Support Semisto financially
Donations, sponsorship or loans: support Semisto financially. Our finances in full transparency, and what we need to scale food forests.
We’re taking Europe toward an abundant, food-producing future
Semisto is a 360° ecosystem made up of a design studio, a training and outreach hub, an emerging nursery school, and the Food Forest Heroes — our local groups of planters who work to music.
Our goal is to create a local network of food forests — food forest gardens, fruit hedges, multi-layer orchards, fruit-tree edges and similar systems — not only in private gardens, but also with companies and public authorities, then spread these experiences at a European level, with a strong focus on documentation and knowledge-sharing under #openknowledge.
The projects underway are exciting: a methodology grounded in collective intelligence, a curriculum for primary schools, projects with a multinational’s employees, a food forest in an abbey, an educational public food forest in Namur, a decentralised nursery across Wallonia, and the first local Food Forest Heroes group in Arlon.
Our economic activities let us build solid foundations and experiment. Financial contributions strongly support our progress.
What do our activities generate financially?
The non-profit began operating in late 2022. Revenue mostly comes from training courses and design-studio projects.
Revenue
| Category | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Training | €25,190 | €46,100 |
| Design studio | €11,736 | €16,146 |
| Shop | €442 | €920 |
| Donations | €4,515 | €11,348 |
| Other | — | €2,163 |
| Total | €41,883 | €76,677 |
Expenses
| Category | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Training | €7,471 | €39,656 |
| Design studio | €10,108 | €19,158 |
| Overheads | €8,747 | €14,105 |
| Other | €1,182 | — |
| Total | €26,326 | €74,101 |
2025 — a change of scale
In 2025, revenue nearly doubled (×1.87) and the association returned to balance.
| Category | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | €41,883 | €76,677 | €145,030 |
| Expenses | €26,326 | €74,101 | €132,356 |
| Result | +€15,557 | +€2,576 | +€12,674 |
| Public subsidies | — | — | €0 |
Our model remains 100% economic activity + donations: no public subsidies, no staff salaries.
What we do
- Training for the general public
- Training for professionals
- Food forest design for individuals
- Food forest design for companies and collectives
- Planting and maintenance of food forests
- Selling plants
What are our strengths?
A concrete environmental and societal impact. Semisto aims to actively participate in turning Europe into a network of food forests, recreating resilient ecosystems that feed people while regenerating biodiversity. Every project designed and planted is a step toward sustainable agriculture and a more alive world.
A unique expertise in ecological design. With an approach grounded in permaculture, agroforestry and innovation, we design food-producing landscapes suited to today’s challenges. Our design studio works with individuals, companies and local authorities to rethink our territories.
A transparent, collaborative approach. At Semisto, transparency is a founding pillar. Our finances, decisions and projects are open to our whole collective, and we encourage everyone to take an active part through a decentralised governance model.
A drive to spread and educate. We train individuals and professionals through immersive courses, coaching and open-source resources. Our goal: enable thousands of people to plant their own food forests.
A long-term, replicable vision. Semisto isn’t limited to one-off plantings: we build lasting, replicable systems. Thanks to a proven methodology and a well-defined expansion strategy, our impact will extend well beyond the individual projects we run today.
Our current collective
| Role | Headcount |
|---|---|
| Designers | 8 freelancers |
| Training coordination | 1 volunteer |
| Training team | 5 freelance trainers |
| Nursery school | 1 volunteer |
Julie, Pauline, François, Laurence, Michael D., Anne, Eric, Louise, Mohammad, Antoine, Chris, Adrien, Sara, Anatole.
Supporting Semisto’s global coordination
Michael’s path took him from the startup world to food forests, after following various courses at Desnié and at Bec Hellouin — and along the way, some meaningful encounters. Michael launched the Semisto project in 2022. What he’d set down on paper is now emerging, joined on the adventure by many people who thrive in it and bring a great deal of joy and energy.
All of this is supported by a governance model built on transparency, autonomy and celebration. Speaking of transparency, we’ll be publishing the “Semisto Handbook” on our site: governance, methodology, project funding — all detailed there.
Our ecosystem is deliberately plural, to lower the barriers to adopting the food forest model: we design, we train, we grow the plants, we plant, and we co-manage alongside our project owners.
Michael’s immediate needs are financial. Semisto’s global coordination currently can’t be paid, at a pivotal moment when everything is launching with tight cash flow. Paying him from the association’s own funds would weaken the launch of its other activity hubs.
