ISOE

What ISOE does

ISOE (Institut für sozial-ökologische Forschung) is an independent, non-profit research institute organized as a German GmbH, founded in 1989 in Frankfurt am Main and currently employing approximately 80 staff, including 40 researchers and 20 student assistants. The institute specializes in transdisciplinary social-ecological research aimed at shaping transformations toward sustainability, with work organized across three scientific hubs — Social-Ecological Systems, Practices and Infrastructures, and Knowledge Processes and Transformations — and five research units covering water and land use, biodiversity, coupled infrastructures, sustainable society, and transdisciplinarity. Its service portfolio is research- and consulting-led rather than product-led: the core offering is transdisciplinary research projects, supported by strategic consulting for municipalities, policy bodies, and companies, plus a set of recurring dialogue formats (ISOE-Tagungen, ISOE-Lecture, Frankfurter Bürger-Universität, and the 2OG:dondorf co-creation space). Methodologically, ISOE applies integrated modeling approaches including Bayesian networks, system dynamics, and agent-based modeling, alongside participatory modeling with stakeholders.

Revenue mechanics are those of a publicly funded applied research institute: a mix of recurring institutional funding from the state of Hesse (Landesfinanzierung) and project-based competitive grants from federal ministries (notably BMBF, BMF) and EU research programs, supplemented by paid strategic consulting engagements for clients such as Hamburg Wasser and Stadtwerke Düsseldorf. The institute operates without disclosed equity investors, parent company, or external ownership, and its go-to-market is effectively sales-led to a concentrated base of public-sector and municipal buyers, reinforced by academic partnerships through the Ecological Research Network (Ecornet) and individual institutions such as Senckenberg, IÖW, and Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz.

Name

ISOE

Legal name

Institut für sozial-ökologische Forschung (ISOE) GmbH

Website

https://isoe.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

ISOE is an independent, non-profit German research institute (Frankfurt, est. 1989) conducting transdisciplinary social-ecological research and strategic consulting on sustainability, climate adaptation, water, and biodiversity for government, municipalities, and academia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sustainability and Social-Ecological Research Services

NAICS

Environmental Consulting Services (541620)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Environmental Aspects/Impacts Register & Legal Register Development (EUAHAIAD)

Keywords

• Social-ecological research
• Sustainability consulting
• Transdisciplinary research
• Climate adaptation research
• Water resource management

Headquarters

HQ city

Frankfurt

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Research Project Funding: ISOE receives funding from government agencies such as BMBF (Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung), BMF (Bundesministerium der Finanzen), and EU research programs. Research projects are funded on a project-by-project basis.
2. Institutional Funding: Basic institutional funding from the state (Landesfinanzierung) supports fundamental research activities and internal development projects like 'Kognitive Integration und Innovation'.
3. Strategic Consulting Services: Consulting and knowledge transfer services for municipalities, policy makers, and companies on sustainability topics including climate adaptation, water management, and biodiversity.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

ISOE is a non-profit research institute that conducts transdisciplinary social-ecological research and teaching to shape transformations toward sustainability. It provides strategic consulting and research-based knowledge transfer services to science, politics, civil society, municipalities, and companies across nine thematic areas including biodiversity, climate adaptation, water, land use, mobility, and chemical risks. The institute supplements its research with public dialog formats (conferences, lectures, co-creation spaces) and maintains publication and project databases as open knowledge resources.

Product overview

ISOE (Institut für sozial-ökologische Forschung) is a leading sustainability research institute in Frankfurt, Germany, founded in 1989. Rather than a unified software product, ISOE offers a portfolio of research services, consulting offerings, and dialogue formats. The core offering is transdisciplinary research and teaching focused on shaping social-ecological transformations toward sustainability. Supporting offerings include strategic consulting for science, politics, civil society, municipalities, and companies; various dialogue formats (ISOE-Tagungen, ISOE-Lecture series, Frankfurter Bürger-Universität, 2OG:dondorf collaborative space); and knowledge resources including publication and project databases. Research themes include Biodiversity, Climate Adaptation, Land Use, Mobility, Chemical Risks, Sufficiency, Transformation, Water, and Knowledge & Participation. Scientific organization includes three hubs (Social-Ecological Systems, Practices and Infrastructures, Knowledge Processes and Transformations) and five research units (Water and Land Use, Biodiversity and People, Coupled Infrastructures, Sustainable Society, Transdisciplinarity).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Transdisciplinary Research and Teaching (Transdisziplinäre Forschung und Lehre)
• Strategic Consulting (Strategische Beratung)
• Research-based Knowledge Transfer (Forschungsbasierter Wissenstransfer)
• ISOE-Tagungen (Scientific Conferences)
• ISOE-Lecture
• Frankfurter Bürger-Universität (Frankfurt Citizens' University)
• 2OG:dondorf Co-Creation Space
• tdAcademy Platform

