The match
Text: Agaath Diemel
They met while speed dating at the Career Cafe where recent graduates connect with alumni who are further along their career path. “I gave everyone I spoke to my phone number and told them to call me if they wanted to continue the conversation,” says Marjan van Parijs. Luc Hogervorst followed up on the offer.
In her everyday life, Industrial Design Engineering alumna Marjan van Parijs works freelance in the non-profit sector. “My strength lies in connecting different organisations to help them achieve their vision of the future. For instance, I current work as an advocate for the housing of residence permit holders in Haaglanden.” In her free time, she works as a coach. “I like being around young people, they keep me focused and up-to-date. I click with entrepreneurial types in particular because I’m like that myself.” One of them is Mechanical Engineer Luc Hogervorst, founder of the start-up Weco, which is short for the Wave Energy Collective (joinweco.nl). While taking his degree, Hogervorst worked on an alternative technology for generating energy using waves. Most existing wave energy converters use the up and down motion of waves to generate energy. “Our wave energy converter works with the horizontal wave movement which is twice as efficient,” says Hogervorst. A successful lab test in Cork will soon be followed by further tests at Deltares and offshore.
‘I found it stressful the first week without a permanent job to fall back on, but that feeling soon went away’
‘A basic income is a great concept that gives people freedom. It is a future that we must pursue’
Challenges
Since that particular Career Cafe event that took place during the coronavirus period, Van Parijs and Hogervorst have met for regular walks to talk about the challenges facing Hogervorst as a young entrepreneur. “For example, if he is carrying out market research, then I would ask ‘is that one of your skills or might other people be able to do that more easily? After all, you don’t have to do everything yourself’”, says Van Parijs. “I had a lot on my plate so I set up an internship assignment for that task,” says Hogervorst. Van Parijs values their collaboration. “The great thing about Luc is that he picks things up very quickly and acts on advice. He is always open to people who want to inspire him.” Besides practical tips, Van Parijs has a broad network that she can call on for Hogervorst and has introduced him to Graduate Entrepreneur, TU Delft and Erasmus University Rotterdam’s joint entrepreneurial platform, for instance. “We are currently in talks with them to see whether they want to invest in Weco,” says Hogervorst. Thanks to her, he now has two more alumni coaches with a wide range of experience. In recent years, Hogervorst worked part-time as an R&D engineer for a membrane technology company and has only recently become a fully independent entrepreneur. “I found it stressful the first week without a permanent job to fall back on, but that feeling soon went away.” Van Parijs says that “With a basic income, Luc could have focused solely on the subject of wave energy after graduating. Young people should be given the opportunity to follow their passion more often.”
The giving circle
To stimulate this, Van Parijs came up with the idea of the giving circle whereby a group of people financially adopt someone, and set up the Fair Welfare Foundation. “A basic income is a great concept that gives people freedom. It is a future that we must pursue,” says Hogervorst. Green energy and the non-profit sector: both do work that matters to society. “We are a match in terms of our approach to life,” says Van Parijs. Hogervorst was pleasantly surprised at how many experienced people are willing to help young people. Van Parijs thinks there are a lot more out there. “Substantive, practical or social: there are so many perspectives that can bring you together. But above all, it’s a very enjoyable thing to do.”