finep | forum for international development + planning

What finep | forum for international development + planning does

finep – forum for international development + planning is a German non-profit association (eingetragener Verein, e.V.) founded in 2005 and headquartered in Esslingen am Neckar, with a second office in Berlin. The organization operates in the Education for Sustainable Development (ESD / Bildung für Nachhaltige Entwicklung, BNE) and international development sector, delivering consulting and programming services to NGOs, municipalities, and higher-education institutions. Its work spans global learning, sustainability pedagogy, and international cooperation capacity-building, with a portfolio of 60+ projects executed over 20 years across Europe, Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

The organization's core "products" are grant-funded programmes and consulting mandates rather than licensable software or platform products. Notable named initiatives include the Erasmus+ "DEFY" (Democracy, Environment, Future for Youth) project (2023), the EU DEAR (Development Education and Awareness Raising) programme (2020), and the "Water of the Future" project (2020). A DEFY handbook is scheduled for release in 2026, indicating a gradual shift toward codified, distributable knowledge assets. The underpin technology footprint is minimal — a WordPress website hosted on Strato — consistent with a service-delivery, people-based operating model.

Commercially, finep's revenue mechanics are project-based and donor-dependent rather than market-priced. Income is generated through competitive grants from EU institutions (DEAR, Erasmus+), German federal and state education ministries, and direct contracts from larger INGOs such as Caritas International, Kindernothilfe, SWISSAID, the Berghof Foundation, the Norwegian Refugee Council, AWO International, FairTrade Germany, and ICA. The go-to-market is therefore a public-procurement and grant-application model rather than a sales-led motion, and the customer base is concentrated among European institutional donors and a relatively small set of anchor NGO partners.

Name

finep | forum for international development + planning

Legal name

forum für internationale entwicklung + planung e.V.

Website

https://finep.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

finep is a German non-profit (e.V.) founded in 2005 that delivers Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) programmes and consulting to NGOs and municipalities, executing 60+ projects across Europe, Africa, Asia, and Latin America via EU and German public funding.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sustainability and Development Consulting

NAICS

Environmental Consulting Services (54162)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAHACAK

Sustainability & ESG Consulting

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Management Consulting

SECONDARYBPADAEAA

Program & Project Implementation (TA Delivery)

Business & Public Services/International Organizations & Development/International Development & Technical Assistance

SECONDARYBPADAEAB

Monitoring, Evaluation, Research & Learning (MERL)

Business & Public Services/International Organizations & Development/International Development & Technical Assistance

Keywords

• Sustainability consulting
• Education for sustainable development
• NGO advisory services
• Organizational development
• Project facilitation

Headquarters

HQ city

Esslingen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Consulting Services: Fee-for-service consulting in facilitation, funding acquisition, project development, and organizational development for NGOs and municipalities.
2. Project Implementation: Implementation of own ESD (Education for Sustainable Development) projects funded by institutional donors. Revenue comes from project grants and subsidies.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

finep delivers sustainability-focused advisory services and Education for Sustainable Development (ESD/BNE) project implementation for NGOs, municipalities, and civil-society organizations. Its advisory practice (Beratung) spans moderation, funding acquisition, and organizational development, while its BNE project portfolio delivers multi-year programs such as Water of the Future, DEFY, Rural Voices 2030, NOPLANETB, Global Districts, and Train to Transform, often funded through EU, federal, or foundation grants. The organization combines expert facilitation with project management to support clients in designing, funding, and running sustainability initiatives.

