“We want to show how, from the principle of regeneration, a mini-society can be made to flourish.”
Who is the Ceuvel community?
The vibrant community at De Ceuvel consists of a dynamic and large group of passionate people with a heart for green spaces, culture, circularity, inclusivity, and justice. For many, De Ceuvel means a place with room to build something greater than yourself together, and everyone does so in their own way. The working community currently includes around 70 social entrepreneurs and artists who, together with the café team, visitors and friends of De Ceuvel, as well as the non-human life on the site, make De Ceuvel who she is. From a music or photo studio to an organic greenhouse, a chat or grand ideals in the café or neighbourhood boat, a beehive and a dance floor. At De Ceuvel, social entrepreneurs, artists, local residents, and Amsterdammers can come to give practical shape to dreams, big and small.
This community came into being after a group of idealistic architects won a competition in 2012 to develop a former shipyard on the Johan van Hasseltkanaal in Amsterdam-Noord. After winning the competition, a team of idealistic (landscape) architects, technologists, and creative & sustainable entrepreneurs set to work building and developing De Ceuvel. Together with hundreds of volunteers, they realised the structures on the site, including the Café, moored 6 vessels at the jetties, and placed 15 houseboats on the terrain. Since De Ceuvel’s realisation, there has been continuous building, experimenting, and creating on the site. De Ceuvel is never finished and there is always room for new ideas from the community.
Over the years, a rich and diverse community has emerged that feels like home to many — a place where you are free to be yourself, can come whenever you like, and where people invest their time and energy with great joy and love to make De Ceuvel flourish. More space has also been created for nature by actively collaborating with ‘more-than-human’ life as a Zoöp. The plants, animals, and elements on and around the Ceuvel site are represented by a Speaker for the Living in important decisions. In this way, De Ceuvel is not only a home for humans, but also for other forms of life.
Ceuvel members meet during the many workshops, lectures, park and work days, lunches, and on beautiful spring days on the site. As a creative incubator, we create space and room for new ideas, initiatives, and projects to emerge with value for De Ceuvel, Noord, the city, and the world. With so many voices, collaboration can sometimes be challenging, and of course not everything goes smoothly straight away — but through a widely shared belief in learning from and with each other, we continue to develop and stay in motion as a community.
What is the mission of the community?
De Ceuvel was founded in 2012 as a cultural incubator at the intersection of technology, sustainability, and art, with an ambition to be a leading force in the societal transition towards a circular way of living. Today, values such as regeneration, culture, circularity, diversity, and justice are central to its further development into the future. De Ceuvel strives to inspire people through a distinctive arts and culture programme and to remind them of the importance of healthy relationships between people and nature. It believes in restoring and enriching ecosystems, communities, and a vital economy without depletion and exploitation.
HOW IS THE COMMUNITY ORGANISED?
De Ceuvel was built cooperatively and is jointly managed by a mission-driven association. The association and community are kept running by the board, all active members, and 2 employees.
The board of Vereniging De Ceuvel is elected from and by the members and works on a voluntary basis. The board manages the site, maintains contact with the various tenants, and represents the association externally, towards the municipality, partners, and other stakeholders.
To keep all members involved in the direction of the association, a General Members’ Meeting (GMM) is held four times a year. During the annual GMM, a new voluntary board is elected. Between meetings, the board convenes once every two weeks to discuss ongoing matters.
Employees
Cultural Programme Maker: Tessa Hermelink
Communications Officer: Siophan Homan
Active members and committees
Members initiate all kinds of activities for visitors and members, such as workshops, and are also more structurally organised in committees. The association currently has five committees:
• Future Committee: Jeroen Apers, Fabi van Berkel, Johannes van den Akker, Toon Maassen, Tessa Hermelink, Amber Beernink, Anke Wijnja, Jesse Jorg, Joris de Leeuw, Marcel van Wees, Jos de Krieger, Wendy Rommers
• Communications Committee: Siophan Homan, Cristel Lit, Fabi van Berkel, Hermen van de Waal, Toon Maassen, Ilse van Velzen, Gabriela H, Ilona Laurijsse, Tessa Hermelink, Vincent Kuyenhoven, Jesse Jorg, Wendy Rommers, Tycho Hellinga
• Green & Zoöp Committee: Anke Wijnja, Nora Veerman
• Us Committee: Lars Charas, Lizan Nijkrake
• Neighbourhood & Diversity Committee: Hermen de Waal, Femke van Velzen, Barbara van Paassen
Board
Since May 2022, the board consists of:
• Johannes van den Akker, Chair
• Gideon Loerakker, Treasurer
• Toon Maassen, Secretary
• Tessa Hermelink, General Board Member
Previously, various boards have led the association over the years:
• January 2019 – January 2021: Tycho Hellinga, Jeroen Pieterse, Sarah Mil
• April 2016 – January 2019: Chandar van der Zande, Esmee Jiskoot, Jos de Krieger
• April 2015 – April 2016: Remco Moen Marcar, Cynthia Mooij, Jeroen Apers, Toon Maassen, Daan Dijkstra
• June 2014 – April 2015: Sascha Glasl, Jeroen Apers, Berith Danse
• Founded in 2013: Sascha Glasl, Marjolein Smeele, Jeroen Apers
