Freddie Catlow

Founder and CEO @ Planboo

About

We Are the Weather Makers changed everything. Since then, I’ve been on a mission to find practical and accessible ways to help tackle the climate crisis – from building a massive bamboo hotel in Sri Lanka 🏝️ to founding Planboo 🌱. At Planboo, we combine Indigenous wisdom – Biochar – with Intelligent infrastructure. It might sound buzzwordy, but AI 🤖, IoT 📡, and blockchain 🔗 all have a part to play in the future we choose. Our focus is the Tropics, aka the Global South 🌍 – where climate impacts hit hardest, despite the region contributing the least to climate change. Much of the world’s commodity crops grow here: coffee, cotton, cocoa, coconuts, cinnamon. All good stuff. It’s also where water’s warm, waves are ridden, and you can drop into nature’s rhythm 🏄‍♂️. By turning agricultural waste into Biochar, we boost the climate resilience of soils and flip the script from extractive systems to regenerative ones. #insetting 🔁 I’ve been lucky to travel, meet people, and share stories and perspectives. I now wholeheartedly believe Biochar is the Bridge to connect policy to pagans, fields to fashionistas, and society to soil. We need this – otherwise, I fear for the future. Bridge the old and build the boo. ✌️ Peace.

Country

Sweden

City

Stockholm

Industry

Environmental Services

Skill

Project Management, Green Building, AutoCAD, Research, Leadership, Sustainable Design, Sustainable Energy, Architectural Drawings, Permaculture, Aquaponics, Sustainable Agriculture

Experience

Founder and CEO

Planboo

2019-9 - Present · 7 yrs

Stockholm County, Sweden

Enabling high-quality carbon removal with tropical biochar and regenerative agriculture. Bridging global perspectives for global solutions.

Sustainability and Construction Manager

Nomadic Resorts

2015-8 - 2019-9 · 4 yrs 2 mos

Sri Lanka

Spent 3 years building a UNESCO award winning hotel in the Sri Lankan jungle. Taught me a whole bunch... Culture, management and construction. Blood, sweat and tears, tackling fears. Loved it. ► Established strong ecological culture across the construction site. ► Setting out and supervised the installation of civil structures for restaurant, reception and pool. ► Coordination and supervision for construction and fit out the 28 tensile membrane villas. ► Day to day coordination between client, architect and subcontractors. ► Assisting the QS with costings, works, variation orders. ► Engagement, employment and management of 100 persons from the local community. ► Hard and soft landscaping of the 7-acre site rich in biodiversity. 'Leopards, crocs and enormous rocks'. ► Reuse of site natural capital in the creation of five ponds fed by a greywater harvesting system. ► Establishment of site nursery, propagating over 2000 native plants. ► Setting out and supervised construction for the 3km of paths and roadways.

Building with Bamboo

Workshop hosted by Jörg Stamm and South Asia Bamboo Foundation

2018-10 - 2018-11 · 2 mos

Arunachal Pradesh, India

Following on from my bamboo building experience in Sri Lanka I wanted to improve my overall knowledge and skills. The opportunity to learn and work with Jörg Stamm on a bamboo pagoda could not be missed. ► Material selection, harvesting and treatment. ► Design, model making and construction practices. ► Bamboo carpentry, fabrication and installation. On the final day, I gave a presentation to over 200 people including some Arunachal Pradesh government ministers on ecotourism and its application in Sri Lanka.

Student Apprentice

South Devon Cob Building Company

2013-9 - 2013-12 · 4 mos

Totnes

► Contributed to the construction of cob built structure with French oak green roof. ► Gained a new skill and fascination for earth buildings.

Student Apprentice

Stone Wood Homes

2013-5 - 2013-8 · 4 mos

Wanaka, New Zealand

► Developed practical building skills and joinery. ► Worked from plans, set profiles and levels for foundations/ slabs. ► Worked safely alongside subcontractors.

Landscape Gardener & Fleet Mechanic

Penfold Projects

2012-9 - 2012-11 · 3 mos

Brisbane, Australia

► Landscaping the new underground tunnel link to Brisbane Airport. ► Strict health and safety procedures maintained at all times. ► Progressed to working as a mechanics apprentice, servicing a wide variety of machinery; 14tonne excavators, bobcats, tipping trucks, garden machinery etc.

Education

KTH Royal Institute of Technology

2014 - 2015 · 1 yr

By having the freedom to explore ideas and initiatives I have developed a wider understanding of Aquaponics, Permaculture and Green roof technology. Taught academic studies: ► Project development ► Architectural concepts ► Construction management ► Sustainable building technologies ► Fossil fuel free cities of 2050 ► Advanced building technology