Planetary Health Alliance

What Planetary Health Alliance does

The Planetary Health Alliance (PHA) is a nonprofit consortium founded in 2015 to coordinate the global planetary health movement. PHA functions as a membership-based platform connecting more than 550 universities, NGOs, research institutes, and government entities across 80+ countries (with 57% of members in low- and middle-income countries). Its core offerings include a curated research library of approximately 3,000 articles and tools, a global inventory of 221 planetary health courses across 20+ countries, the Planetary Health Textbook (available in French, Italian, Japanese, Korean, and Spanish translations via Island Press and partners), the Planetary Health Education Framework, and the Roadmap and Action Plan covering Measuring, Communicating, Educating, Governing, Business, and Mainstreaming planetary health. Supporting programs include nine Regional Hubs (Caribbean, East Africa, East Asia, Europe, Latin America, North America, Oceania, South & Southeast Asia, Southern Africa, and West Africa), the Campus Ambassador Program, Impact and Communications Fellowships, seven working groups (including a newly added AI & Innovation working group), an online community on the Hylo platform, a monthly newsletter reaching 23,000+ subscribers, and the biennial Planetary Health Annual Meeting that brings together thousands from 130+ countries. PHA's global secretariat has been hosted by Johns Hopkins University at the Hopkins Bloomberg Center in Washington, DC since November 2023, having previously been hosted by Harvard University.

PHA operates a freemium membership model with no financial commitments required to join for either individuals or organizations, which means growth is measured in member counts, reach, and convening impact rather than revenue. The alliance is funded through grants from foundations and donors, with the Rockefeller Foundation having provided founding support following the 2015 Rockefeller Foundation-Lancet Commission report that articulated the planetary health field. The Annual Meeting, an 18-month convening cycle that has rotated across the US, Scotland, Brazil, Malaysia, and the Netherlands and is scheduled for Tokyo in 2027, is PHA's flagship engagement event. The Secretariat is led by an Executive Director (Rachel Marcus) and a Faculty Director (Sam Myers), with a small staff of approximately 15 program, communications, partnership, education, and administrative roles.

Name

Planetary Health Alliance

Legal name

Planetary Health Alliance

Website

https://planetaryhealthalliance.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Planetary Health Alliance is a nonprofit consortium coordinating the global planetary health movement through 565+ member organizations across 80+ countries, offering educational frameworks, a 3,000-resource research library, fellowship and ambassador programs, nine regional hubs, and a biennial global annual meeting.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Planetary Health Consortium Services

NAICS

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

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Global Health Research, Evidence & Technical Assistance Organizations (HLAJAKAN)

akta.pro secondary industry

Global Health Advocacy, Policy & Rights Organizations (HLAJAKAO)

Keywords

• Planetary health research
• Environmental health education
• Public health consortium
• Climate health advocacy
• Global health network

Headquarters

HQ city

Boston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Grant Funding: The Planetary Health Alliance is funded through grants from foundations and donors. The alliance acknowledges generous supporters who enable coordination of global initiatives, strengthening networks, and mobilizing communities. Key founding support came from the Rockefeller Foundation.
2. Membership Dues: There are no financial commitments required for joining the Alliance at this time. Membership is free for both individuals and organizations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Planetary Health Alliance is a global consortium of 550+ member organizations from 80+ countries that coordinates research, education, advocacy, and community-building around the intersection of human health and environmental change. It operates through nine Regional Hubs, thematic working groups, an online community on Hylo, the biennial Planetary Health Annual Meeting, and a portfolio of educational resources including a textbook, Education Framework, Roadmap and Action Plan, and a curated Research & Resource Library of approximately 3,000 articles and tools.

Product overview

The Planetary Health Alliance is a global consortium of 550+ organizations from 80+ countries focused on advancing the field and movement of planetary health. The organization operates as a platform of interconnected programs and resources rather than a single software product. Its core offerings include the Research & Resources Library (approximately 3,000 curated research articles), the Global Inventory of Planetary Health Courses (221+ courses across 20+ countries), the Planetary Health Textbook (available in multiple translations), the Education Framework, and the Roadmap and Action Plan. Supporting infrastructure includes nine Regional Hubs spanning global geographic areas, the Campus Ambassador Program, Fellowship Programs, Monthly Newsletter (23,000+ subscribers), an Online Community on Hylo, Working Groups organized by thematic focus, and the biennial Planetary Health Annual Meeting. Together, these programs provide education, research coordination, community building, and policy advocacy for the planetary health movement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Research & Resources Library A curated collection of approximately 3,000 research articles, tools, videos, and other resources spanning planetary health topics, organized by resource type, Earth system changes, health impacts, sectors, interventions, perspectives, and regions.
• Global Inventory of Planetary Health Courses A comprehensive directory of undergraduate and graduate programs, certificates, open-access courses, summer schools, and enrolled courses across 20+ countries, including virtual and in-person formats covering planetary health topics.
• Planetary Health Textbook The textbook 'Planetary Health: Protecting Nature to Protect Ourselves' co-edited by Dr. Samuel Myers and Dr. Howard Frumkin, published in partnership with Island Press, covering health impacts of Earth's natural systems degradation. Available in French, Italian, Japanese, and Korean translations.
• Planetary Health Education Framework A foundational framework providing common language for planetary health education, created through transdisciplinary and international collaboration to guide diverse education strategies.
• Planetary Health Roadmap and Action Plan A practical implementation guide developed by over 100 members of the global planetary health community, outlining key actions across six areas: measuring, communicating, educating, governing, balancing business, and mainstreaming planetary health. Available in English and Spanish.
• Regional Hubs Nine regionally focused communities of practice (Caribbean, East Africa, East Asia, Europe, Latin America, North America, Oceania, South & Southeast Asia, Southern Africa, West Africa) that advance planetary health research, education, policy, and outreach within local contexts.
• Planetary Health Campus Ambassador Program A leadership program for undergraduate and graduate students to educate their campus communities about planetary health, featuring 56 ambassadors from 30 countries who organize local events and initiatives.
• Planetary Health Fellowships Leadership programs including the Impact Fellowship (mentoring and independent projects) and Communications Fellowship (storytelling and capacity building within the Next Generation Network), designed for emerging planetary health leaders.
• Planetary Health Monthly Newsletter A monthly digest distributed to 23,000+ subscribers featuring recent publications, news, events, and job opportunities across the planetary health community.
• Online Community (Hylo) A free and inclusive virtual coordination space where Alliance members connect, sustain collaborations, and share information about planetary health initiatives worldwide.
• Working Groups Collaborative groups focused on advancing planetary health including Metrics, Communication, Education, Governance, Business, AI & Innovation, and Mainstreaming working groups guided by the Roadmap and Action Plan.
• Planetary Health Annual Meeting (PHAM) A major 18-month convening bringing together scientists, youth, policymakers, educators, private sector representatives, and artists from over 130 countries to connect the global planetary health community and cultivate cross-disciplinary collaboration.

