#Social entrepreneurship

In this episode Annick van Rinsum interviews Egbert Fransen: the founder and director of Pakhuis de Zwijger. He set up an unique regional, national and international podium which focuses on bringing people together who want to realise programs that contribute to a more sustainable, fair and future proof society.

Egbert Fransen: “It becomes more interesting if you bring people from different domains and different backgrounds together. My belief is very strong: creation and innovation take place in those places where you have heterogeneous groups of people. It is precisely not being equal, not thinking the same, that brings along innovation."

In these 56 minutes they share stories on:

• His entrepreneurial heart and motives
• The history and development of Pakhuis de Zwijger
• The recent rebranding and his plans for the upcoming 15th anniversary

Podcast #100: Egbert Fransen on shaping cities for everyone, by everyone (in Dutch)

The BBB, a collaboration of Amsterdam Impact, B Lab Benelux, and Economy for the Common Good, aims to help companies put social and environmental impact at the core of their business.

Join the BBB intro event on the 12th of May to learn how to pursue a B Corp or Economy for the Common Good certification. Get inspired by keynote speaker Alice Steenland, Chief Sustainability Officer of Dassault Systèmes. This company designs virtual universes to imagine sustainable innovations.

You can sign up for the event for free.

Young Urban Engineers (YUE) is a brand new student consultancy firm that focuses on projects within the urban environment. This new consultancy firm is founded by three entrepreneurial MSc MADE Students: Titus Venverloo, Annie Berendsen and Hanna Winters.

They want to give students from the MSc Metropolitan Analysis, Design and Engineering program (MSc MADE) the opportunity to participate and gain experience with real-life projects. By matching them to project from companies that are looking for a fresh perspective on the urban issues at hand.

Get to know Young Urban Engineers

Due to the current circumstances, they have not been able to celebrate their go-live. You are invited to their official online launch on May 3rd at 16:30. During this event the current board, partners and participating students will tell you about their experiences with Young Urban Engineers. Also, the brand new website and logo will be revealed.

Can you use a fresh perspective on your urban environment topics? Get to know YUE on May 3rd and you might even win a free brainstorm session with these Young Urban Engineers.

You can Register Here.

The City of Amsterdam aims to be a climate-neutral city by 2050 and to generate as much clean energy as possible on its territory. The Zuidoost district of Amsterdam wants to achieve this ambition as early as 2040.

The development of Amsterdam Zuidoost offers opportunities to combine sustainability with social improvement. For example by improving the living comfort of homes or by creating local employment. This ambition calls for innovative solutions to seize the opportunities for a social energy transition.

What does a smart and local energy system look like? How can we best shape this transition together? Who can play a role in this? In this program, we discuss the development of a scalable neighbourhood energy platform in the ArenAPoort area.

In collaboration with Pakhuis de Zwijger we hosted a livecast. We talked to various stakeholders involved in the Energy Lab Zuidoost:

• Henk van Raan | Amsterdam ArenA
• Ruben Voerman | Gemeente Amsterdam
• Huub Hendriks | Alliander
• Stella Boes | TU Delft
• Else Veldman | AMS Institute

The livecast was in Dutch, but you can watch the recording with subtitles.

How can local governments deal with (technological) innovations? Listen to the #podcast with Karen Vancluysen of POLIS Network: https://bit.ly/mobilitypod

Are you a student with an interest in climate, technical and social innovations? Do you want to contribute to sustainable and affordable energy generation? Would you like to develop new concepts, products or services? Take part in the international hackathon Empower on Saturday 1 May! The hackathon offers a unique opportunity to collaborate with different students, experts and professionals. Your idea can have an impact on the social energy transition in Europe. You have a chance to win a sustainable grand prize!

On April 9th three collective entrepreneurs present their Mobility as a Common initiatives and challenges at the Townmaking Common Labworks.

The Towmaking Common Labworks are a network of cooperative initiatives that develop and implement solutions for the common good. This Friday we start a series of meetups for the vertical in Mobility as a Commons, and invite entrepreneurs, governments and professionals to join the Labworks and build together.