We’ve identified a financial need to support Semisto’s rollout over the next 3 years, in the order of:
- 2025: €70,000
- 2026: €60,000
- 2027: €50,000
That’s €180,000 (gross) over 3 years.
We’ve also identified a second, concrete need: securing cash flow to give our emerging activity hubs more room to manoeuvre. A contribution of €25,000 to the association, as a donation, would support the initial risk-taking within the design studio and training hub. We can walk through this in detail, backed by concrete projects.
Paying Michael
Michael is Semisto’s keystone: he makes sure the collective moves forward coherently toward its goals, while maintaining an environment where everyone can thrive.
Concrete results
- 256 participants trained since 2022 (108 in 2025 alone), across 7 courses and the flagship program.
- The Food Forest Designer curriculum, a path for future professional designers: the 3rd cohort is full (15/15 spots, a first).
- 2,523 hours worked in 2025, 47% of it volunteered — proof of a committed collective.
- Les Jardins d’ici, an educational food forest in Naninne, run in partnership with the d’ici grocery chain.
Flexible funding options
- Make a tax-deductible donation via the Fonds des Amis de Semisto, hosted by the King Baudouin Foundation (30% tax relief from €40/year of donations, Belgian taxpayers only) — the route we favour, and one open to donors of any nationality even without the tax benefit.
- Support Michael personally with small recurring donations via Tipeee.
Transparency and recognition
We now direct all donations to the association through the Fonds des Amis de Semisto (King Baudouin Foundation): it’s the most advantageous route for donors, and the Foundation guarantees the seriousness of the collection.
FAQ
Is there a break-even point you expect to reach after a certain number of years?
Our first priority is to ensure responsible, prudent financial management of expenses, while continuing to seek valuable financial partners and supporters, with the aim of reaching financial balance in 2027. Moving quickly on our concrete actions undoubtedly requires additional funding: it will be essential to deploying an ambitious strategy at the European scale.
Is part of the incoming funds dedicated to coordination, management and support-function costs?
Yes. We’ve started factoring these essential costs into the quotes issued by our design studio, as a percentage — around 15% of the total cost allocated to our design team’s services. This covers coordination, management and other support functions essential to the association running well. In the financial plan, this contribution via our clients represents close to €30,000 in 2026.
What sales volume would be needed to reach break-even, accounting for all costs?
In our financial plan, we’ve projected a scenario where we’d approach break-even starting in 2026, based on prudent, realistic assumptions about the growth of our sales and expenses.
If I decide to make Semisto a zero-interest loan of €100,000, can I expect repayment over 10 to 15 years (with repayment starting in year 5)?
Yes. This option — a zero-interest loan repaid over 10 to 15 years, with payments starting in the fifth year — is indeed built into our financial planning. We’re committed to transparent, responsible management of our finances: you’ll receive a detailed annual report on our financial health and progress toward our goals, letting you closely track how your investment is evolving. We’re determined to honour our commitments and ensure the association’s long-term viability.
What would give me confidence in Semisto’s economic stability in the years ahead?
- Our unbounded ambition: we keep aiming higher and constantly look to improve.
- The varied, complementary skills across our collective: each member brings unique value, making us stronger together.
- Our governance: we believe in autonomous decision-making and transparency in our actions and communications.
- The broad public support for our initiative, which motivates us to keep going.
We’re at a turning point for humanity and biodiversity, and these stakes set new priorities — the same ones that gave rise to Semisto. Your interest in Semisto probably doesn’t rest solely on its financial health, but also on its mission — broader and deeper than that.
What impact indicators will Semisto track over the next 5 to 10 years?
We do not measure our impact in hectares: a large, sparse orchard isn’t worth a thriving food forest. What we track is the diversity and quality of the layers — and how well the knowledge spreads.
| Indicator | 2026 | 2027 | 2029 | 2034 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Designers trained (cumulative) | 39 | 54 | 150 | 1,000 |
| Nursery growers trained (cumulative) | — | 14 | 50 | 250 |
| Training participants (cumulative) | 120 | 250 | 800 | 2,000 |
| Association members | 40 | 150 | 400 | 3,200 |
How to reach us
Michael can be reached:
- By phone at +32 498 11 92 78
- By email
- Via WhatsApp, Telegram or Signal