DOEN strives for a society where everyone can participate and matter. DOEN focuses on pioneers in the Netherlands Netherlands who promote an inclusive society:
- Residents' initiatives: DOEN supports both small-scale neighbourhood projects, which mainly have an impact on those directly involved and the neighbourhood, and the more innovative, somewhat larger residents' initiatives, which offer alternatives to how we organise society and work on system change. (Through the Postcode Loterij Buurtfonds)
- Social entrepreneurship: DOEN supports social enterprises and organisations that support them in order to strengthen the sector.
- Livelihood security: DOEN focuses on the role it can play in supporting initiatives that work in an innovative way towards livelihood security and promote the resilience of vulnerable citizens.
Residents' initiatives (via the Postcode Loterij Buurtfonds)
Increasingly, active citizens are taking it upon themselves to get involved in their neighbourhood or community. They want all residents to feel at home in their neighbourhood or community and to be able to contribute to it themselves. The Postcode Loterij Buurtfonds supports small-scale neighbourhood projects and more innovative and somewhat larger residents' initiatives in the Netherlands which have a wider impact than on only those directly involved.
For information about the Postcode Loterij Buurtfonds, the criteria and exclusions, see postcodeloterijbuurtfonds.nl.
Social Entrepreneurship (via the VriendenLoterij Fonds)
It should be possible for everyone to actively participate in society. Unfortunately, there are still too many people on the side-lines. For example, they lack education, qualifications or a (social) network. Or people experience barriers due to mental or physical disabilities that prevent them from fully participating in today's complex society. Social enterprises give them the chance to get involved again. In recent years, DOEN has supported many social enterprises through the VriendenLoterij Fonds. DOEN aims to take social entrepreneurship from niche to norm and, partly for this reason, also focuses on sector-strengthening initiatives and on social enterprises working intensively with the mainstream business community.
Through the VriendenLoterij Fonds, we support social entrepreneurs and sector-strengthening initiatives that meet as many of the following criteria as possible:
- The initiative is aimed at employment and/or social participation of socially vulnerable groups in society.
- The initiative is based upon a revenue model.
- In addition to demonstrable social impact, the initiative has either green impact (sustainable or circular aspects) or interfaces with the DOEN theme The Power of Imagination to Bring About Change.
- The initiative preferably takes place in a sector in which social entrepreneurship is even less self-evident.
- The initiative contributes to strengthening the entire sector of social entrepreneurship and an inclusive, mainstream labour market.
- The initiative will be implemented in the Netherlands (including Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten and the BES islands).
For more information and to submit an application, see vriendenloterijfonds.nl.
Livelihood security
DOEN is currently focusing on the role it can play in supporting initiatives in the Netherlands that work in an innovative way to realise new forms of livelihood security and promote the resilience of vulnerable people. We are looking for radical, experimental initiatives that can break through the system.
Applications for initiatives related to this can be submitted as a two-pager by mail directly to one of the programme managers (Safka Overweel or Reineke Schermer) and not via the site. The two-pager can be sent to [email protected] (team officer).