This Friday WijZijnDeel and the Amsterdam Bicycle Collective will present their initiatives and journeys.
The ABC builds a local cooperative ecosystem for the development, production, maintenance, and use of community-built circular eBikes. Join the designers, engineers, bicycle shops, and educational partners in making Dutch cycling culture about care for healthy living, sustainable production, and quality making.
WijZijnDeel  organises citizens in cooperatives in order to be able to provide in their collective mobility needs.

Our city urgently requires zero-emissions and lower loads on aging infrastructure, and at the same time the health of our city also needs mobility solutions that are sensitive to local needs, and that are made and maintained by highly-skilled local economies. We believe local communities are best positioned to understand their collective needs and environment, and they form the heart of a healthy, sustainable and  inclusive society. Therefore our mission is to empower these communities with quality infrastructure and ownership.

Join the Townmaking Common Labworks:

When: April 9th from 15h-17h
Where: Find more info about the event and sign up at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/mobility-as-a-commons-meetup-tickets-148005619793

De Gouden Piramide ging in 2016 naar een bijzondere plek voor jonge mensen: Xenia Huis met een Hart Hospice en Logeerhuis Leiden. Luister naar het indrukwekkende verhaal van oprichtster Jacqueline Bouts: https://bit.ly/mobilitypod

Wil jij je inzetten voor betere straten, buurten en steden? Ben jij thuis in de wereld van communicatie, social media en community management? En heb je affiniteit met stedelijke innovatie?

Kom dan het Amsterdam Smart City team versterken! Voor ons kernteam (bestaande uit 6 mensen) zijn wij op zoek naar een:

(junior) Communicatie- en programmamedewerker

Amsterdam Smart City is een onafhankelijk innovatieplatform dat innovatieve bedrijven, kennisinstellingen, overheden en proactieve bewoners samenbrengt en vorm geeft aan de stad van de toekomst.

Wij zijn ervan overtuigd dat de veranderingen die nodig zijn voor de vooruitgang van de stad en regio alleen gerealiseerd kunnen worden door samen te werken. Al onze activiteiten zijn daarom gericht op het faciliteren van ontmoeting, interactie en samenwerking, zodat partijen samen tastbare, duurzame innovaties tot stand kunnen brengen. Amsterdam Smart City richt zich met name op deze vier thema’s: mobiliteit, de digitale stad, energie en circulaire economie. Met het Amsterdam Smart City team zorgen we voor verbinding.

Wat ga je doen?
Je voert de communicatie- en communitystrategie actief uit door het maken van content, het schrijven van nieuwsbrieven, beheren van onze social media kanalen en het organiseren van events. Je bent veel in contact met de partners en andere organisaties binnen het netwerk van ASC.

Daarnaast werk je met onze partners aan het aanjagen van innovaties binnen het transitiepad Mobiliteit & Logistiek en legt verbindingen met de community. Ook breid je het netwerk uit met relevante organisaties en innovatieve projecten. De communicatie- en programmamedewerker werkt nauw samen met het gehele smart city team en legt verantwoording af aan de communicatiemanager. Daarnaast heb je een aantal programma ondersteunende taken.

Taken
• Je beheert onze social media kanalen, geeft inzage in de statistieken en onderneemt actie op basis van de data.
• Je onderhoudt het dagelijks contact met de leden van onze community op www.amsterdamsmartcity.com
• Je verzamelt, schrijft, redigeert en publiceert content voor de community en andere stakeholders.
• Je organiseert en draagt bij aan evenementen voor partners en ons bredere netwerk in de regio en communiceert hierover.
• Je coördineert, onder begeleiding, je eigen transitiepad: Mobiliteit & Logistiek en monitort voortgang van projecten en legt verbindingen.
• Je verbindt, mobiliseert en activeert partners en communityleden
• Je voert ondersteunende programma taken uit, zoals het vormgeven van presentaties en zorgdragen voor documentatie en het bijhouden van het CRM systeem.

