Institute of Relational Being (IRB)

What Institute of Relational Being (IRB) does

The Institute of Relational Being (IRB) is an Irish nonprofit that develops experiential programs, frameworks, and digital tools centered on cultivating relational practices between humans and more-than-human ecological communities. Its core offerings include the ReBe App — a mobile 'relational media' application that delivers mindfulness and nature-integration prompts designed to pull users out of conventional social networks and into direct ecological engagement — alongside the IRB Fellowship, an alternative educational pathway emphasizing multispecies awareness, reciprocity, and holistic well-being, and Corra Woods, a 2.5-acre woodland venue in County Clare, Ireland that serves as IRB's headquarters and hosts workshops, events, and retreats for up to 12 participants.

Beyond these core products, IRB operates several thematic projects: Rights of Nature (juridical advocacy for more-than-human legal recognition), Relational Resource Department (an organizational consulting framework positioned alongside traditional HR), RREGEN (regenerative governance and emergence networking), BioReGen (bioregional resource allocation for local environmental restoration), and the CIPC 'Weaving Imaginational Being' collaboration using Mural and Hylo platforms. Revenue mechanics are not publicly disclosed; the organization generates income through fellowship contributions, workshop/retreat fees at Corra Woods, and newsletter engagement, while operating within a broader 'Mycorrhizal Connections' network of Schumacher College alumni-aligned partner organizations including Global Regeneration Co-Lab, Third Horizon Earth, Siendo Naturaleza, the More Than Human Project, The Emergence Network, and the Institute for Practical ekoPhilosophy.

Name

Institute of Relational Being (IRB)

Legal name

Institute of Relational Being

Website

https://instituteofrelationalbeing.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Institute of Relational Being (IRB) is an Irish nonprofit that delivers an alternative fellowship program, mindfulness-focused mobile app (ReBe), and woodland retreats at Corra Woods to cultivate relational practices between humans and ecological communities, operating within a global Schumacher College alumni network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

County Clare

HQ country

Ireland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Fellowship Program Fees: The IRB Fellowship provides an alternative educational pathway. While specific fees are not disclosed, fellowship programs typically involve participant contributions or tuition.
2. Workshops, Events & Retreats: Corra Woods hosts workshops, events, and retreats accommodating up to 12 participants for weekend or week-long programs. Revenue derived from participant fees.
3. Newsletter Subscriptions: Email newsletter for news and updates. While primarily engagement-focused, newsletter audiences may translate to paid programs.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

IRB is a nonprofit organization offering platforms, frameworks, and experiences for cultivating enlivened relationships with ecological communities. Its core offerings include the ReBe App (a relational media mobile application), the IRB Fellowship (an alternative relational learning pathway), and Corra Woods (a woodland venue hosting workshops, events, and retreats).

Product overview

The Institute of Relational Being (IRB) offers a portfolio of programs and projects focused on cultivating relational practices with human and more-than-human ecological communities. The core offerings include the ReBe App (a relational media and mindfulness application), the IRB Fellowship (an alternative fellowship pathway), and the Corra Woods Center (a 2.5-acre woodland retreat in County Clare, Ireland serving as IRB headquarters). Additional projects include Rights of Nature (juridical advocacy), Relational Resource Department (organizational support framework), RREGEN (governance networking), and BioReGen (bioregional regeneration). The organization also maintains Mycorrizal Connections, a network of partner organizations including Siendo Naturaleza, More Than Human Project, Third Horizon Earth, The Emergence Network, Global Regeneration Co-Lab, and Institute for Practical ekoPhilosophy. The CIPC + IRB collaboration uses Mural and Hylo platforms for collective imagination practices.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• ReBe App A relational media mobile application that presents invitations, games, challenges, and activities as rituals for awareness. Encourages mindfulness and nature integration through immersive activities designed to help users connect with surroundings and feel a sense of belonging in the natural world, positioned as an alternative to traditional social networks.
• IRB Fellowship An alternative fellowship pathway aligned with principles of reciprocity, ecological awareness, and holistic well-being. Fellows undertake a relational journey in collaboration with multi-species ecological communities, emphasizing personal transformation, multispecies awareness, and mutual support modeled on mycorrhizal networks.
• Corra Woods Center for Relational Restoration A 2.5-acre woodland venue in County Clare, Ireland, serving as IRB headquarters and hosting residencies, workshops, events, and retreats for up to 12 participants for weekend or week-long programs. Includes a natural spring fed through all faucets.
• Workshops, Events, and Retreats at Corra Woods Weekend and week-long workshop, event, and retreat programs at Corra Woods accommodating up to 12 attendees, focused on relational and ecological engagement practices.
• Weaving Imaginational Being (CIPC Collaboration) A collaboration project enhancing the Collective Imagination Practice Community (CIPC) by cultivating collaborations, engagement, and emerging imagination practices. Maps intersections between existing and emerging projects using Mural and Hylo platforms and produces Substack articles.

