PlanAdapt
PlanAdapt is a Berlin-based, non-profit knowledge services organization delivering research, advisory, and capacity-strengthening work on climate change adaptation and risk management, primarily serving donors, governments, and researchers across the Global South.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersBerlin, Germany
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What PlanAdapt does
PlanAdapt is a Berlin-headquartered, non-profit knowledge services organization founded in 2017, focused on climate change adaptation and climate risk management with a deliberate orientation toward the Global South. Its core service lines include applied research, policy advisory, capacity strengthening, knowledge brokering, and the convening of practitioner communities across adaptation, disaster risk reduction, and loss-and-damage agendas.
The organization operates as a distributed network rather than a conventional consultancy: it works with more than 100 affiliated researchers and facilitators globally and delivers programmes through structured platforms such as the Climate Co-Adaptation Lab, the CLARE Capacity Strengthening Hub, COOL4all (a hosted platform for heat-adaptation solutions launched in 2025), and the Climate Adaptation Capacity Wheel / CRIDA frameworks. A notable technical asset is the Global Adaptation Mapping Initiative (GAMI), which applied machine learning to roughly 80,000 scientific documents and machine-coded approximately 1,600 articles to produce a structured adaptation evidence base. Delivery is increasingly regionalized through the 2024 establishment of a Rwanda-based affiliate, CARC, and through partnerships with APAN, AIMS, Adaptation Without Borders, and the Adaptation Research Alliance.
PlanAdapt's revenue model is project-based grant funding from bilateral and multilateral donors and foundations, including the Climate Development Knowledge Network (CDKN), FCDO, IDRC, and the Humboldt Foundation, with no disclosed commercial pricing. Its customer base comprises development donors, governments in climate-vulnerable jurisdictions, and research consortia rather than commercial enterprises, which constrains the addressable market but aligns incentives with long-horizon adaptation outcomes.
PlanAdapt firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- PlanAdapt
- Legal name
- PlanAdapt Collaborative gemeinnützige UG
- Website
- https://plan-adapt.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- PlanAdapt is a Berlin-based, non-profit knowledge services organization delivering research, advisory, and capacity-strengthening work on climate change adaptation and risk management, primarily serving donors, governments, and researchers across the Global South.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
PlanAdapt industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Climate Adaptation Consulting
- NAICS
- Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Climate Change Mitigation & Adaptation (BPAGAGAF)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Climate Adaptation & Resilience Programs (BPADALAD)
Keywords
Where PlanAdapt is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Berlin
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices7 records
Markets served
PlanAdapt business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels6 records
PlanAdapt product offering
Product offeringCore offering
PlanAdapt is an independent global network-based non-profit organization that provides knowledge services in support of effective, economically just and socially inclusive climate change adaptation and climate risk management, with a particular focus on the Global South. Its core offerings include research synthesis, capacity strengthening, knowledge brokering, scenario planning facilitation, advisory services, and peer learning platforms delivered through a collaborative model connecting researchers, enablers and facilitators across multiple geographies.
Product overview
PlanAdapt is an independent global network-based organization that provides knowledge services for effective, economically just, and socially inclusive climate change adaptation and climate risk management. The organization operates through a portfolio of interconnected products and services rather than a unified software platform. Core offerings include the Climate Co-Adaptation Lab for collaborative innovation, the CLARE Capacity Strengthening Hub for research capacity building in Africa and Asia-Pacific, and the PlanAdapt Topic Forum for thematic knowledge exchange. The emerging COOL4ALL Online Indoor Heat Adaptation Platform provides personalized guidance for heat adaptation. Additional offerings include the Climate Adaptation Capacity Wheel assessment tool, the FEBA Urban EbA Working Group, a Research For Impact MOOC, ecosystem-based flood risk management studies, and the Responsive Fund grant program. The organization also provides workshops on knowledge brokering, gender equality, and communication, along with peer learning sessions and seasonal schools for immersive learning experiences.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- CLARE Capacity Strengthening Hub A hub co-hosted by PlanAdapt and the African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS) that supports researchers, practitioners, and decision-makers across Africa and Asia to enhance the quality, relevance, and impact of climate adaptation research, while fostering equity, inclusion, and collaborative learning across the CLARE portfolio.
- Climate Co-Adaptation Lab A Lab approach that facilitates co-creating and innovating climate adaptation solutions through experiential learning spaces, social innovation labs, and collaborative problem-solving across researchers, enablers, and facilitators.
- COOL4all Online Indoor Heat Adaptation Platform An emerging low-tech, online platform concept designed to provide personalized, practical guidance to help individuals adapt their indoor spaces to extreme heat, featuring tailored adaptation strategies, ventilation and shading guidance, and collaborative spaces for sharing experiences.
- PlanAdapt Topic Forum A learning and sharing platform that enables exchange about concepts and ideas in thematic areas of concern to PlanAdapt, including climate change adaptation, resilience, risk management, nature-based solutions, and climate justice, with particular focus on the Global South.