Profiel:
• WO/HBO werk- en denkniveau
• Opleiding op gebied van communicatie of vergelijkbaar
• 1-2 jaar werkervaring
• Goede beheersing van Nederlands en Engels in woord en schrift
• Ervaring op het gebied van online communicatie, community management en/of projectondersteuning
• Affiniteit met innovatie en stedelijke ontwikkelingen, met het thema Mobiliteit & Logistiek in het bijzonder
• Type aanpakker, zelfstandig, communicatief sterk en flexibel.
• Gedreven in het creëren van maatschappelijke waarde

Wat bieden wij?
Wij bieden je een fijne werkplek op het Marineterrein in Amsterdam, met een informele en collegiale sfeer. Op dit moment werken we uiteraard veel thuis. We zijn een klein team (6 personen) waarin we nauw met elkaar samenwerken. We werken intensief samen met een grote groep gedreven mensen die zich inzetten voor een duurzame stad en regio, voor iedereen. Het is een regionale, nationale én internationale werkomgeving waarin je eigen inbreng en pro-activiteit zeer gewaardeerd worden.

We zoeken iemand voor 32-40 uur per week.  Salarisindicatie o.b.v. 40 uur: €2.900 - €3.400 bruto excl vakantiegeld en eindejaarsuitkering. Wij bieden een jaarcontract met uitzicht op een vaste aanstelling.

Interesse gewekt?
Vind je dit goed klinken? Dan horen we graag van je! Stuur je CV en een korte motivatie voor 17 april naar: info@amsterdamsmartcity.com. De eerste gesprekken zijn op 20 en 21 april. Voor meer informatie over de functie kun bellen met Menouschka Plugge via 06-43752636.

Hopelijk spreken we elkaar snel!

Solidary, Creative Economy, for Communities and With Communities!
Thousands of other initiatives around the world!

(Ana Luíza Farage Silva)

At some point people realized that they needed each other to do something other than "subsist". From there, they decided to organize themselves in something called communities in order to improve their lives and practice a good "survival". Over time, they realized that the law of the strongest could hurt and decided to affirm social contracts to live together and in harmony.

Some people understood that they should give up some freedoms for this, others did not. Over time, these communities have been forming their stories, generating their identities and dynamizing their cultures. When communities became organized, they started to be called societies.

How many societies do we know? How many societies do we live in? Within these social contracts, many have little and few have a lot. Much what? Wealth? Yes, few have access! Access to quality education, decent health, respectful housing, nutritious food and so on.

How many can do what they want and how many cannot do what they need? It is in this concern that I perceive (as several others have already noted) that everything tends to come together. The better structured places attract bigger investments that generate bigger chains that attract even more investments and keep developing (or just growing) more and more. The point is that where there is little, little remains.

Does it have to be this way? If you were a government official and were going to choose to develop a state, would you give growth incentives to regions that are already more advanced or encourage the development of those that still have almost nothing? The prudent answer may be: "it depends" ... if you just want to develop faster, it may be easier to encourage the growth of the wealthiest regions.

After all, their chain is greater and they can “pull” other cities in the process of growth. But if you think about it on the other hand, you can see that there is no certainty that the poorest cities will be fostered by the richest. Will the access ever get there? With this in mind, several concepts and practices have been developed. Have you ever heard of Creative Economy? Basically, knowledge, creativity and intellectual capital are the production factors of this economy.

In this process, cultural production is used as a historical factor in the formation of identity and income generation in that community. In other words, a new look at the solution of the structural problems of society, the economy and culture are sought from the identity of that population.

In other words, development is sought from the convergence and respect for the roots of that people's history with cultural, social and economic objectives. Discussions, initiatives and studies have been taking place throughout Brazil with the aim of expanding this concept: the first International Forum of Creative Cities in Rio Quente took place in September 2013 http://rioquente.go.gov.br/cidades-criativas/, the IV Minas Gerais Meeting of Public Administration, Solidarity Economy and Social Management (IV EMAPEGS) addressed this theme in Viçosa this year http://www.emapegs.ufv.br/ and so on.