Quantifiable outcome

• 90 publications per year on average
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Ecological Research Network (Ecornet)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerISOE is a member of the Ecological Research Network (Ecornet), which includes six German research institutes focused on ecological research. The network conducts joint events (Zukunftsforum Ecornet) and publishes policy recommendations on sustainability topics.
• Senckenberg Biodiversität und Klima Forschungszentrum (SBiK-F)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCooperation on biodiversity and climate research, investigating what reduced biological diversity means for ecosystem services provision to society.
• Frankfurt Conservation CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerISOE contributes expertise in social-ecological biodiversity research to the new Frankfurt Conservation Center platform for international biodiversity and nature conservation.
• Verbraucherzentrale Nordrhein-WestfalenminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartner in the KlimaAlltag project, conducting field trials with 'Klimahaushalte' (climate households) to study CO2 reduction in daily life.
• Institut für Ökologische Wirtschaftsforschung (IÖW)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic research partner in sustainability projects including KlimaAlltag and EiMap, analyzing effectiveness of climate policy instruments.
• Karl-Franzens-Universität GrazminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner in KlimaAlltag project, analyzing socio-economic distribution effects of climate protection measures.
• Deutsche Wasserwirtschaft (German Water Industry)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on water reuse, groundwater management, and hydrological research projects including reSYNERGY on hydrogen production from wastewater.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Institut für ökologische Wirtschaftsforschung (IÖW): Named as an ISOE partner in the KlimaAlltag project, IÖW conducts socio-ecological economic research on sustainability policy instruments. Shares ISOE's methodology of evaluating policy effectiveness through transdisciplinary projects, and competes for the same BMBF funding pots.
• Helmholtz-Zentrum für Umweltforschung (UFZ): Germany's largest research center for environmental science, conducting transdisciplinary research on water, biodiversity, and climate impacts. Overlaps ISOE directly on coupled-infrastructures and social-ecological systems research, though funded via the larger Helmholtz framework.
• Öko-Institut e.V. A foundational German environmental research institute working on energy, chemicals, and sustainability policy for government and civil society. Closely comparable to ISOE in applied research methodology, non-profit structure, and reliance on BMBF/EU project funding.
• Wuppertal Institut für Klima, Umwelt, Energie: One of Germany's leading sustainability and climate research institutes, similarly structured as a non-profit GmbH conducting transdisciplinary research on energy, mobility, and climate for policy and industry clients. Directly comparable to ISOE in mission, funding model, and customer base (German ministries and municipalities).
• Research Institute for Sustainability (RIFS) / former IASS Potsdam: Sustainability research institute (formerly IASS) funded by the Helmholtz Association, conducting transdisciplinary research on energy transition, climate, and societal transformation. Directly comparable to ISOE's transdisciplinary transformation hub, with similar publications output and policy advisory model.
• adelphi research: Berlin-based think tank and project implementer working on climate, environment, and development policy for German and EU clients. Comparable to ISOE in combining research, consulting, and public-facing dialog formats, and overlapping on sustainability consulting for municipalities.
• Fraunhofer Institut für System- und Innovationsforschung (ISI): Fraunhofer institute conducting research on innovation, sustainability, and energy transitions for German and EU clients. Comparable in applying integrated modeling methods (including system dynamics and agent-based modeling) for sustainability transformation, though operating at larger scale.
• Ecologic Institute: Berlin-based environmental policy think tank and research institute working on EU-level sustainability, biodiversity, and water policy. Highly comparable to ISOE in transdisciplinary approach, European funding base, and consulting/transfer model for policy-makers.
• ISOE's Ecornet peer institutes: Ecornet is an alliance of six German ecological research institutes (including ISOE) that jointly publish policy recommendations and host the Zukunftsforum Ecornet. The other five Ecornet members (e.g., IfT, IfW) are direct peers competing for the same BMBF FONA funding stream.

Broad incumbents

• Umweltbundesamt (UBA): Germany's federal environment agency, providing scientific support to the federal government on environmental policy. A broader incumbent in the same domain: UBA is a public funder and policy consumer of much of ISOE's research output, and a comparison reference for the regulatory environment in which ISOE operates.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/isoewikom

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 ISOE