The board

Heleen van Wijk - Chairman

Heleen van Wijk is Business Manager Circular Economy at Groningen Seaports and responsible for all recycling related companies within both ports, Delfzijl and Eemshaven. She has finished her master’s degree at the University of Groningen and has a strong focus on combining circular economy and innovation, therefore she has founded a start-up community together with Economic Board Groningen facilitating high tech solution start-ups with industrial focus in Eemshaven. As Chairman of the Northern Netherlands Plastic Foundation, Heleen applies her intrinsic drive to tackle the global plastic problem and focuses on a future-proof society through education, awareness and prevention. The Northern Netherlands is at the forefront of the circular economy with an innovative circular cluster and ongoing sustainable investments and believes in an integrated approach between companies, knowledge institutions and citizens.

Janneke Kuiper - Treasurer

The northern part of the Netherlands is a rich and stimulating environment for an entrepreneur. You are surrounded by innovation, sustainable solutions and activities aimed at the energy transition. It is infectious! I don't have the skills to develop green raw material from plastic, but I would like to contribute to this green movement. And that is exactly what we are going to do with this foundation! 

Ineke Kuiper - Secretary

During World Cleanup Day 2019 I was active in Eemshaven together with a group of volunteers. It was the first time that an initiative was organized in this region to clean up the area. We started out pleasantly surprised but the further we went into the area the dirtier it got. This resulted in three motivated women who started a foundation to connect initiatives regarding the use and re-use of plastic in this region. With the business community and citizens who have the same goal of making society aware of the destructive power of plastic and reduce it. 

Projectmembers

Yanick Vervuurt - Projectmember

I'm a law graduate from Groningen. For years I have been consciously working on my ecological footprint. I try to use plastic as little as possible and like to motivate others to do so as well! I joined NNPF because they share my personal vision and I want to contribute to society. With my personal experience and creative thinking my main focus lies on NNPFs educational department.

‘’Vison without action is merely a dream. Action without vision just passes the time. Vision with action can change the world’’ - Joel A. Baker

Alex van der Laan - Projectmember

With my financial background as an accountant it was an obvious choice that my role at NNPF would be focusing on obtaining subsidies. I have been living and working in the beautiful area of Northern Groningen my whole life. And I wanted to get more involved in protecting the land I was born on. I joined NNPF because I am committed to creating more awareness about plastics and in this way preserve nature. Nature literally creates quality of life so let's take good care of her!'

Ritva Krist - Projectmember

I am Ritva, 23 years old, and I have just finished my master's in Environmental Psychology. I chose to do this master after seeing with my own eyes in Indonesia and Australia how big the plastic pollution problem is, and that changes are needed! I therefore hope that with my knowledge of human behavior, behavioral change and the design of interventions I can contribute to the prevention aspect of plastic pollution.