In addition, another concept has been addressed, created and practiced. Have you heard of Solidarity Economy? The concept of solidarity started to be guided at the end of the 18th century, but it has not yet been completely assimilated to the market. In this context, solidarity economy means interdependence and is based on the principles of cooperation, self-management and brings an economic dimension to society. In other words, we think of a market geared towards people, not people geared towards the market.

Despite the various difficulties faced by the Solidarity Economy, such as mapping, production flow, obtaining credit, advice and collective work, many advances and initiatives have taken place in Brazil. Have you heard of the Center for Solidarity Economy of Tocantis? UFT's NESOL? They have been working hard on this process: http://www.fapto.uft.edu.br/conhecimento/index.php/uft/14-nucleo-de-economia-solidaria-da-uft-nesol. Many communities have also realized that they live on the job, but remain in poverty. So they decided to challenge all the pre-established and create social currencies. That is, they realized that they had to develop some way to encourage the money to circulate more within the community itself, with the possibility of exchanging it for the real. Some initiatives have been implemented in Brazil. The first was Banco Palmas, at the Palmeiras complex in Fortaleza (CE). http://www.bancopalmas.org.br/oktiva.net/1235/nota/12291. Today there are more than 110 community banks, a chain, across Brazil. Several other initiatives in the world have been taken, but it is clear that challenges abound.

Het is één van de punten op de duurzaamheidsagenda van de Gemeente Almere: energie. En maar goed ook, want we gebruiken er heel wat van met elkaar. Hoe komen we er aan en hoe verzamelen we onze energie in de toekomst? Over die vraagstukken hebben verschillende Almeerders zich al gebogen.

Goed nieuws: deze mensen hebben antwoorden gevonden! In deze aflevering gaat presentatrice Nadia Zerouali weer in gesprek met jonge Almeerders die hun mening en dromen met ons delen, spreken we innovatieve ondernemer Luuk Wiehink over zijn app Earn-E én uiteraard weer een expert die gespecialiseerd is in dit onderwerp: Jeike Wallinga, lector aan hogeschool Windesheim. En we kunnen al met je delen dat deze verhalen je een hoop energie meegeven.

Te luisteren via Spotify, Soundcloud of iTunes

Luister hier de podcast: https://bit.ly/mobilitypod

Creatives, have you signed up for the #NoWasteChallenge yet? This global design competition is looking for exciting, design-driven solutions to waste and consumerism. And it’s ready for your application!

As small as it may be, the Netherlands has been a powerful trading nation for centuries. This continues today, with its capital acting as an international hub for creativity, tech and finance. It is called ‘a distribution country’ for a reason: large sums of money are involved in the import and export of goods and e-commerce is booming. But the long chains that characterise this international trading system often results in high amounts of overproduction and waste.

Within this system, multinationals and big corporations seem to have the most control. Because clothing, goods and food are produced on such a large scale, big companies have a cost advantage over small entrepreneurs. This makes it difficult for local designers and producers with more sustainable initiatives to get their foot in the door. Instead, the Netherlands is outsourcing the production of almost everything (except food) in exchange for low costs, resulting in goods and clothing of increasingly poor quality, that quickly end up as waste.

Submissions can be anything from sustainable fashion, to landscape design, digital tools, or new tech. Winning ideas will be made into a reality with €10.000 in funding, a development programme co-created with Impact Hub and plenty of publicity.

👉  Learn more via What Design Can Do and apply online by 20 April: http://nowaste.whatdesigncando.com/

Het hangt al geruime tijd in de lucht, maar het lijkt er nu echt van te komen. Nederland krijgt aparte wetgeving voor sociale ondernemingen: de maatschappelijke BV. Momenteel heeft de overheid een internetconsultatie uitstaan om reacties te vragen op de aanzet voor de wettelijke regeling van de BVm. Die consultatie volgt op allerlei exportsessies die in de afgelopen jaren al plaatsvonden.

