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Our cooperative buys degraded agricultural land in Panama and reforests it in accordance with the principle of generation forests. Concerned here are ecosystems (mixed forests) modelled on a natural rainforest with several storeys, which not only offset huge amounts of CO₂, but at the same time regenerate soils, store drinking water and create habitats for a variety of animals. Over time, the stock is thinned out repeatedly and the timber is sold at a profit. This allows us to generate a green return for our members, while the clearings serve as planting sites for the next generation of trees.

Complete our online form.
The first step is to simply complete our online form.
Verification
As soon our system receives your membership application, you undergo verification. This means that you verify your data and sign the digital document. Cooperative law stipulates that we always require the member's original signature.
Formal acceptance as an Investing Member
As soon as we receive the membership form containing your original signature, we send you an email. At the next board meeting, which takes place every fortnight, you will then be formally accepted as an Investing Member of our cooperative.
Confirmation email & welcome pack
Once you have been successfully accepted as an Investing Member, you receive a confirmation email containing all the details concerning the payment procedure, plus a welcome pack in the post with your share certificate and the countersigned membership declaration.

We look forward to welcoming you as a member of The Generation Forest!

Intergenerational investment focuses on impact and not on maximising profits.
Slow finance: Sustainable capital investment without a limited project duration.
For us, our commitment is long term, but it also has an early impact: Through the reforestation of the rainforest and the associated positive effects for the climate and species diversity. For each day that our forests thrive, they make an effective contribution to the ecological equilibrium of our planet, while the economic value of your cooperative share grows continuously.
Cooperative principle: potential risks are minimised by distributing them among all members and the strength of the community is used to achieve a major impact even with a small amount – not only from the time when the trees start storing CO₂, but even before, since all the members co-own the entire forest stand.
The excellent qualifications and many years of experience of our partner company provide forestry expertise.

To the FAQs

01/XX

From responsibility to impact

Compensation with generational forests means restoring natural resources and thus improving the system services of our planet. Regardless of regulatory obligations, for example under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), corporate responsibility for their actions and their impact on people and the environment is about far more than policies and guidelines. It is about achieving a positive impact and making a lasting difference - today and in the future.

This is exactly where our Generation Forest comes in, offering impact-oriented, holistic solutions on three levels of your business activities in a way that allows you to effectively and measurably improve your impact. In this way, you make responsibility an important part of your success.

01/XX

The Generational Forest

A solution that benefits everyone

In Panama, as almost everywhere else in the world, a large part of the original natural environment has been lost. In many places, the dense rainforest has had to make way for livestock farming and agriculture - often the only lucrative source of income for the rural population.
Reforestation is therefore often in conflict with the interests of the local people. How can forests be added permanently and how can people benefit from them? The generational forest principle is the answer: By giving the forest an ecological and economic value, it becomes a holistic and lasting solution. In contrast to monocultures and plantations, the generational forest remains forever and creates long-term prospects through continuous management.
How exactly does it work?

As a cooperative, The Generation Forest buys degraded areas in Panama in order to reforest them. The diverse mix of trees consists of valuable precious woods, which are later selectively removed and sold at a profit. In this way, the forest is financially self-sustaining and the members of the cooperative benefit from the green return. The gaps created by the removal of the wood are immediately replanted by us, and later the forest takes over this task itself. Over the years, this creates a dense mixed forest consisting of several generations of trees. A stable ecosystem that lasts forever.
Many years of experience and scientifically proven

Our founders Iliana Armién from Panama and Andreas Eke from Hamburg have long been driven by the idea of the generational forest. Together with the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, the UN Environment Program and indigenous peoples in Panama, they developed and tested the forestry approach of the Generation Forest. From these years of experience, The Generation Forest cooperative was founded in 2016 to enable private individuals and companies to participate in the mission. Today, The Generation Forest continues to work closely with research institutes and NGOs to further develop the forestry approach and improve reforestation practices.

01/03

Generational forests: Productive. Effective. Ecological and social.

Degraded land is purchased, prepared and reforested.
After 12 years, first thinning & timber sales. We plant the resulting gaps if this does not happen through natural regeneration.
Individual trees are removed and sold. Clear-cutting of the forest is excluded.
The sale of timber generates dividends for the members of the cooperative.
Permanent forest phase. The planted forests remain permanently and achieve a stable balance of natural regeneration and selective removal.

Your opportunity to reforest

Our generational forest offers companies the opportunity to offset CO₂ and also create a positive impact in the form of species conservation, climate protection and fair jobs for local people. By purchasing forest shares, you as a company finance the reforestation and maintenance of generational forests - so that it can continue to exist in the long term.

Your benefits as a supporter of The Generation Forest

Uncomplicated and one-off investment, permanent solution
500 m² of forest is created per share
CO₂ compensation: 1 ton per year (Verra certified)
More measurable biodiversity through scientific monitoring
Social impact through fair jobs and training opportunities
Support with communication
Committed community with over 7,900 members
Over 1,200 hectares reforested with more than 1,000,000 million trees
Over 30 years of experience in reforestation
Positive press from Spiegel, Weltspiegel, ARD
High level of transparency due to German cooperative law
Contribution to the UN SDGs
Transparent reporting in the annual Impact Report
Four times more impact than reforestation in Germany

How does our cooperative operate and function?

