We are a wild mix. Just like nature.

Wild nature is a source of inspiration for me and I feel at home there. Next to a huge tree in the old-growth forest, on the foggy riverbank or sitting on a mountain - nature helps to recharge my batteries and to experience small and big wonders. In the last 20 years I have seen whole forest landscapes disappear, cities and roads have covered lakes and valleys. Pristine nature is becoming rarer by the year - at a frightening rate that compels action. I love nature and, as part of Wilderness International, I want to fight to ensure that our Earth will continue to be one thing: Wild and beautiful.

Sustainable change only happens from the bottom up and out of personal conviction. I believe in that. That's what motivated me to join WI in Dresden as a volunteer 10 years ago. Making nature conservation a tangible experience for everyone and even motivating entire companies to do so has excited me since my early years at WI. I started with networking and accompanying projects with pupils. The course of my illness has given me additional time for reflection. Since my disability, I can invest the time available to me in a focused manner in my tasks. With transparency. With fun. With WI.

As a young man and active winter sportsman, I witnessed the great forest dieback in the Osterzgebirge in the 1970/80s. In addition, there was the Chernobyl reactor accident in 1986. These events already formed a strong environmental consciousness in me during GDR times. Kai Andersch inspired me later to become active in international nature conservation: first as an enthusiastic sponsor with the company Gerl for the wilderness runs of the Dresden schools, then more intensively from 2008 as a founding benefactor. Today, I work in the area of finances as a board member in the foundation office on a voluntary basis.

As a schoolboy, I was confronted with the rapid destruction of the tropical rainforest in South America. All the forecasts of the loss of area, unimaginable to me at the time, have come true despite the best arguments for the preservation of the forests...

I've always loved being outdoors, thanks in part to my parents. In the course of my life so far, I have become more and more aware of climate protection in my private life, during my studies and also through my professional commitment...

I have always enjoyed being outdoors. Whether on the banks of a river, on a hike in the mountains, in the forest or on the coast. Spending time in nature gives me strength and I can draw new creativity from it. The often unique symbioses...

I am passionate about Wilderness International because the foundation provides answers rather than mere questions. Specifically, answers to the question, "How can we sustain a world where future generations can continue to live with similar benefits?"....

After my first visit to the native forests of British Columbia, I knew that I felt a sense of peace and connection in this place that I would not find anywhere else. In my last two years of school, I began volunteering with Wilderness International....

For me, an essential component of "protecting nature" is raising awareness among young people on the threshold of adulthood. Actively experiencing nature and the experience of seeing great things emerge from many small things through their own commitment...

Grown up on the Baltic Sea island of Usedom, I have always had a great relationship with nature. Since my youth I have been traveling on the continents of our earth, sometimes on tours lasting several weeks. Over time, a certain restlessness set in me when traveling...

I was impressed by the wild, untouched nature during a vacation in Western Canada in 2004 and since then it became a place of longing for me. I very much wish that also my children and as many other people as possible of following generations will still have intact...

I am involved with Wilderness International because I care about protecting nature and preserving indigenous culture for our children and our children's children. The rainforests of Canada are one wilderness area among many on our planet that must be saved, because many of the current global conflicts are due to a globally disrupted ecosystem and resulting resource shortages. If we humans do not preserve and protect our environment, there will be serious consequences. I vouch for Wilderness International because I know here that my commitment to the protection of nature and the local population will also reach there.

I never thought I would end up in conservation. Actually, I've always been interested in other, more social issues. But no one can convince you to protect the environment as much as nature itself. Standing under a giant tree and feeling its age, seeing whales and hearing wolves howl. I cannot and will not imagine a world without that. And so, since the first time I went to the wilderness as a high school student with WI, I've stuck with it. I organized an exchange with the Gwich'in in the West Arctic and lived north of the Arctic Circle for five months to do it. After that, I studied intercultural communication. In Team Communication I can combine both passions and share the beauty of wilderness with others.

