Bergwaldprojekt e.V.

What Bergwaldprojekt e.V. does

Bergwaldprojekt e.V. is a German non-profit environmental organization founded c. 1990 and headquartered in Höchberg, Würzburg. It operates 85+ project locations across Germany — covering forests, moors, and open-land biotopes — and runs Bergwaldprojekt International affiliates in Switzerland, Austria, and Spain. The organization engages thousands of volunteers annually through week-long project formats spanning regular, family, youth, women's, and integrative (inclusive) tracks, paired with a dedicated Waldschule (Forest School) program serving schools, universities, and youth-welfare facilities. Core services include corporate volunteering for sustainability and team-building purposes, the Baumspende tree-donation program, the Zukunftswald Unterschönau long-term restoration project, and a supporting membership (Fördermitgliedschaft) program.

The organization is funded through five primary streams: private donations, tree donations, supporting memberships, corporate partnerships and corporate volunteering, and foundation grants (notably Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt / DBU). Pricing to volunteers is zero — participation is free, and the unit-economics model is donor-funded rather than transactional. Distribution is direct: volunteers register on the website, projects are delivered in-person at forest sites, and corporate clients are engaged through a dedicated enterprise track.

In 2025 Bergwaldprojekt launched aim2balance.ai, an AI platform that makes the ecological and social impacts of AI usage visible, with EU-hosted data, fair-cost access, and integration of ecological-cost accounting. The platform was built by an international team of AI experts and is offered free for testing, backed by DBU funding. Technology and product strategy sits within an environmental-conservation mission rather than a software or AI thesis, and the organization currently runs with 17 full-time staff across group leadership, project management, kitchen operations, and organizational/governance roles.

Name

Bergwaldprojekt e.V.

Legal name

Bergwaldprojekt e.V.

Website

https://bergwaldprojekt.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Bergwaldprojekt e.V. is a German non-profit founded c. 1990 that runs free, week-long volunteer conservation projects across 85+ forest, moor, and open-land sites, engaging thousands of volunteers annually plus corporate and youth-service partners in Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and Spain.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Conservation Services

NAICS

Environment, Conservation and Wildlife Organizations (813312), Support Activities for Forestry (1153)

SIC

Forestry (800), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Forestry & Reforestation (BPAGAGAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Environmental Education & Outreach (BPAGAGAH), Forestry, Land Use & REDD+ Programs (BPADALAF), Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems (BPAGAGAI)

Keywords

• Forest conservation services
• Environmental volunteer programs
• Ecosystem restoration services
• Nonprofit environmental education
• Forest school programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Höchberg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Private Donations: Individual donations from private supporters who contribute to the organization's environmental work through one-time or recurring donations.
2. Tree Donations (Baumspende): Donations specifically for planting native trees in project areas, allowing donors to contribute to reforestation efforts.
3. Corporate Partnerships: Partnerships with companies for corporate volunteering programs, joint projects, and company donations supporting social-ecological transformation.
4. Foundation Funding: Project-specific funding from foundations such as Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt (DBU) for initiatives like aim2balance.ai.
5. Membership Program: Supporting membership (Fördermitgliedschaft) providing recurring support from members.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels11 records

Core offering

Bergwaldprojekt e.V. is a German non-profit association that organizes hands-on volunteer projects for forest, moor, and open landscape conservation across 85+ project locations. It runs environmental education programs through its Waldschule (Forest School), offers corporate volunteering and team-building experiences, and operates a sustainable AI platform called aim2balance.ai for measuring ecological and social impact.

Product overview

Bergwaldprojekt e.V. is a non-profit organization with over 35 years of experience, operating primarily as a volunteer-based conservation organization rather than a technology company. Its main offerings include: (1) aim2balance.ai - a sustainable AI platform that visualizes and balances ecological/social impacts of AI usage; (2) Freiwilligenprojekte - week-long volunteer conservation projects in forests, moors, and open land biotopes; (3) Waldschule - forest education programs; (4) Corporate Volunteering - company engagement programs; (5) Zukunftswald Unterschönau - future forest project; and (6) Baumspende - tree donation program. The organization focuses on protecting, maintaining, and restoring ecosystems through hands-on volunteer work and environmental education, with the aim2balance.ai platform being its most technology-focused offering.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• 600,000 hectares of forest affected by climate crisis since 2018, addressed through restoration efforts
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Bayerische Staatsforsten (Forstbetrieb Fichtelberg)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerForestry authority partnership for forest management and conservation at Fichtelberg location. The organization works on forest and biotope care, including habitat protection for capercaillie and moor restoration projects.
• Bundesverband Caritas Kinder- und Jugendhilfe e.V. (BVkE)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for 'Natur (er)leben!' project bringing youth and nature together, featured at Vilmer Sommerakademie.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Greenpeace Germany: Major environmental campaign organization active in German forests and climate advocacy. Comparable as a donation-funded NGO but emphasizes policy/advocacy over hands-on volunteer field work.
• WWF Germany (World Wide Fund for Nature): Largest international conservation organization with significant German operations. Overlaps in forest protection, biodiversity, and climate but at vastly greater scale and broader portfolio.

Others

• Waldbesitzerverband (German Forest Owners Association): German association representing private and communal forest owners. Tangentially related as a key stakeholder in the forestry ecosystem that Bergwaldprojekt partners with and serves.

Direct peers

• BUND (Bund für Umwelt und Naturschutz Deutschland): Major German environmental and nature conservation federation active in forest protection, biodiversity, and climate advocacy. Comparable as a non-profit organization mobilizing volunteers and policy advocacy for ecosystem restoration.
• Schutzgemeinschaft Deutscher Wald (SDW): German forest protection association focused specifically on the conservation and sustainable management of forests. Highly comparable mission overlap with Bergwaldprojekt's forest stewardship and reforestation work.
• NABU (Naturschutzbund Deutschland): Germany's largest nature and biodiversity NGO with 900,000+ members. Directly comparable as a membership-driven environmental nonprofit engaged in habitat protection, reforestation, and environmental advocacy across Germany.
• Bergwaldprojekt Schweiz: Swiss sister organization of Bergwaldprojekt operating volunteer-based forest conservation projects. The most direct peer given shared branding, methodology, and volunteer model.

Emerging players

• Eden Reforestation Projects: Global nonprofit employing local and volunteer labor for large-scale reforestation. Comparable volunteer-driven reforestation model, though operating primarily in developing countries.
• Wilderness International: German nonprofit purchasing and permanently protecting primary forests. Comparable as a donation-driven environmental nonprofit working on forest conservation in Germany, though focused on land purchase rather than volunteer restoration.
• Plant-for-the-Planet: Youth-led global reforestation and climate justice initiative. Comparable in mobilizing volunteers and donors for tree planting, with a similar donation-supported model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@bergwaldprojektev
• Facebookfacebook.com/BergwaldprojektDeutschland
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bergwaldprojekt-e-v
• Instagraminstagram.com/bergwaldprojekt
• TikToktiktok.com/@bergwaldprojekt

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Bergwaldprojekt e.V.