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Global Regeneration Co-Lab (GRC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022IRB has been creatively collaborating with the Global Regeneration Co-Lab since 2022. GRC is a network of regenerators working towards a regenerative future where humanity belongs in nature and economic activity replenishes. GRC connects over 1,200 members from all continents via synchronous Zoom sessions and asynchronous Slack communication, discussing topics ranging from regenerative agriculture and economics to project finance and personal regeneration.
• The Emergence Network (ten)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIRB collaborated with The Emergence Network on 'Becoming Monster' and looks forward to further opportunities for entanglement. The Emergence Network is a collective experiment within the cracks of the usual—a fugitive, underground network of social artists seeking to create new openings to age-old problems through postactivism, collaborative creative processes, and translocal interventions.
• Third Horizon EarthcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThird Horizon Earth is a knowledge- and community-building platform dedicated to deepening and propagating regenerative development practices. As a nonpartisan, community-serving organization, 3HE surfaces emerging practice, ideas, and systemic design strategies that promote flourishing human and environmental ecologies.
• Siendo NaturalezacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSiendo Naturaleza ('Being Nature') began in 2018 with stewardship of severely degraded land known as Sacha Isla. They officially became a formal legal entity (Asociación Siendo Naturaleza) in 2022 and facilitate educational experiences for children in the Tiracu Valley, Peru. IRB is part of this growing constellation of Schumacher alumni legacy projects.
• More Than Human ProjectcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMore Than Human is an Erasmus+ project (2023-1-DE01-KA220-HED-000153146) focused on challenging human-centred worldviews and engaging with relational worldviews in higher education to respond to climate change. The project will develop a sustainability pedagogy framework and flexible online platform with a digital pedagogy hub.
• Institute for Practical ekoPhilosophy (IPeP)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIPeP develops resources to help people live philosophically, focusing on philosophical health as a meta-technology to psychological and physiological well-being in the context of climate change and species extinction. Goals include integrating inner (philosophical) dimensions to foster healthy futures.
• Collective Imagination Practice Community (CIPC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIRB is facilitating the 'Weaving Imaginational Being' project to enhance CIPC through cultivating collaborations, engagement, and revealing emergent new imagination practices. The project will map intersections between existing and emerging projects using Mural and Hylo platforms, producing dynamic maps and living resources along with Substack articles.
• Schumacher CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Institute's genesis was sparked during a transformative learning journey at Schumacher College in the UK. Schumacher's ecological curriculum is rooted in holistic science, engaged ecology, and regenerative practices. IRB forms one star in a growing constellation of Schumacher alumni legacy projects worldwide.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Schumacher College: UK-based ecological learning institution at Dartington Hall offering transformative programs in engaged ecology and holistic science. IRB is a direct Schumacher alumni legacy project, making the college the originating model and reference point for IRB's fellowship and pedagogy.
• Findhorn Foundation: Long-running Scottish spiritual and ecological education center operating community, retreat, and learning programs since 1962. Established incumbent in the same niche of transformational, ecology-centered residential education that IRB occupies at a smaller scale.

Direct peers

• Schumacher Sprouts Belgium: Belgian Schumacher alumni legacy project delivering ecological curriculum. Explicitly named alongside IRB as part of the same Schumacher alumni constellation, sharing the same educational DNA and alumni-network leverage.
• Escola Schumacher Brasil: Brazilian Schumacher College alumni legacy project offering ecological education and regenerative practice programs. Functionally equivalent to IRB in mission and operational model — one of IRB's named peer organizations in its Mycorrizal Connections network.
• Global Regeneration Co-Lab (GRC): International network of 1,200+ regenerators across all continents operating since 2019 via synchronous Zoom sessions and Slack. Strategic core partner of IRB since 2022 with overlapping audience and mission of regenerative practice.
• Siendo Naturaleza: Peruvian Schumacher alumni legacy project and Asociaci formal entity that stewards degraded land (Sacha Isla) and runs educational experiences for children. Direct structural and ideological peer to IRB, also named in IRB's Mycorrizal Connections.
• Third Horizon Earth: Knowledge- and community-building platform for regenerative development practices. Direct strategic partner of IRB, focused on surfacing emerging practices for flourishing human and environmental ecologies — comparable audience and mission.
• The Emergence Network (ten): Network of social artists pursuing postactivism and translocal creative interventions. A direct collaborator with IRB on the 'Becoming Monster' project and named in IRB's Mycorrizal Connections.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/institute-of-relational-being
• Instagraminstagram.com/instituteofrelationalbeing

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Institute of Relational Being (IRB)