Creating social impact together in Amsterdam Zuidoost

In Richard Reporting, Richard Kooloos, ABN AMRO’s Global Head of Social Impact & Human Rights, drops in on colleagues to find out about current developments in sustainability. In this episode, he talks to Corporate Sustainability Consultant Marit Janssen, intern Deborah-Joy Nijhove and Life Skills CEO Moenira Luqman about working together to create social impact in Amsterdam Zuidoost.

Collaboration

Driven by the intention to meet real needs in Amsterdam Zuidoost, ABN AMRO teamed up with professionals and students from the Life Skills and Stichting Studiezalen youth organisations, as well as the Open Schoolgemeenschap Bijlmer and Ir. Lely Lyceum secondary schools to identify the community’s needs and create building blocks for the project’s success. The results of this research will help ABN AMRO create programming reflecting the district’s diversity at the Social Point, a space in the new office building open to the public for projects making a positive contribution to Amsterdam Zuidoost.

In addition to its initiatives catering for young people, ABN AMRO has been working to create social impact in Amsterdam Zuidoost in a whole range of areas. For example, the bank has joined forces with Stichting Woon to enlist the aid of energy coaches to help lower energy bills for many local families. ABN AMRO also collaborated with Rabobank to give housing advice to visitors to the Amsterdam Zuidoost Woonwinkel, an initiative spearheaded by local youngsters. There’s so much more planned for the years ahead, too, including initiatives to combat debt and promote buying services locally. The Social Point concept is also being expanded to the cities of Utrecht, Rotterdam, Zwolle, Eindhoven and The Hague.

To learn more, please contact Marit Janssen.