We put nature at the heart of decision-making by developing science-based solutions.
We are a highly specialised environmental consulting company established within the Department of Land, Environment, Agriculture and Forestry of the University of Padua.
As a university spin-off and B Corp, we work daily to improve the economic, environmental and social benefits of policies, projects and investments. We provide tailor-made consultancy to private companies, organisations and public administrations.
The history
2011
Our company was founded as a spin-off of the University of Padua’s Department of Territory and Agro-Forestry Systems. Lucio Brotto, Diego Florian, Alessandro Leonardi, Mauro Masiero, Davide Pettenella, and Laura Secco chose to call it Etifor: a name that combines the words “ethics” and “forestry,” fundamental elements of our identity.
The team
Organisations are made of people. And it is thanks to our team that we are able to make a real impact on the planet that hosts us.
Updated 02/26
Horizontal competencies
We are like an orchestra where each of us has a different task, and together, we make the harmony of nature resonate. Etifor has a multidisciplinary approach, thanks to a team where technicians work alongside professionals specialising in:
Project writing
& reporting
Facilitation
Marketing
& communication
Memberships
We are part of Nature Positive Network, a dynamic network of companies that wish to make a difference in Italy by creating a concrete commitment to the transition of the production system to a nature-positive economy.
We are members of The European Forum on Urban Forestry (EFUF), a unique meeting place for practitioners, policy-makers, managers, educators and scientists who are active in urban forestry, urban greening and green infrastructure.
We are a member of the Alliance for Water Stewardship, the international organisation for preserving the environmental sustainability of water bodies. Recognising water as a common good, the Alliance promotes collective responses to the complex challenges related to water resources and their use.
We are members of the Biodiversity Credit Alliance (BCA), a group of scientists, academics, conservation practitioners, and standard setters with direct links to Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities on our Communities Advisory Panel (CAP), which exists to provide guidance for the establishment of a credible and scalable market that stands up to the scrutiny of multiple stakeholders.
From 2022 we are members of the European Forest Institute (EFI): an international organisation, which deals with research and policy support in the forestry sector, established by 30 European States. EFI currently has a network of c. 130 member organisations from 40 countries that represent forest research, industry, forest owners, environmental research and international forestrelated organisations.
We are members of NetworkNature, a resource for the Nature-based Solutions (NbS) community. Networknature creates opportunities for local, regional, and international cooperation to maximise the impact and spread of Nbs. We are partners, in particular, of Task Force 3, which focuses on NbS finance, investment mechanisms and business models from the perspective of co-creation and co-finance.
We are members of Oppla, the EU Repository of Nature-Based Solutions. Oppla provides a knowledge marketplace where the latest thinking on natural capital, ecosystem services and nature-based solutions is brought together. Its purpose is to simplify how we share, obtain and create knowledge to better manage our environment.
We are members of the European Business & Biodiversity Platform, which is set up by the European Commission to work with and help businesses measure and integrate the value of biodiversity into business decision making.
We are leaders of the Italy Hub of Capitals Coalition, the global network that unite leading initiatives and organisations under a common vision of a world that conserves and enhances all forms of capital.
We are members of the Forum for Sustainable Finance: the non-profit multi-stakeholder association that promotes the knowledge and practice of sustainable investment, with the aim of disseminating the integration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria in financial products and processes. Find out more about Etifor’s Sustainable Investment area.
We are registered Expert Advisors in the Science Based Targets Network (SBTN), contributing to the Service Provider Support programme to help companies set science-based targets for nature. Together with the Accountability Accelerator – the Global Commons Alliance body responsible for validating these targets – we are working to test and improve the validation process for the first corporate SBTs for nature. As members of the SBTN Corporate Engagement Program, we bring our expertise to help companies and organisations set robust and measurable goals to reduce their impact on nature.
We are members of the TNFD Forum – a market-led, science-based and government-backed initiative providing organisations with the tools to act on evolving nature-related issues – and represent the local Business for Biodiversity Italy as the National Convener of the TNFD Consultation Group for Italy.
