Rotterdam, Netherlands

Incentivizing businesses to hire vulnerable residents

Unemployment in Rotterdam is double the national average and rising. But public budgets, stressed by the pandemic, have limited funding for employment programs. Rotterdam is creating “Rikx,” a new digital marketplace that connects local social entrepreneurs to investors so that they can deliver innovative projects, while helping the city’s most vulnerable residents find work. Through Rikx, private-sector partners can purchase digital tokens that monetize social impact generated by entrepreneurs, similar to “offsets” in the carbon market.