Before coming to WI as a volunteer, I worked as a software engineer for five years. A good friend, who always inspires me to take on new challenges and experiences, turned me on to WI. At WI, I want to dedicate my time, energy, and youth to protecting the wild places of this earth. I will use my work experience mainly for improvements in the organization and cooperation in the IT sector, but I will also help where I can.

I am pleased to be able to facilitate donation processes at WI. I originally studied business mathematics and at some point fell in love with wine. So I studied viticulture and traveled around the world for almost 10 years as a traveling winemaker. Besides WI, I deliver packaging-free wine in Berlin, cook for homeless people at Straßenfeger e.V. and am responsible for vine care and wine production in the Kreuzberg vineyard. If you want to play table tennis or skat in the evening, or philosophize about wine and food, you've come to the right place.

As a new addition to the Berlin team, I can't wait to jump into the myriad of communications opportunities at Wilderness International. My background is a diverse wealth of experience from the shallows of the communications world. I studied journalism, film and sociology and have a master's degree in communication and media studies. I've worked in the Berlin (social) startup world - from DIY to cooking to crowdfunding. The fact that I can now devote all my energy to nature conservation and environmental protection inspires me a lot - let's go!

I am proud to be part of a movement that is committed to the protection of the primal nature that still exists today, as well as to education for sustainable development of future generations. The aim is to raise awareness of our environment as a society and to actively establish climate protection with real solutions for both individuals and companies. Making visible the consumption of nature in our lives and at the same time transforming it into environmental protection concepts drives me to push for both permanent nature protection and modern development solutions at Wilderness International.

The forest has always been my favorite place, Ronja Räubertochter the heroine of my childhood, and to this day you can often find me roaming the woods.
In my job, I've spent the last 20 years in the marketing sector, working in agencies on campaigns for technology, automotive, fashion and food & beverage brands. Since 2010 I have also been supporting the communications team of Google / YouTube e.g. in the conception and design of media partnerships, corporate cases or CSR projects with creators, sponsors, NGOs and public institutions/politics. The experience of how much power good projects develop through real passion and multi-layered collaborations is my incentive to develop exactly such partnerships with the WI team. And of course, it makes me super proud to be able to spend some of my time actively helping to preserve virgin forests - not only for robber daughters...

Since my childhood I love to question and explore things. This open view of the world awakens in me an immense reverence and humility for life and nature. That's why during my bachelor's and master's studies I intensively studied a wide variety of agricultural and environmental topics on a scientific level, but I also traveled a lot to learn about new languages and cultures. Having recently finished my studies, I am now looking forward to combining this scientific approach with the active protection of nature in the communications team at Wilderness International.

For the fact that I found accounting daunting during my business studies and never wanted to work in this area, I am now very happy to have found my way to WI. A friend who recruited me told a few fibs about the amount of work I would have to do. But WI just caught me right from the start, and climbing mountains has always been a challenge I like to take on anyway. And even though I would often rather see trees than numbers, I'm happy to be able to help the trees with the numbers.

After my studies, I first went in a completely different direction. After a year of exhausting but also fun work in the advertising department of a newspaper, which was very conducive to communication, I set off on a full course in the direction of culture. After two further training courses and various jobs in different theaters, however, I gave up in disillusionment. But I had gained a lot of knowledge and experience in public relations, marketing, personnel management, networking, association work, teamwork, acquisition, event management, performance and tour planning, and much more. 

Now I had become aimless and let myself drift. As a flotsam and jetsam, I feel wonderfully taken care of at WI in this great team that is more than burning for the cause. I still have a passion for culture as a spectator and stilt walker. I also love the wind around my nose when hiking, skiing, motorcycling, camping, and being at home outdoors.

I love to program and optimize fast websites. Many people don't know that slow websites consume more power than non-optimized sites. So when the PageSpeed rating goes into the green zone, it not only makes users happy, but also the environment. Wilderness International and I are united in our quest to protect our remaining ecosystems. In this way, my work at the desk takes on a meaning that goes beyond PageSpeed.

Seit meiner Kindheit bin ich fasziniert von der Pflanzen- und Tierwelt, besonders von einzigartigen unberührten Naturgebieten und Lebensräumen. Im Laufe der Jahre hatte ich das Privileg, viele Regionen unserer Erde zu besuchen, darunter auch der Amazonas-Regenwald. Diese Erfahrungen haben mir die Bedeutung eines intakten Ökosystems und des Gleichgewichts zwischen Mensch und Natur bewusst gemacht.Im Jahr 2020 bekam ich die Möglichkeit, mein Freiwilliges ökologisches Jahr bei Wilderness International zu absolvieren. Die Arbeit hat mich derart fasziniert, dass ich bis heute aktiv bei Wilderness International mitwirke.
Als Projektleiter des Teams CO₂ bin ich zuständig für unsere CO₂-Rechner, sowie für die Jahresbilanzierung von Partnerunternehmen.Ich bin stolz darauf, Teil des Teams von Wilderness International zu sein und gemeinsam mit engagierten Menschen an unserer Mission zu arbeiten, unberührte Wildnis langfristig zu schützen.

My name is Marten and I completed my Voluntary Ecological Year 2022 at Wilderness. My fascination for the rainforest and my conviction of its enormous importance have motivated me to continue my involvement with Wilderness as a working student. I am highly motivated to do my part in protecting our planet. My responsibilities include developing a CO2 calculator and designing media content. I look forward to continuing to actively participate in projects that make a sustainable contribution to our environment.
 

Meine treibende Kraft ist die Neugier. Schon früher draußen im Garten, jetzt als Teil des CO₂-Rechner Teams von WI. Dabei sorge ich mit meiner wissenschaftlichen Recherche für eine aktuelle Datengrundlage. Es fasziniert es mich ungemein, Neues über unsere komplexe Natur zu lernen. Gleichzeitig finde ich meinen Ruhepool und die besten Ideen draußen im Grünen.
Momentan studiere ich Umweltmonitoring und verbringe meine freien Nachmittage gern in der Natur oder mit Schwimmen, Lesen und Zeichnen.
Vor allem draußen und durch das Studium sehe ich tagtäglich, wie essentiell der Schutz der Natur für sämtliche einzigartige Arten und das Gleichgewicht vielfältiger Ökosysteme ist.
Dass ich hier bei WI der Natur durch meine Recherche etwas zurückgeben kann, gibt mir Hoffnung.

Wild nature is a source of inspiration for me and I feel at home there. Next to a huge tree in the old-growth forest, on the foggy riverbank or sitting on a mountain - nature helps to recharge my batteries and to experience small and big wonders. In the last 20 years I have seen whole forest landscapes disappear, cities and roads have covered lakes and valleys. Pristine nature is becoming rarer by the year - at a frightening rate that compels action. I love nature and, as part of Wilderness International, I want to fight to ensure that our Earth will continue to be one thing: Wild and beautiful.

Sustainable change only happens from the bottom up and out of personal conviction. I believe in that. That's what motivated me to join WI in Dresden as a volunteer 10 years ago. Making nature conservation a tangible experience for everyone and even motivating entire companies to do so has excited me since my early years at WI. I started with networking and accompanying projects with pupils. The course of my illness has given me additional time for reflection. Since my disability, I can invest the time available to me in a focused manner in my tasks. With transparency. With fun. With WI.

