As Deputy Mayor, Struijvenberg strongly believes in the creative power of entrepreneurs – from small-scale start-ups to multinationals – to shape Rotterdam’s future economy. His policy therefore focuses on introducing or strengthening company-friendly measures and stimulating entrepreneurs to invest and innovate. In October 2016, cooperating with Jeremy Rifkin, Rotterdam completed its “Roadmap Next Economy”: both a vision and a practical program aimed at transitioning to new developments in such areas as data and digitization, renewable energy, circular economy, innovation and logistics.

Says Maarten Struijvenberg on the Dutch economic mission to Israel: “Together with partners including InnovationQuarter, Port of Rotterdam and Cambridge Innovation Center, the City of Rotterdam looks forward to exploring opportunities to further boost our already lively ecosystem of innovative start-ups and corporations. I invite everyone to step outside their box and make as many connections as possible on this trip to one of the world’s most promising innovation hotspots. A future full of new technological and business opportunities is there for us to grab – together. As we say in Rotterdam: Let’s make it happen!”