DOEN: Funding pioneers
Enriched family-office · Found: 2026-03-11 08:11
The DOEN Foundation supports green, socially inclusive and creative pioneers with grants, loans and investment capital in the risky first phase.
Source: https://www.doen.nl/en/nieuws/doen-funding-pioneers/
Funding Details
- Funder
- Stichting DOEN (DOEN Foundation)
- Funding Goal
- Supporting green, socially inclusive, and creative pioneers with early-stage funding to accelerate transitions toward a circular economy where everyone counts, community comes first, and there is room for radical imagination.
- Funding Amount
- Not publicly specified. DOEN provides grants, conditional grants, loans, and equity investments. Amounts vary by project.
- Deadline
- Rolling / open year-round (Rolling)
- How to Apply
- Applications are open year-round via the DOEN website. Potential applicants should first use the online "Quickscan" tool to assess eligibility. Applications must be submitted via the official application form at least 4 months before the project start date. Applications are reviewed weekly by DOEN staff, and the full evaluation process takes approximately 4 months. DOEN also actively scouts for emerging pioneers aligned with its transition priorities.
- Target Region
- Netherlands and international
- Contact
- info@doen.nl
- Last Checked
- 2026-03-11 19:29
Application Checklist
Eligibility
Project Scope
Required Documents
Constraints
Summary
The DOEN Foundation (Stichting DOEN) was established in 1991 by the Nationale Postcode Loterij and also receives funding from VriendenLoterij. It supports innovative initiatives by pioneers who are "too small-scale, wild and ambitious" for conventional funders. The foundation provides a range of financial instruments including project and program grants, conditional grants, loans (for ventures ineligible for traditional banking), and equity investments through its subsidiary DOEN Participaties BV. Its philosophy is to "subsidize where necessary, participate where possible." DOEN focuses on three thematic areas: Regenerative Economy (green/circular economy initiatives), Solidarity Society (socially inclusive initiatives), and the Transformative Power of Imagination (creative initiatives). Within the green theme, the foundation supports projects related to circular economy, sustainable food systems, ecosystem restoration, and environmental regeneration. The foundation operates both in the Netherlands and internationally, with portfolio examples spanning from the Netherlands to East Africa and Uganda. Applications are open year-round with weekly reviews, though the evaluation process takes approximately 4 months. Applicants must be legal entities, submit at least 4 months before the project start date, and demonstrate they lack sufficient internal reserves. DOEN acts as a "patient funder" that accepts experimental setbacks and steps back once government, markets, or other funders can take over. The foundation explicitly does not fund purely commercial initiatives, standalone research, awareness campaigns, healthcare, government entities, or organizations with excessive reserves.
Historical Context
DOEN Foundation was established in 1991 by the Nationale Postcode Loterij. It also receives funding from VriendenLoterij. The foundation has been operating continuously since then, making it one of the longer-running Dutch foundations for innovative social and environmental ventures.
Sources
- https://www.doen.nl/en/nieuws/doen-funding-pioneers/
- https://www.doen.nl/en/what-we-do/
- https://www.doen.nl/aanvraag-doen/criteria/
- https://www.doen.nl/en/what-we-do/green/
- https://www.doen.nl/aanvraag-doen/veelgestelde-vragen/
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