Graag nodig ik je uit voor een ‘digitaal onderonsje’ van Social Finance Matters op woensdag 7 april aanstaande, van 9:30-10:30 uur. Het wordt een informeel uurtje om informatie te geven en van gedachten te wisselen over de voorgenomen wetgeving. Vind je het interessant om mee te praten (of luisteren), voel je dan van harte uitgenodigd om aan te sluiten. Om het wel een beetje overzichtelijk te houden, kunnen er maximaal 15 personen deelnemen. Na aanmelding ontvang je een link voor Microsoft Teams. Meer info vind je hier.

Meer gaan wandelen door #corona? Ankie van Dijk (Directeur Wandelnet) en stedenbouwkundige Annemieke Molster over het ondergeschoven kindje van de mobiliteit: Lopen! #podcast: https://bit.ly/mobilitypod

Ben jij een fanatieke wandelaar?

Laat ons weten wat je van de podcast vindt!

Veel MKB-ers willen zich uit de crisis innoveren. Internationaal actief worden is kansrijk en vraagt voorbereiding en energie. Amsterdam Trade and Innovate en PIM Noord-Holland (Programma Investeringsgereed Innovatief MKB Noord-Holland) willen ondernemers helpen dit goed en succesvol aan te pakken. Ben jij een MKB-er in de MRA die actief is op de thema's van smartcity? Vul dan de enquête in zodat ons aanbod goed aansluit bij wat jij nodig hebt. Hou onze media in de gaten, in q1 organiseren we onze eerste event gericht op internationalisering.

“Voorheen werd er gewoon rondgebeld: ‘Wij zitten in de instroom van de ArenA. We hebben nu 20.000 man binnen. Hoe gaat het bij jullie op straat?’” In de achtste aflevering van de serie A Radical Redesign for Amsterdam, spreken Carin ten Hage en Geert Kloppenburg met Maurits van Hövell (Johan Cruijff ArenA). Hoe houdt je een wijk met de drie grootste evenementenlocaties van het land, bereikbaar en veilig? Ze spreken elkaar in het Operationeel Mobiliteitscentrum over de rol van de stad Amsterdam, data delen en het houden van regie. A Radical Redesign for Amsterdam wordt gemaakt in opdracht van de Gemeente Amsterdam.

Luister de podcast hier: http://bit.ly/mvhovell

Hello ASC community!  We are a local start-up working to increase Conscious Dining through a new way of searching for and rating restaurants.  It is also our goal to go beyond the digital by working on local impact projects.

Recently, we surveyed the 150+ restaurants in our database on the effects of Corona on their sustainability practices, specifically in regards to the increase in packaging waste brought on by takeaway/ delivery services, and published an article on our findings here:  https://www.table-sage.com/content/articles/amsterdam/restaurants-need-support-to-continue-sustainability-efforts-during-covid-19

We would love to collaborate with larger players, either 1) in further quantifying these effects, and/ or 2) in helping restaurants move to ecopackaging on a wider scale.  Are you or someone you know interested in partnering to make moves in this space?  We have a team of 6-8 able to support; more about us can be seen on www.table-sage.com.

Wil jij je inzetten voor een slimme, groene en gezonde Metropoolregio Amsterdam? Kom dan Amsterdam Smart City & de Amsterdam Economic Board versterken.

De Board werkt samen met besluitvormers, innovatiemanagers en changemakers binnen bedrijven, kennisinstellingen en overheden aan een slimme, groene en gezonde toekomst van de Metropool Amsterdam.

Amsterdam Smart City is een open innovatieplatform en bestaat uit een publiek privaat partnership én een internationale community. Amsterdam Smart City is onderdeel van de Amsterdam Economic Board.

Voor onze organisaties (bestaande uit zo’n 20 mensen) zijn wij op zoek naar administratieve en secretariële ondersteuning.