Product overview

finep is a non-profit organization offering a dual offering of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) projects and professional consultancy services for the non-profit sector. Their core products include BNE-Projekte (ESD projects) implementing educational approaches through campaigns, casual learning tools, and workshops, complemented by Beratung services providing facilitation, funding acquisition, and organizational development consulting. Key named products include Depth Education for Youth (DEFY), Water of the Future, Eine Welt-Hochschulpromotorin, Rural Voices 2030, NOPLANETB, Global Districts, and Train to Transform. They also offer supplementary services such as educational materials for loan/download and newsletters for multipliers and youth.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Beratung (Consultancy Services) Core advisory offering for NGOs, municipalities, and civil-society organizations covering sustainability strategy, BNE program design, organizational development, moderation, and funding-acquisition support. Delivered by finep's senior consultant team under project-based engagements.
• Moderation and Process Facilitation Standalone advisory service providing neutral moderation, workshop facilitation, and process support for sustainability and global-learning initiatives targeting NGOs, public-sector bodies, and multi-stakeholder groups.
• Fördermittelakquise (Funding Acquisition Advisory) Advisory service that supports NGOs and municipalities in identifying, structuring, and applying for EU, federal, and foundation funding programs relevant to sustainability and Education for Sustainable Development.
• Organisationsentwicklung (Organizational Development) Advisory service supporting civil-society and public-sector organizations in structuring teams, processes, and governance to deliver sustainability and BNE mandates more effectively.
• BNE-Projekte (Education for Sustainable Development Project Portfolio) Portfolio of multi-year, grant-funded Education for Sustainable Development projects implemented by finep, including Water of the Future, DEFY, Rural Voices 2030, NOPLANETB, Global Districts, and Train to Transform, targeting educators, municipalities, and civil-society partners.
• Newsletter Regular email newsletter from finep covering news, project updates, and BNE resources for partners, clients, and the broader sustainability learning community.

Quantifiable outcome

• Successful acquisition and implementation of 60+ national and international projects over nearly two decades
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Erasmus+ (EU Programme)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Erasmus+ funding for DEFY (Depth Education for Youth) project exploring educational approaches in times of social and ecological crises. Project involves 3 countries: Ireland, Slovenia, Germany.
• European Union (DEAR Programme)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020EU Development Education and Awareness Raising (DEAR) programme funding for Water of the Future project on water in the climate crisis. Finep serves as implementing partner with 16 international partner organizations across 8 countries.
• ENGAGEMENT GLOBAL / BMZcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2013Funding for Eine Welt-Hochschulpromotorin position supporting global sustainability at universities in Baden-Württemberg. Trägerschaft (sponsorship) held by finep since 2013.
• Staatsministerium Baden-WürttembergmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerState-level funding for Water of the Future project and Eine Welt-Hochschulpromotorin programme.
• International Cooperative Alliance (ICA)majorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerFinep supported ICA with EU-FFPA programme application and provides ongoing project management and M&E tool development for global cooperative sector promotion programme.
• Caritas InternationalmajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerFinep supported project development for BMZ-funded disaster risk reduction programme in the Philippines, facilitating workshops with local partners.
• SWISSAIDmajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerFinep provided kick-off workshop and EU regulations training for gender-based violence prevention project in India, with simultaneous translation support.
• Berghof FoundationmajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerJoint facilitation of strategy workshop for Global Learning Hub for Transitional Justice and Reconciliation, initiated by Berghof Foundation and BMZ.
• Kindernothilfe (KNH)majorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerFinep prepared narrative reports for BMZ-funded projects in Zimbabwe and supported project development for climate protection initiative in Bolivia.
• Norwegian Refugee Council Germany (NRC DE)majorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerFinep designed and facilitated two-day team retreat for organizational development purposes in Berlin.
• AWO InternationalmajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerFinep developed and facilitated workshop for reflection on Ahr Valley flood disaster response, including action plan development.
• DEAB (Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Eine Welt-Landesnetzwerke)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Eine Welt-Promotor*innen-Programme network supporting global sustainability at universities.
• agl (Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Eine Welt-Landesnetzwerke in Deutschland)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational network partner in the Eine Welt-Promotor*innen-Programme.
• Stiftung Nord-Süd-BrückenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFoundation partner supporting the Eine Welt-Hochschulpromotorin programme.
• STAND (Ireland)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIrish partner organization in DEFY project for depth education with youth.
• Comhlámh (Ireland)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIrish development education organization partnering in DEFY Erasmus+ project.
• Zavod Voluntariat (Slovenia)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSlovenian partner organization in DEFY Erasmus+ project.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Market position

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/finep-development
• Instagraminstagram.com/finep_macht_projekte

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 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 →

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