In 2016, I became part of the Wilderness Team as part of the Environmental Ambassador Program. I wanted to experience the wilderness, which I only knew from stories, up close, explore and above all protect it in the long term! The collected impressions and experiences in Canada, especially those from the Toba Valley, have not let go of me and have had a decisive impact. After graduating from high school in 2018, I then poured my voluntary commitment into the framework of a federal volunteer service at Wilderness, in order to work harder for the preservation of this unique ecosystem and to make a lasting difference in our world. This basic attitude has remained until today, it has even been further consolidated and strengthened! Now, in addition to my studies, I continue to be involved primarily in the field of wilderness running in order to pass on my enthusiasm for nature and the environment to students. Because the temperate rainforests in Western Canada with their incredibly old tree giants and the enormously high biodiversity are a natural jewel of our planet, which must be preserved at all costs!  

Tino Kreßner is a crowdfunding pioneer in Germany and co-founder of the crowdfunding platform Startnext.com. In doing so, he advocates for a participatory and transparent allocation of capital to promote sustainable and creative ideas. With Finlane GmbH, he operates parallel crowdfunding technology to promote non-profit projects together with banks. As a founding member of the Social Entrepreneurship Netzwerk Deutschland (SEND), he shapes better framework conditions for companies that focus on their impact rather than profit maximization. 

Together with the Wilderness International Foundation, Tino Kreßner initiated the largest private tree planting campaign in Germany and today protects the last intact ecosystems on our planet. 

Forests have always been my personal happy place and, to be quite honest, I often just like animals better than people. I also like telling good stories. So after a master's degree in English, my career path led me to a communications agency. And even though I can already deal with important future issues there on a daily basis, I've always had the desire to do even more - especially when it comes to nature conservation and environmental protection. That's why it is a special affair of the heart for me to support the communications team of Wilderness International where I can, and to show as many people as possible how much active wilderness protection can achieve.

I am very happy to support Wilderness International with my ideas, experience and networks in order to protect the last intact ecosystems of our earth permanently and across generations. In my past I built up an advertising agency in Hamburg, founded a startup in the sports sector and played soccer for Hannover 96. When I'm not working, you can find me with friends in nature or traveling.

My biology studies have taught me to respect, appreciate, and above all, love nature. It has brought me here, to my beloved jungle, to accomplish a great work. It reminds me of what a great poet once said, "Turn a tree into firewood and it will burn for you, but it will not bear flowers or fruit for your children."-Rabindranath Tagore.
Meanwhile, it is not just words, it is our reality. It is inexplicable to be able to study and protect from everything that is most dear to me. To even be able to make it my profession is one of the best gifts that life could give me.
I studied biology at UNSAAC in Cusco and have since worked in various projects in the Madre de Dios region, including an environmental study for the regeneration of natural areas destroyed by gold mines and the renaturation of tree species threatened with extinction.

I come from the Manu region and was born in Palotoa. The name of the place comes from the Matsiguenga word "Paroto", which means balsa tree (Ochroma pyramidale).
Even as a child I appreciated the singing of birds at dawn, during the day I watched monkeys jumping around in the treetops, and admired the footprints of jaguars (Panthera onca) and tapirs (Tapirus terrestris) on the banks of streams, and fish such as Prochilodus magdalenae in the tributaries of the upper Madre de Dios River.
I studied forest engineering at UNSAAC with the goal of conserving forest and wildlife resources and using them sustainably.

I was born in the Andes, in Urcos, near Cusco, a wonderful place full of nature at that time. As a child, I moved with my family to Madre de Dios, where I have now lived for more than 45 years. I love the trees, rivers, streams and waterfalls, the heat and the sounds of nature with its thousands of species of animals here. Although I have to admit that I don't like mosquitoes very much. I have worked for numerous entities in Puerto Maldonado, from tourist accommodations to government organizations to family businesses. But working with Wilderness International is the most fulfilling for me because I see us preserving the things I love so much. And most importantly, because I feel that in this way I can also raise awareness in others about how to care for, protect, and preserve our beautiful natural world.

Having grown up in the Peruvian Amazon rainforest, nature has inspired me since childhood. That's why I also did my bachelor's degree in forestry in Peru and then my master's degree in forest ecology in Germany, where I...