Wat ga je doen?
• Agendabeheer: inplannen (groeps)afspraken, inclusief (digitale) ruimtes
• je beheert de e-mail box en handelt, waar mogelijk, de correspondentie zelfstandig af
• administratieve taken zoals bijhouden crm-systeem
• overige secretariële werkzaamheden

Wie ben jij?
• Je hebt ervaring met secretariële ondersteuning.
• Je wilt met jouw ervaringen bijdragen aan een slimme, groene en gezonde Metropoolregio Amsterdam
• Je hebt een flexibele, servicegerichte en proactieve instelling
• Je bent accuraat en discreet
• Je hebt een goede beheersing van de Nederlandse en Engelse taal in woord en geschrift

Wat bieden wij?
Je kan per direct beginnen en we zoeken iemand voor 12 uur per week. We waarderen je eigen inbreng en enthousiasme. Wij bieden de plek aan tegen een nette vergoeding.

Interesse gewekt?
Vind je dit allemaal goed klinken? Dan horen we graag van je! Stuur je cv en een korte motivatie z.s.m. naar: info@amsterdamsmartcity.com Voor meer informatie over de functie kun je bellen met Menouschka Plugge via 06 43 75 26 36. Hopelijk spreken we elkaar snel!

New research reveals a large funding gap for circular economy initiatives in the Netherlands, particularly early-stage circular ventures.

Interviews with city municipalities, entrepreneurs, financial institutions and working groups indicate that the funding gap is especially acute for higher value-yielding circular business models and activities such as reducing, reusing, repairing, and refurbishing.

Entrepreneurs in these areas of the circular economy struggle to find funding even though these activity types have the largest potential to increase the economy’s resource efficiency, and provide high-quality employment opportunities in cities. Research indicates that achieving a circular economy in the Netherlands could create approximately 200,000 new jobs by 2030.

The paper Financing Circular Economy Innovation in the Netherlands authored by Metabolic Institute with support from the Goldschmeding Foundation, highlights a lack of systemic collaboration as a critical barrier to circular innovation, and proposes new approaches to circular economy financing in the Netherlands.

“Blended finance instruments in particular can help to address circular economy related risks, and make the circular economy more investable for the private sector,”’ said Seadna Quigley, Lead Circular Finance at Metabolic.

Public-private collaboration in the form of blended finance works to de-risk circular asset classes by using public or philanthropic capital to stimulate the market, provide proof-of-concept, and draw private-sector capital into the circular economy.

“But lack of funding is not the only problem facing Dutch circular economy entrepreneurs,” said Liz Corbin, Director of Metabolic Institute. “They also lack access to experts and the necessary knowledge to navigate the funding landscape.”

To address current bottlenecks, the paper proposes the creation of a mission-driven investment fund and ‘innovation ecosystem’ that convenes impact investors, philanthropies, and city governments.

Numerous Dutch cities have impressive track records when it comes to circular economy plans, but access to finance is one of their most significant barriers to delivering on these plans.

In addition to systemic impact investing and fundraising, the fund will aim to create an enabling ecosystem that brings together capital, knowledge, and networks of expertise to provide entrepreneurs in the circular economy with the financial and non-financial resources they need to scale up their businesses.

“We believe that circular innovation and job opportunities are created by financing circular entrepreneurs. But financing alone is not enough; we have to build a support system for entrepreneurs on an urban level,” said Birgitta Kramer, Circular Economy Programme Manager at the Goldschmeding Foundation. “The 'Circular Innovation Ecosystem' is a first step towards guiding financiers, entrepreneurs and local governments to collaborate in this approach.”

A call to action

An impact- and mission- driven finance ecosystem has potential to accelerate the transition to a circular economy that equitably distributes prosperity to all and safeguards the natural world.

We invite the following stakeholders to collaborate with us to advance the development of such an ecosystem:

• Financier or investors with creative ideas and strategies for stimulating early-stage circular innovation in the Netherlands
• Asset owner or fund managers with the curiosity to develop and test impact-driven frameworks for portfolio management and evaluation
• Accelerators or incubators committed to supporting Dutch circular innovators and entrepreneurs
• Circular innovators or entrepreneurs interested in matching higher value circular solutions to the contexts and challenges of Dutch municipalities
• Municipalities looking for novel ways to deploy finance in service of circularity strategy

To learn more, please send an email to the CIE team at: circularfinance@metabolic.nl