSocial.org.br

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Instituto iSocial