- MEL of Capacity Strengthening Framework A practical framework for matching monitoring, evaluation and learning approaches to different capacity strengthening modalities, including informational, instructional, relational, and experiential approaches.
- Climate Adaptation Capacity Wheel An organizational readiness assessment tool that helps organizations evaluate their capacity for climate adaptation at scale.
- Research For Impact MOOC A Massive Open Online Course on Coursera that helps researchers learn how to do research that influences change in policy, practice, behaviour and attitudes, with PlanAdapt team members serving as course instructors.
- Ecosystem-Based Flood Risk Management Comparative Studies Comparative research reports examining ecosystem-based approaches to flood risk management in African cities including Cape Town, Durban, Nairobi, and Mombasa.
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 100 researchers collaborated on the Global Adaptation Mapping Initiative through crowdsourced effort
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use PlanAdapt
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
PlanAdapt technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
PlanAdapt partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
26 partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and major.
- CLARE Programme PartnerscorePanel session at APAN Forum featuring 6 CLARE projects across Asia including CLARE-ASEAN, SUCCESS, CLARITY, iCRA, ClimateREEFS, and Innovative Facilitation project demonstrating transformational adaptation in practice.
- UN Early Warnings for All InitiativeminorCOOL4ALL platform concept inspired by UN's EW4All Initiative, applying principles of timely, locally relevant and actionable information to indoor heat adaptation context.
- African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS)majorNew partnership between AIMS and CARC (Climate Adaptation Research & Consulting) for Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) Programme announced March 2026.
- African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS)coreCo-host of the CLARE Capacity Strengthening Hub, co-funded by FCDO and IDRC. The Hub supports researchers, practitioners, and decision-makers across Africa and Asia to enhance the quality, relevance, and impact of adaptation research while fostering equity, inclusion, and collaborative learning.
- Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU)corePartnership to provide knowledge broker intelligence as part of Commonwealth Futures Climate Research Cohort 2023-24 programme supporting early career researchers from 10 target countries.
- University of Cape Town Researcher Development AcademycorePartnership for Commonwealth Futures Climate Research Cohort 2023-24 providing knowledge broker training and practical guidance to enhance research-to-action capabilities.
- International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD)majorCollaboration on urban agriculture research and governance in Sub-Saharan African cities. ICCCAD leads the Voices from the Frontline series capturing community responses to COVID-19 and climate change.
- Alexander von Humboldt FoundationmajorHost partner for International Climate Protection Fellowship programme. Hosts Research Fellows from the Global South to conduct pilot studies on gender mainstreaming in climate change adaptation and development planning.
- Ecologic InstituteminorLike-minded hosting organization for mutual learning process between Global South and German climate protection experts.
- Adelphi ResearchminorLike-minded hosting organization for mutual learning process between Global South and German climate protection experts.
- Climate Service Center Germany (GERICS)minorLike-minded hosting organization for mutual learning process between Global South and German climate protection experts.
- Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF)minorLike-minded hosting organization for mutual learning process between Global South and German climate protection experts.
- SouthSouthNorth (SSN)corePartner in the Adaptation Research Alliance, launched at the Gobeshona Conference and Global Adaptation Summit in January 2021. ARA aims to catalyze and scale investment in action-oriented research for climate adaptation and resilience.
- Adaptation Research AlliancecoreInitial member of ARA launched at Gobeshona Conference and Global Adaptation Summit January 2021. ARA is a global partnership to catalyze and scale investment in action-oriented research for climate adaptation and resilience.
- Adaptation Without Borders (AWB)coreJoined AWB as official partner in January 2021 to advance understanding and management of transboundary climate risks that travel across borders, sectors, and ecosystems. This partnership builds on PlanAdapt's initial research work on transboundary climate risks.
- King's College London - Department of GeographymajorInternship collaboration through the Environmental Internship module, providing opportunity for King's College students to gain practical experience at PlanAdapt's Coordination Hub.
- Green-Grey Infrastructure Community of PracticemajorCoordinating partner for World Cities Day Webinar on Ecosystem-based Adaptation in Cities alongside FEBA and Green-Grey Infrastructure Community of Practice.
- Global Climate ForumcoreCollaborative partnership to develop qualitative risk scenarios on climate-induced crisis in Europe. PlanAdapt and Global Climate Forum conducted a study on near-term climate impacts with significant economic risks for the EU economy, exploring direct physical climate impacts and indirect transboundary climate impacts.
- Heinrich-Böll-FoundationcorePartner in the 'Transformative responses to the crisis' project alongside Finance Watch Deutschland, which aims to develop scenarios for future economic and financial crisis and create policy proposals for sustainable economies.
- Finance Watch DeutschlandcorePartner in the 'Transformative responses to the crisis' project to develop scenarios for future economic and financial crisis and create policy proposals for sustainable economies.