We are part of the Italy Working Group Association, which brings together public and private organizations from the Italian tourism system committed to achieving best practices in sustainable tourism through the dissemination of the Global Sustainable Tourism Council® (GSTC) standards in our country.
We are co-founders of the Business for Biodiversity Italy, the Italian network of companies and financial institutions committed to a Nature Positive future. Alongside Forum Finanza di Sostenibile and Lombardy Region, we regularly convene stakeholders from the private and public sectors to align on best practices for assessing, managing, and disclosing nature- and biodiversity-related topics.
As of 2026, Etifor is a member of AITR: the association dedicated to promoting and spreading the culture, principles, and practices of sustainable and responsible tourism in Italy. This partnership reinforces our commitment to supporting tourism models that enhance local territories, protect natural capital, and generate tangible benefits for local communities through a scientific and nature-positive approach.
We support Nature Positive Initiative, a global network committed to helping to secure a nature-positive world, halting and reversing nature loss by 2030.
We are part of Nature Positive Network, a dynamic network of companies committed to the transition of the production system to a nature-positive economy in Italy.
We are members of The European Forum on Urban Forestry (EFUF), a unique meeting place for practitioners, policy-makers, managers, educators and scientists active in urban forestry and green infrastructure.
We are a member of the Alliance for Water Stewardship, the international organisation for preserving the environmental sustainability of water bodies and promoting collective responses to complex water resource challenges.
We are members of the Biodiversity Credit Alliance (BCA), established to provide guidance for a credible and scalable biodiversity credit market with direct links to Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities.
From 2022 we are members of the European Forest Institute (EFI), an international organisation for forestry research and policy support with c. 130 member organisations from 40 countries.
We are members of NetworkNature, a resource for the Nature-based Solutions community, and partners of Task Force 3 on NbS finance and business models.
We are members of Oppla, the EU Repository of Nature-Based Solutions — a knowledge marketplace bringing together the latest thinking on natural capital, ecosystem services and NbS.
We are members of the European Business & Biodiversity Platform, set up by the European Commission to help businesses measure and integrate the value of biodiversity into decision making.
We are leaders of the Italy Hub of Capitals Coalition, the global network uniting organisations under a common vision of conserving and enhancing all forms of capital.
We are members of the Forum for Sustainable Finance, the non-profit multi-stakeholder association promoting the integration of ESG criteria in financial products and processes.
We are registered Expert Advisors in the Science Based Targets Network (SBTN), helping companies set robust, science-based targets to reduce their impact on nature.
We are members of the TNFD Forum and serve as National Convener of the TNFD Consultation Group for Italy, representing Business for Biodiversity Italy.
We are part of the Italy Working Group Association, bringing together public and private organisations committed to best practices in sustainable tourism through the Global Sustainable Tourism Council® (GSTC) standards.
We are co-founders of Business for Biodiversity Italy, the Italian network of companies and financial institutions committed to a Nature Positive future.
As of 2026, Etifor is a member of AITR, the association promoting sustainable and responsible tourism in Italy, reinforcing our commitment to nature-positive tourism models that benefit local communities.
Quality assurance systems
In 2022 we obtained the international B Corp certification. Find out more here.
B Corporations are companies committed to measure and consider their environmental and social performance with the same attention traditionally given to economic results. These companies believe in business as a positive force to produce value for the biosphere and society.
“Certified B Corporation” is a trademark licensed by B Lab, a private non-profit organization, to companies like ours that have successfully completed the B Impact Assessment (“BIA”) and therefore meet the requirements set by B Lab for social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency. It is specified that B Lab is not a conformity assessment body as defined by Regulation (EU) No 765/2008, nor is it a national, European, or international standardization body as per Regulation (EU) No 1025/2012. The criteria of the BIA are distinct and independent from the harmonized standards resulting from ISO norms or other standardization bodies, and they are not ratified by national or European public institutions.
Since the founding of Etifor, we have been a member of the Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC), a global nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting responsible management of the world’s forests. FSC sets standards based on recognized principles of responsible forest management [stewardship, Ed.] that are supported by active practitioners in the field.
We are members of the GSTC – Global Sustainable Tourism Council, whose criteria serve as global reference standards for sustainability of operators and tourism destinations.
