I can’t figure out how to get off the ground my environmental impact project.
A while ago I started a project to crowdfund ecosystem restoration, attempting to address the downsides of existing initiatives that I've encountered. We’ve managed to get the interest of a few municipal authorities, who are ready to pledge a decent amount of land for the project. We've also got a few first contributors from the US and the EU.
The problem is, I can’t figure out how to get more contributors, and we need at least 50 more people before the end of the year to be able to conduct first field works next season, or to even keep the project afloat.
People tend to like the idea, but I can’t convince them to contribute, and I can’t get help from anywhere. I’ve tried so many things, but nothing seems to work.
I honestly just don’t know what to do, and I’m afraid, that I’ll have to shut down the whole project before even making any impact, and it makes me feel devastated…
It isn’t aimed at EA community, as I haven’t encountered such reactions, but in a broader context, I would prefer if people would just be honest and tell that they appreciate, but it isn’t their priority right now, and not promise support and then ghost. So far EA folks are the most honest and upfront ones :)
Although it would be nice if people were more into climate action, as environment is a cornerstone of all other human activities.
I’ve made a post outlining what we are trying to make differently in comparison to existing planting initiatives. Also ecosystem restoration is deemed to be one of the most effective way for carbon recapture, and as soon as we confirm with our partners the minimum 40-year guarantee, we’ll also get below 10 USD per ton. Plus each hectare will provide hundreds of dollars worth of other ecosystem services, as we won’t be creating industrial plantations but aiming for more natural forests. We just need a little push to jumpstart field operations.
Hi. I’m seeking advice on how to get more people to contribute towards an environmental impact project I’ve been working on.
I don’t know if I have such bad luck or what, but I have a tremendous problem when reaching out to people, organizations, or media. If anyone even bother to respond, then it is either a statement that this is ‘such an important and needed project’ (but it seems not so important for them to support it), and they ‘wish me luck’ (I can’t do anything with just wishes), or if they declare initial interest and support, then it ends with ghosting. Not to mention a few openly hostile encounters.
If everyone who declared their support went through with their promises, we’d be already planting, and here I am, stuck in a chicken-and-egg situation, where people expect me to show completed projects to even consider support, while I need initial support to start them.
I was thinking that I am doing everything by the book regarding initial outreach, but I just can’t get any positive results, and I don’t know what to do to get unstuck…
My name is Karl and I'm a socio-economic geographer with an engineering degree in inland waterways revitalization and a master's in spatial management with a specialization in revitalization of urban and degraded areas. I co-authored a few research papers and quite a bit of local planning and strategic documents. I'm also engaged with a local civic organization in my city. In the future I plan to do a PhD, researching a topic of optimization of administrative divisions.
Currently I'm working on my own social impact project, focused on climate action and ecosystem restoration, making it more efficient and accessible for individuals, and addressing some issues of existing initiatives I've encountered. I'd like to write a separate post about the project if it is ok, as I could use some support and advice.
I plan to research this forum more and hope to integrate with the EA community!
I can’t figure out how to get off the ground my environmental impact project.
A while ago I started a project to crowdfund ecosystem restoration, attempting to address the downsides of existing initiatives that I've encountered. We’ve managed to get the interest of a few municipal authorities, who are ready to pledge a decent amount of land for the project. We've also got a few first contributors from the US and the EU.
The problem is, I can’t figure out how to get more contributors, and we need at least 50 more people before the end of the year to be able to conduct first field works next season, or to even keep the project afloat.
People tend to like the idea, but I can’t convince them to contribute, and I can’t get help from anywhere. I’ve tried so many things, but nothing seems to work.
I honestly just don’t know what to do, and I’m afraid, that I’ll have to shut down the whole project before even making any impact, and it makes me feel devastated…
It isn’t aimed at EA community, as I haven’t encountered such reactions, but in a broader context, I would prefer if people would just be honest and tell that they appreciate, but it isn’t their priority right now, and not promise support and then ghost. So far EA folks are the most honest and upfront ones :)
Although it would be nice if people were more into climate action, as environment is a cornerstone of all other human activities.
I’ve made a post outlining what we are trying to make differently in comparison to existing planting initiatives. Also ecosystem restoration is deemed to be one of the most effective way for carbon recapture, and as soon as we confirm with our partners the minimum 40-year guarantee, we’ll also get below 10 USD per ton. Plus each hectare will provide hundreds of dollars worth of other ecosystem services, as we won’t be creating industrial plantations but aiming for more natural forests. We just need a little push to jumpstart field operations.
Hi. I’m seeking advice on how to get more people to contribute towards an environmental impact project I’ve been working on.
I don’t know if I have such bad luck or what, but I have a tremendous problem when reaching out to people, organizations, or media. If anyone even bother to respond, then it is either a statement that this is ‘such an important and needed project’ (but it seems not so important for them to support it), and they ‘wish me luck’ (I can’t do anything with just wishes), or if they declare initial interest and support, then it ends with ghosting. Not to mention a few openly hostile encounters.
If everyone who declared their support went through with their promises, we’d be already planting, and here I am, stuck in a chicken-and-egg situation, where people expect me to show completed projects to even consider support, while I need initial support to start them.
I was thinking that I am doing everything by the book regarding initial outreach, but I just can’t get any positive results, and I don’t know what to do to get unstuck…
Hello everyone!
My name is Karl and I'm a socio-economic geographer with an engineering degree in inland waterways revitalization and a master's in spatial management with a specialization in revitalization of urban and degraded areas. I co-authored a few research papers and quite a bit of local planning and strategic documents. I'm also engaged with a local civic organization in my city. In the future I plan to do a PhD, researching a topic of optimization of administrative divisions.
Currently I'm working on my own social impact project, focused on climate action and ecosystem restoration, making it more efficient and accessible for individuals, and addressing some issues of existing initiatives I've encountered. I'd like to write a separate post about the project if it is ok, as I could use some support and advice.
I plan to research this forum more and hope to integrate with the EA community!