- Global Resilience PartnershipmajorCollaborated on CBA14 session alongside ICCCAD, CDKN, and SDI focused on locally-led adaptation and urban ecosystem-based adaptation along the urban-rural continuum.
- International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)coreCo-chair of the FEBA Urban EbA Working Group alongside PlanAdapt. The working group develops practical examples of urban EbA interventions and explores links to climate justice through proposed EbA Social Principles.
- Friends of Ecosystem-based Adaptation (FEBA)corePlanAdapt coordinates the FEBA Urban EbA Working Group alongside IUCN. The working group has published a technical paper on Climate Justice and Urban EbA and gathers practical examples of urban EbA interventions.
- GIZmajorTraining collaboration in Central Asia and peer learning framework development. PlanAdapt contributes to GIZ's approach to peer learning for climate action.
- United Nations University and Eurac ResearchmajorTraining course collaboration on theory and practice of climate change adaptation in high mountain areas.
- Leuphana University / Arizona State UniversityminorKnowledge collaboration for initiatives focused on shaping the future of climate adaptation education.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
PlanAdapt competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED): Long-established UK-based research and policy NGO that links local priorities with global policy on sustainable development, climate adaptation and inclusive urbanization - the closest structural analog to PlanAdapt, working on similar knowledge-brokering and Global South adaptation themes through grant-funded programmes.
- International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD): Bangladesh-based centre focused on climate change adaptation research, capacity building and policy support for vulnerable countries. Direct partner of PlanAdapt and a near-overlapping mission around action-oriented research and locally-led adaptation in the Global South.
- SouthSouthNorth (SSN): Non-profit that supports climate adaptation and just transition work in developing countries through project implementation, advisory services and networks. PlanAdapt is a fellow Adaptation Research Alliance partner, and both organizations operate at the intersection of research, capacity building and project delivery in vulnerable geographies.
- Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN): Global network that designs and delivers knowledge services, training and advisory support for climate-resilient development in low- and middle-income countries. Both organizations are networked intermediaries funded by donors (FCDO/IDRC) to broker climate adaptation knowledge into policy and practice.
- African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS): Kenya-based research and policy organization generating knowledge on climate change, sustainability and development in Africa. Co-host of the CLARE Capacity Strengthening Hub with PlanAdapt and thus the most directly co-programmatic peer in the dataset.
- Global Resilience Partnership (GRP): Partnership dedicated to building resilience to shocks and stresses in the world's most vulnerable regions, with a strong knowledge-brokering and locally-led adaptation remit. Listed as a PlanAdapt collaborator on CBA14 and shares the same funder-aligned, network-model operating approach.
Broad incumbents
- Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI): Large independent research organization with established climate adaptation, resilience and policy practice globally. A broader incumbent that overlaps with PlanAdapt on adaptation research and capacity strengthening, but operates across many more domains with deeper institutional resources.
- Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ): German federal development agency executing large-scale climate adaptation and capacity-development programmes worldwide. An established incumbent that commissions and competes with PlanAdapt, but at vastly larger scale and with permanent institutional funding.
- International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN): Global conservation union that convenes the FEBA network and has substantial climate adaptation programming. PlanAdapt co-chairs the FEBA Urban EbA Working Group with IUCN, positioning IUCN as both a peer partner and a vastly larger incumbent in the same domain.
- World Resources Institute (WRI): Global research organization with a major climate adaptation, resilience and water portfolio (including Aqueduct and the Adaptation Initiative). Significantly larger and broader, but overlaps substantively with PlanAdapt on producing actionable adaptation knowledge for decision-makers.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
PlanAdapt social profiles
Digital presencePlanAdapt compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
PlanAdapt financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
PlanAdapt leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
PlanAdapt funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
PlanAdapt M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about PlanAdapt
What does PlanAdapt do?
PlanAdapt is an independent global network-based non-profit organization that provides knowledge services in support of effective, economically just and socially inclusive climate change adaptation and climate risk management, with a particular focus on the Global South. Its core offerings include research synthesis, capacity strengthening, knowledge brokering, scenario planning facilitation, advisory services, and peer learning platforms delivered through a collaborative model connecting researchers, enablers and facilitators across multiple geographies.
Is PlanAdapt a public or private company?
PlanAdapt is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was PlanAdapt founded?
PlanAdapt was founded in 2017. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is PlanAdapt based?
PlanAdapt is headquartered in Berlin, Germany, in the Europe region.
Who are PlanAdapt's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD), SouthSouthNorth (SSN), Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN), African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS) and Global Resilience Partnership (GRP). Broad incumbents are Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and World Resources Institute (WRI).
Does PlanAdapt have an API?
No public API is recorded for PlanAdapt.
What industry is PlanAdapt in?
PlanAdapt's product category is Climate Adaptation Consulting. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAGAF, Climate Change Mitigation & Adaptation, with a secondary code of BPADALAD, Climate Adaptation & Resilience Programs. Its NAICS code is 54172.