Strategic Plan 2024–2030: A thriving, healthy planet for all
September 2024 | Read the full Global Biochar Industry Update
IBI is on the move!
I am excited to share two major announcements: the adoption of our new Strategic Plan 2024-2030 and a leadership transition. One would be enough, but we do big things here!
First, I am proud to announce the adoption of IBI’s new Strategic Plan for 2025–2030. This plan, developed through months of collaboration and dedication from the Board, sets a bold vision for the future: “a thriving, healthy planet for all”. IBI’s new mission to empower communities and industries to integrate biochar-based solutions for healthier ecosystems and economies is pivotal in driving impactful change in several key ways. It aligns environmental, economic, and social objectives to create sustainable and far-reaching impact. Through biochar, we are fostering a future where communities thrive, industries innovate, and ecosystems regenerate. By engaging both industries and communities, our mission creates a powerful ecosystem of stakeholders working towards common goals. This collaboration enables us to scale biochar solutions more effectively, magnifying our impact and driving global progress towards healthier ecosystems and economies.
By empowering industries to integrate biochar solutions, we help foster circular economies, where waste biomass streams can be transformed into valuable resources, creating jobs and reducing dependency on non-renewable inputs. By 2030, we aim to establish 10 corporate partnerships across industries where biochar potential can be rapidly scaled (i.e. coffee, cocoa, palm oil, fruit and vegetable, dairy, the built environment, etc.) while also mainstreaming biochar into at least one standard in each of these sectors. We will also develop industry roadmaps by 2027 that outline how biochar can support sustainability and net-zero pathways for each sector, and advocate for biochar’s inclusion in climate strategies and funding globally.
Our focus on empowering communities ensures that the benefits of biochar reach local populations, particularly in underserved regions. Our biochar knowledge hub will provide education, training, and support, and help communities to adopt biochar technologies, improving agricultural productivity and addressing food security and climate resilience. By 2030, we aim to train 2,000 present and future industry leaders, young generations, investors, entrepreneurs, and innovators, and engage 20,000 participants through webinars, workshops, and conferences. Furthermore, we will continue cooperating and supporting vibrant biochar associations on all continents and support biochar adoption in 50 smallholder or agricultural projects globally, with at least 50% of those projects focusing on women or emphasizing gender representation.
Ultimately, promoting biochar adoption enables us to contribute directly to carbon sequestration efforts and advance global net-zero targets. This marks a pivotal moment for IBI, and I want to express my deepest gratitude to our Board and our Team: their unwavering dedication and tireless work have been instrumental in carving out this bold and ambitious path forward. Together, we are building something truly transformative.
In addition to this we are delighted to announce a leadership change: Luisa Marín, country director of The Next 150 in Mexico and a valued IBI Board member, has been appointed as our new Vice Chair. Luisa succeeds Heloise Buckland, President of HUSK, who has served as Vice Chair with remarkable dedication. We extend our deepest gratitude to Heloise for her outstanding service. Personally, it has been a privilege to collaborate with and learn from her. Her strategic thinking, business acumen, and unwavering commitment to improving farming systems and advancing regenerative agriculture practices in Cambodia, and now extending to Vietnam, are truly inspiring. While we will miss her in the role of Vice Chair, we are fortunate to continue working with Heloise as part of the Board.
Luisa, our newly appointed Vice Chair and Biochar Academy alumna, brings a wealth of experience as a dynamic leader in project design, management, capacity building, and financial stewardship. Her accomplishments include spearheading the establishment of a production facility in Mexico and leading the Latin American Institute for Biochar (ILBI). We are thrilled to welcome Luisa in this new role and look forward to the impactful work she will lead. Beyond her skills and industry focus, it will be a great pleasure for me to be a part of Luisa’s work: I know I will enjoy it very much!
An exciting future, indeed!