Quantifiable outcome

• 2025 Impact Report shows membership surpassed 565 organizations across 80+ countries
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered key, core and minor.

• Johns Hopkins Institute for Planetary Health - Planetary Health Policy Research AcceleratorkeyStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Building a curated, searchable database of Planetary Health policy case studies to translate science into policy action.
• Planetary Health Chair AmazonaskeyStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2025Partnership signed in April to center voices from the Amazon in Planetary Health, announced May 2026.
• World Wildlife FundcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Co-presenter of 'The Promise of Planetary Health' video resource, in cooperation with the Planetary Health Alliance and Harvard University Center for the Environment.
• Harvard University Center for the EnvironmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Co-presenter of 'The Promise of Planetary Health' video. Previously hosted PHA secretariat. Founding director Sam Myers is from Harvard.
• Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada (AFMC)keyStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Collaborated to draft the Academic Health Institutions' Declaration on Planetary Health, signed by all of Canada's academic health institutions and others worldwide.
• Island PresscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2020Publishing partner for the Planetary Health textbook 'Planetary Health: Protecting Nature to Protect Ourselves' co-edited by Dr. Samuel Myers and Dr. Howard Frumkin.
• Rockefeller Foundation-Lancet Commission on Planetary HealthcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2015The Rockefeller Foundation-Lancet Commission published the foundational report 'Safeguarding human health in the Anthropocene epoch' in 2015 that defined and articulated the Planetary Health field. This commission established the conceptual foundation for the Planetary Health Alliance.
• Johns Hopkins University / Johns Hopkins Institute for Planetary HealthcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2015Since November 2023, the Planetary Health Alliance secretariat has been hosted by Johns Hopkins University at the Institute for Planetary Health, located at the Hopkins Bloomberg Center in Washington, DC. Previously hosted by Harvard University.
• Translators (French, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish)minorOthersPartner organizations led translations of the Planetary Health textbook: French (Rue de l'Échiquier), Italian (Franco Angeli), Japanese (Maruzen Publishing), Korean (Kyobo Book), with Spanish translation in progress.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Earth Genome: An environmental data and analytics organization building open datasets on ecosystems and natural systems. Partially comparable as an emerging player in environmental-health data infrastructure that could complement or compete with PHA's resource library.
• Global Health 50/50: An independent initiative tracking gender equity and power within global health organizations and policies. Comparable as a peer advocacy/research body in the global health ecosystem that produces influential indices and reports shaping organizational practice.

Broad incumbents

• World Resources Institute: A global research organization working on environment, climate, and sustainable development with strong policy and data products. Overlaps with PHA on climate-health research translation, but operates with much larger scale and broader thematic scope.
• Wellcome Trust: A major global charitable foundation funding research on health and the environment, including climate-health. PHA is adjacent in funder/advocate role and shares the planetary-health thematic agenda, but Wellcome is far larger and not member-driven.
• Rockefeller Foundation: Founding supporter of PHA via the 2015 Rockefeller Foundation-Lancet Commission on Planetary Health. Comparable only as a parallel actor in the planetary-health ecosystem; Rockefeller is a far larger generalist foundation rather than a member consortium.
• PATH: A global health nonprofit working on health equity and innovation across multiple disease areas and emerging health threats including climate. Comparable as a large global health NGO with institutional members/partners and field-defining research agendas.

Direct peers

• Lancet Planetary Health: The Lancet's dedicated peer-reviewed journal on planetary health. Comparable as the leading publication venue defining the field that PHA was created to advance, with overlapping editorial networks and a shared evidence base.
• Climate and Health Alliance: An international coalition mobilizing the health community on climate change. Highly comparable to PHA in mission (climate-health nexus), advocacy posture, and multi-stakeholder membership structure, though it is more policy- and clinician-focused and lacks PHA's global LMIC breadth.
• The Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change: An international research collaboration tracking the links between health and climate change, publishing annual indicators and country profiles. Directly comparable as a health-and-climate research/coordination initiative with global indicators and policy translation.
• Health Care Without Harm: A global NGO driving transformation in the healthcare sector to reduce its environmental footprint and address climate-health linkages. Comparable as a global health-environment coalition with institutional members, regional presence, and policy advocacy focus similar to PHA.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/ph_alliance
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@planetaryhealthalliance168
• Facebookfacebook.com/theplanetaryhealthalliance
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/planetaryhealthalliance
• Instagraminstagram.com/ph_alliance

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Planetary Health Alliance