My joining Wilderness International was definitely a happy coincidence - in the right place at the right time, with the right people on a mission to protect wild nature. A Peruvian friend had introduced me to Fabian Mühlberger in 2018, whereupon...

I have loved nature since my earliest childhood, and I am particularly fascinated by primeval forests. Of course, this has also influenced my choice of career and I now work full-time in nature conservation and am committed to the preservation of wilderness and biodiversity in various ecosystems around the world. I became aware of Wilderness International through my work as a nature tour guide for Diamir Erlebnisreisen, a partner of the foundation. The direct concept of Wilderness International for wilderness conservation, as well as the team behind it, appealed to me so much right away that I absolutely wanted to become a part of this project to protect endangered and spectacular primeval forests.

I never thought I would end up in conservation. Actually, I've always been interested in other, more social issues. But no one can convince you to protect the environment as much as nature itself. Standing under a giant tree and feeling its age, seeing whales and hearing wolves howl. I cannot and will not imagine a world without that. And so, since the first time I went to the wilderness as a high school student with WI, I've stuck with it. I organized an exchange with the Gwich'in in the West Arctic and lived north of the Arctic Circle for five months to do it. After that, I studied intercultural communication. In Team Communication I can combine both passions and share the beauty of wilderness with others.

When I heard in the 5th grade about trees that are more than a hundred times older than me, I decided to participate in the Wilderness Run. It felt good to be able to actively do something for international and regional wilderness conservation. The opportunity to go on an expedition to Western Canada in 11th grade was an absolute game changer for me, because I could now experience the unique nature in the Toba Valley with all my senses. The vastness and untouched nature of the wilderness touched me so much that I wanted to continue my involvement with the foundation in the future. By organizing wilderness runs and especially as coordinator for the Wilderness Team Challenge, I was able to develop myself further and realize new ideas. A second expedition to our wilderness areas and to the West Arctic have again shown me the meaningfulness of my work - and expanded my craft and cultural skills.

Wild nature is a source of inspiration for me and I feel at home there. Next to a huge tree in the old-growth forest, on the foggy riverbank or sitting on a mountain - nature helps to recharge my batteries and to experience small and big wonders. In the last 20 years I have seen whole forest landscapes disappear, cities and roads have covered lakes and valleys. Pristine nature is becoming rarer by the year - at a frightening rate that compels action. I love nature and, as part of Wilderness International, I want to fight to ensure that our Earth will continue to be one thing: Wild and beautiful.

I grew up in rural western Canada and know that I was very fortunate to enjoy the freedom of the outdoors, hiking, camping and horseback riding. This is how my identity has evolved over my lifetime, deeply connected to nature and wild spaces. I feel joy and freedom whenever I experience something new or unexpected in the beauty of nature and the world around me....

Wild nature is a source of inspiration for me and I feel at home there. Next to a huge tree in the old-growth forest, on the foggy riverbank or sitting on a mountain - nature helps to recharge my batteries and to experience small and big wonders. In the last 20 years I have seen whole forest landscapes disappear, cities and roads have covered lakes and valleys. Pristine nature is becoming rarer by the year - at a frightening rate that compels action. I love nature and, as part of Wilderness International, I want to fight to ensure that our Earth will continue to be one thing: Wild and beautiful.

When I heard in the 5th grade about trees that are more than a hundred times older than me, I decided to participate in the Wilderness Run. It felt good to be able to actively do something for international and regional wilderness conservation. The opportunity to go on an expedition to Western Canada in 11th grade was an absolute game changer for me, because I could now experience the unique nature in the Toba Valley with all my senses. The vastness and untouched nature of the wilderness touched me so much that I wanted to continue my involvement with the foundation in the future. By organizing wilderness runs and especially as coordinator for the Wilderness Team Challenge, I was able to develop myself further and realize new ideas. A second expedition to our wilderness areas and to the West Arctic have again shown me the meaningfulness of my work - and expanded my craft and cultural skills.