We at The Generation Forest eG are the owners of a wholly-owned subsidiary, Waldmenschen S.A., in Panama. This makes it easier for us to conduct business transactions, like land purchases, payments, certifications, etc. Waldmenschen S.A. owns the land directly. The outlay for purchasing land and managing the forestry projects are paid for through their account. Furthermore, it offers the advantage that we can employ our own people in Panama and purchase vehicles and equipment.

Our forest partners

Our partner Futuro Forestal is responsible for the operational work on the ground. The company was founded in 1994 by the Panamanian forest engineer Iliana Armién and the Hamburg geographer Andreas Eke. Both developed and tested the concept of the generational forest in cooperation with important actors such as the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, the United Nations Environment Programme and indigenous communities, on which our cooperative forests also thrive.

Document Library

Transparency is one of our fundamental values. In our library you will find all documents, such as financial statements, contracts and ownership certificates. If you don't find the document you are looking for, please contact us through our mailbox or at info(at)thegenerationforest.com. We will shortly get back to you and send you everything you need.

Where are our project areas in Panama?

In addition to the personal connection to Panama through our founders Andreas Eke and Iliana Armién, who have been working in forestry in Panama for over 30 years, the tropical climate was the main reason for the decision in favor of Panama. This favors the growth of the trees there, which grow up to four times faster than in this country. This in turn increases the positive effect of the forests there, for example the CO2 storage potential and thus the effect on the climate. The rainforests in Panama are also home to an enormous diversity of species - up to 400 different animal and plant species can be found on one hectare, which need to be protected.

Compared to other Central or South American countries, the economic conditions in Panama are also favorable: the Panama Canal is still a guarantee for economic stability. The dollar as the official currency provides additional security in transatlantic cooperation. It is also crucial for us that the government in Panama is working towards the goal of climate neutrality and also sees reforestation as an important measure. Panama is one of three CO₂-negative countries in the world - and our forests are also contributing to this.

01/XX

Our project areas

361 Hectares | 9 Fincas | 72 % afforested

Agua Fria

In 2017, we began our first afforestation project in Panama and gave it the name La Reina. We bought this area of land to demonstrate how you can transform a monoculture into a Generation Forest.
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148 Hectares | 3 Fincas | 100 % afforested

Colón

Our fincas are located in the water catchment area of the Panama Canal, meaning that our forests not only absorb CO2 but also positively contribute to the water management of a waterway so crucial to the global economy.
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234 Hectares | 3 Fincas | 86 % afforested

Nicanor

Some time ago the forests here were cleared for grazing land. The previous owner used one of the spaces as a paddock.
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587 Hectares | 8 Fincas | 56 % afforested

Lastenia

20 years ago, the area in which the fincas are located was covered with exotic wood forests.
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621 Hectares | 15 Fincas | 92 % afforested

Claritas

The area adjoins the indigenous territory of Guna de Wargandí. It reinforces the local protection zones and extends the existing habitats.
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277 Hectares | 2 Fincas | 78% afforested

Filo de Tallo

In the past, the land of the Filo de Tallo project area was completely forested, but today it is mostly pasture. The existing vegetation is grassland and scattered and grouped trees in the galleries of streams and watercourses.
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01/0X

Our contribution to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals

The Generation Forest describes itself as a responsible social business and for good reason: with our work, we support the implementation of the international sustainability goals by making an important contribution to the global transformation of the economy. In doing so, we are making an important contribution to achieving the SDGs, which prioritize the well-being of people and the environment. As an investing member or the cooperative or as a sepnder, your company will also become a supporter of these important goals.

A measurable success: certification and science

The Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) program is the most widely used greenhouse gas crediting program in the world. It promotes the financing of activities that reduce emissions, improve livelihoods and protect nature. On this basis, it is confirmed that 1 hectare of our forests absorbs and offsets an average of 20 tons of CO₂ in the long term. The VCS program is a crucial part of the ongoing efforts to protect our shared environment.
Certification to the Climate, Community & Biodiversity (CCB) standards confirms that The Generation Forest is simultaneously mitigating climate change, supporting local communities and conserving biodiversity. CCB projects must be certified through a two-stage process that is independently and externally audited. The CCB standards were developed by the Climate, Community & Biodiversity Alliance (CCBA) and adopted by Verra in 2014.
The Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) is an international non-profit organization and has certified The Generation Forest's practices and forestry approach as the world's most trusted mark of sustainable forest management. Through regular independent audits, the sustainability standard ensures that forests are used in accordance with the social, economic and ecological needs of present and future generations.
With the support of the Panamanian nature conservation organization La Asociación Nacional para la Conservación de la Naturaleza (ANCON), we carry out regular biodiversity monitoring, either through the camera traps set up in selected areas or as part of a biodiversity report compiled by the local NGO. The detailed inventory of flora and fauna enables us to measure our impact on biodiversity based on the occurrence of certain species.
B Corporations are companies that live up to their responsibilities and are committed to social added value and environmental sustainability in their articles of association. Our Panamanian forestry partner Futuro Forestal has been certified as a B Corporation by the independent organization B Lab in a strict test procedure that measures corporate governance, employee rights and impact on the environment, society and customers.
The renowned Crowther Lab at ETH Zurich is conducting a large-scale field study on the Finca Avendaño to investigate how the rainforest regenerates naturally compared to actively reforested areas according to our generational forest principle. The findings will be used to measure the effect of reforestation in order to serve as a basis for improved practices.