We are an international Non-for-Profit and Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) based in the UK and Germany. Our mission is to empower and inspire individuals to take up agency and responsibility in their own workplace to build truly sustainable, successful and value-creating companies.

Our backgrounds are in Climate and Sustainability, HR, Energy, Change Management, IT and Business Consulting.

Meet the planetgroups team

Tim Riedel

Founder

I would call myself a “latecomer” with regard to climate change and the effects of our current economic system on the planet. It was only in 2019, with my four children taking to the streets in “Fridays for Future” rallies, that I really woke up to the subject….

Kevin Wiles

Collaboration & IT

My interest in climate change and sustainability solutions first started a few years ago when, through my work with universities in the United States, I was exposed to several exciting environmental innovation projects and new green technologies.

Volunteers wanted!

We have reached a lot within the last four months. Now we want to scale our venture and grow to 1,000, maybe even 10,000 planetgroups across the globe by the end of next year. To get there, we need your support.

Supported by a strong and professional core organization – which we will gradually build up from among our network of volunteers – we are looking for your expertise and enthusiasm in the following areas:

The Business Model of our NGO is sustainable in the sense that at some point we will be primarily financed by the companies whose planetgroups we support. For the first phase of our growth process, however, establishing all the processes and templates, building our PlaNet Collaboration Platform and growing our reputation, we will need around 350k EUR seed financing, either as donations or as loans. In order to generate this money, we are looking for experienced crowd funders who help us to design and run the fundraising campaign.

We are doing great things with our NGO, and in the planetgroups we support. Now we want the world to know about it. So, if you are a writer, journalist, texter, podcaster, documentary filmmaker, social media influencer or PR specialist - passionate about sustainability, climate action or creating more fulfilling jobs - we need your help to share our story.  

In order to build up our community and expand to 1,000 or maybe even 10,000 planetgroups by the end of next year, we will schedule and conduct hundreds of video calls, and write and answer thousands of mails, slack messages and the like. In order to manage this process with a high degree of professionalism, reliability and expertise, we need support from people who are experienced in designing and using CRM-Tools like hubspot and/or service desk tools like jira or helping hands. Further experience in Chatbots, AI applications or Robotics Process Automation would be fantastic. Together with you we want to develop best practice tools and strategies of how to best communicate with different stakeholders in different contexts - with maximum efficiency, yet always personable and connected.

Saving the planet is fulfilling, rewarding, reconnecting and fun. This is one of the core claims and promises of our NGO. In order to deliver on this promise, we design all of our processes, communication and workshops with great care. They are meant to have impact, be effective, inspire the participants, and provide a positive, light hearted emotional experience. We have started to create exercises, workshop designs and process facilitation with these goals in mind. Now we want to develop and deliver these concepts further together with experienced trainers, facilitators, coaches or mediators who have experience in approaches like Design Thinking, Theory U, the Art of Hosting, Scrum, Systems Thinking, Holacracy, Teal Practices or the like. 

With our Collaboration Platform which we call the PlaNet, we want to make sure that regardless of what they are looking for, our planetgroups find enough expertise to get started, and a platform for further exchange to move deeper, share experiences and best practices. What are others doing in my industry? Is there more background and data on this specific solution around? What options for climate action do I have in my corporate function? The PlaNet can help.

Our current version is built on a WordPress platform - to develop this further, we need expertise in User Experience (UX), front-end development, PHP, CSS, and of course WordPress.

We look forward to creating the one “Go To” - tool in corporate sustainability work together with you. 

planetgroups is not only an NGO, a tool or a change approach for sustainability. We express an attitude of creating a better world together with enthusiasm, fun, creativity, impact and the common belief that we can make a difference if we really want to. In order to incorporate this spirit into every document, picture, movie, giveaway, website or presentation we produce, we need more graphic design lovers who like to design the full range of print and online media. From office documents, social media posts to interface design, merchandise or moving pics - your experience in UX, Design, Illustration, and the like is highly welcome!

Our planetgroups Ambassador Programme is a group of professionals from all sectors and business environments who share our passion for a planet positive business world and our solution-oriented approach to getting there. Our Ambassadors spread the word about planetgroups within their professional networks, and help us to identify and approach the right people - whether that’s relevant corporate decision-makers, industry leaders, corporate network organisers, philanthropists, high-profile sustainability champions or facilitators of international corporate alliances. To help planetgroups achieve its mission, we need to grow our Ambassador Programme into a global network of well-connected professionals who can introduce us to the right people. If you have these kinds of connections, we would like to hear from you. 

We plan to expand our planetgroups movement beyond Germany and the UK soon. Since our processes are entirely virtual, we can easily achieve this in most countries. However, different languages, cultures and time zones will make it easier to work with companies in any given country if we also have team members there. Therefore, if you want to have a planetgroups subsidiary where you live, do get in touch and work with us in one of the above listed volunteer roles. We will then attract our first planetgroups in your country together, and build on that to establish a permanent local presence with you.

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Tim's Story

I would call myself a “latecomer” with regard to climate change and the effects of our current economic system on the planet. It was only in 2019, with my four children taking to the streets in “Fridays for Future” rallies, that I really woke up to the subject. After a few months of reflection I decided to leave my role as Managing Director of “my” HR Consultancy interpool, and after some more reflection and discussions the idea to start planetgroups entered my mind. As part of my HR work, I had conducted a large amount of systemic change work and related trainings and facilitation, much of it influenced by Otto Scharmer`s “Theory U” approach. So this is now my best bet to do my share in saving the world. We can do it, if we believe in it. And if we do it together. The solution to the climate crisis is community, not CO2.

Kevin's Story

My interest in climate change and sustainability solutions first started a few years ago when, through my work with universities in the United States, I was exposed to several exciting environmental innovation projects and new green technologies. At this time, I realised that much of this innovation would never actually achieve enough traction or funding to reach its full potential or generate the positive change to our planet that it was designed to do. I decided to dedicate my career to assisting this process and proceeded to look at ways to highlight innovation through online collaboration. I am excited to be part of the planetgroups team. I believe it is an exciting opportunity to take a positive collaborative message forward and show that it’s not just technology companies and innovators that can offer planet positive solutions, each of us as individuals can also affect real change from within.