Experiences​ 21 September

On this day you can visit one of our business clients, like Hortus Botanicus, Maakgemeenschap de Hoop, farm de Bouwerij and HET.

See first-hand how savers' and investors' money is working towards positive change. The Experience Day is between 09:00 and 16:00.

Everyone travels with a pre-arranged bus to and from the client visit.

Hortus Botanicus (Amsterdam)

The Hortus Botanicus in Amsterdam is one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world. This centuries-old cultural heritage site offers a harmonious place where people can experience the beauty of plants in various ways. You will find a unique collection of rare and exotic plants, spread across historic greenhouses and a beautiful garden.

Sustainability lies at the heart of the Hortus's mission. The organisation encourages the preservation of rare plant species and biodiversity, and is dedicated to raising visitors' awareness of the vital role that plants play in maintaining a healthy living environment and climate.

Visit the website

The experience contains:

• Welcome speech by the company director

• A guided tour in three small groups of the renovated Climate House and the garden, followed by a creative workshop.

• An escape game

Maakgemeenschap De Hoop - Crealisatie (Amsterdam)

Maakgemeenschap De Hoop is a vibrant maker community where artists, designers, craftspeople and creative entrepreneurs collaborate, experiment and inspire one another. Located on the border of Zaandam and Amsterdam, De Hoop is home to more than 170 studios and over 320 makers.

In our former factory, a wide range of disciplines come together: from woodworking and metalworking to textiles, ceramics, jewellery, visual art and innovative making processes. Makers work independently, but actively share knowledge, techniques and ideas, and seek out collaboration with one another.

Throughout the year, De Hoop organises exhibitions, open studios, workshops and public events, giving visitors a taste of the power of making, meeting and working together. During a visit to De Hoop, meeting the makers themselves takes centre stage: visitors get a behind-the-scenes look and experience first-hand how inspiring it is to create something together.

Visit the website

The experience contains:

• A short introduction to Maakgemeenschap De Hoop, and a tour of several studios

• Workshop - participants choose in advance from around five different workshops, hosted by makers from De Hoop, offering a glimpse into different disciplines and making processes, with an emphasis on experiencing, discovering and getting hands-on

Melkveehouderij de Bouwerij (Breukelen)

The farm of Max van Tilburg and Nicole Schellekens is located on the estate of Ridderhofstad Gunterstein in Breukelen. At this spot on the Vecht river with an age-old cultural landscape, the traditional Dutch Blaarkoppen cows run outside as much as possible.

Animal welfare comes first at De Bouwerij. The cows are allowed to grow old on the farm. The entrepreneurs strive to run their business as naturally as possible, feeding their animals mainly on grass and using a minimum number of concentrates. This way, there is room for people and nature and there is no manure surplus. In the future, they want to allow even more people to enjoy this place by opening a bed and breakfast, shop and tearoom.

Visit the website

The experience contains:

• A reception

• A guided tour of the farm and garden

• A foraging workshop with Leonieke Bontje

• Working in the garden in small groups

• Making tea with the picked leaves from the garden

• Making and tasting fresh cheese

HET (Amsterdam)

We are HET, based in a historic warehouse at an old shipyard on the Nieuwendammerdijk. Here, we are building a space where craftsmanship, creativity, the water, and the neighborhood come together.

The warehouse is a place where makers work and performances and projects take place, and, of course, there is plenty of room for everything related to boats. Our goal is actually quite simple: to transform this unique location back into a vibrant hub where people can create, learn, collaborate, and meet one another.

We are still very much a work in progress, but that is exactly what makes it exciting. We would love to show you what we have achieved so far and, above all, where we are headed.

The experience contains:

• Exploring HET and admiring the artists' work

• A presentation on the history of Werf HET Fort

• Lunch while walking through the Vliegenbos

• A presentation on what HET has done so far and future plan