I am passionate about changing the relationship between peopleand products. By opening up the design processes behind everydaythings, I believe that people can re-engage and become activeowners of their stuff. This was the inspiration on which we based themodel for Fairphone, with which we are opening up systems on astep-by-step journey to making the world’s first fairly designed andproduced smartphone.
- Awarded social entrepreneur (ao. UN Momentum for change AwardCOP21), designer (ao. Dutch Design Awards) and innovator (aoGreentec Award).
- Winner of the German Environment Award 2016. Past winnersinclude Prof. Dr. Klaus Töpfer (former German Minister for theEnvironment and later head of the UN Environment Programme) andMikhail Gorbachev, former president of the Soviet Union. Bas is theyoungest person ever to win this award.
- Ashoka fellow- Author of book “Open Design Now”.- Founder of social enterprise Fairphone, which was the fastestgrowing tech start-up in 2015- Founder of Fablab Amsterdam and the first open source restaurantin the world.
- numerous keynote speeches around the world, among which thosefor Tedx Amsterdam, NEXT, Picnic, The Next Web, UN , OECD,COP21, German Parliament
- Featured ao. on CNN, BBC, Al Jazeera, New York Times, Wired,Forbes, Der Spiegel, ZDF, Washington Post and CNBC- If I would be an animal I would like to be a Zebra
Experience
Fairphone
Founder
November 2018 - Present
Amsterdam Area, Netherlands
Fairphone is a Dutch social enterprise that is working to build sustainable andconflict-free smartphones. Fairphone sources conflict-free tin and tantalumfrom mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo and works closely with itsmanufacturers to improve working conditions in its factories. Fairphone alsofocuses on durability, reparability and the availability of spare parts that can beeasily replaced to extend the smartphone's usable life. Building a phone thatlasts longer reduces the overall toll on people and the environment. Fairphoneaims to achieve long-term transformational change, leading by example toexpand the market for ethical products and giving a voice to consumers thatcare about social values.
Ashoka
Ashoka fellow
June 2016 - Present
Ashoka is the largest network of social entrepreneurs worldwide, with nearly3,000 Ashoka Fellows in 70 countries putting their system changing ideas intopractice on a global scale.
Signify Foundation (former Phillips Lighting Foundation)
Member Board Of Directors
June 2017 - Present
As a global leader in lighting, we want to correct this imbalance by enablingsustainable access to light. Our projects promote the use of solar lightingsystems that are safe and clean, with no recurring fuel costs. Working withNGOs and communities around the world, we’re bringing electric light tothe places it is needed the most. And by sharing our expertise on the roleof lighting in accelerating energy efficiency, we’re helping to protect ourenvironment.
Rotslab coöperatie ua
Board member
January 2013 - Present
Fairphone
CEO - Founder
March 2012 - November 2018 (6 years 9 months)
Amsterdam Area, Netherlands
Dutch Design Week
Ambassador for the Dutch Design Week 2016
2016 - November 2016 (11 months)
Eindhoven Area, Netherlands
Designers Maarten Baas and Bas van Abel are the ambassadors for DutchDesign Week (DDW) 2016. Baas and Van Abel will fulfil both representative and intrinsic roles during and in the run-up to the week. Both providing a face for the 15th edition of the week, that is to take place from 22 until 30 October 2016 in Eindhoven (The Netherlands).
Waag Society
Creative Director
January 2009 - January 2013 (4 years 1 month)
Waag Society develops creative technology for social innovation. Thefoundation researches, develops concepts, pilots and prototypes and actsas an intermediate between the arts, science and the media. Waag Societycooperates with cultural, public and private parties.
Instructables Restaurant
Co Founder
2009 - 2011 (3 years)
Amsterdam
The Instructables Restaurant is the world's first open-source restaurant.Everything is based on the recipes and instructions on www.instructables.com,where the world's largest Do-It-Yourself community exchanges informationon almost everything. The restaurant, the menu, and even the furniture anddecoration comes with full instructions, so you can reproduce it, make it evenbetter or create an Instructables Restaurant of your own.http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-an-Instructables-Restaurant/
Fablab Amsterdam
Co Founder Fablab Amsterdam
January 2008 - 2010 (3 years)
Amsterdam Area, Netherlands
Fablab Amsterdam is the first Dutch Fablab, founded by Waag society. A Fablab (fabrication laboratory) is a small-scale workshop offering (personal)digital fabrication. It offers a platform for learning and innovation: a place toplay, to create, to learn, to mentor, to invent.
Waag Society
7 years
Head of Design
2006 - 2009 (4 years)
Interaction developer
2003 - 2006 (4 years)
Medialab Amsterdam
Team Coach / Teacher
August 2004 - July 2005 (1 year)
MediaLAB Amsterdam is a creative, interdisciplinary Amsterdam based studiowhere students and researchers work together on innovative and interactivemedia research projects for Creative Industries.
Treshold
e-commerce developer
1999 - 2003 (5 years)
Education
Hogeschool voor de Kunsten Utrecht
Master of Arts (MA), Interaction design / Interactive media · (1997 - 2002)
Delft University of Technology
Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer