Upstream is a multi-day festival in Rotterdam, where scale-up founders, investors, students, policymakers, and corporates with guts come together to talk about the big changes in the world.ย
From May 31 to June 2 Upstream takes place in Rotterdam once again. This time the center of the festival is Bird.ย This year Upstream focuses on the themes Capital, Talent & Growth. Through a variety of workshops, debates and networking opportunities, talent, entrepreneurs, investors and innovations link together.
Over 2,500 participants of Upstream will be able to talk to, among others, Duncan Stutterheim (co-founder of festival giant ID&T), astronaut Andrรฉ Kuipers and tech-innovator Constantijn van Oranje-Nassau. Together, the speakers touch on subjects such as deep tech, sustainability, investing in cultural landmarks and ‘galactic entrepreneurship’.
“The three speakers are among the most inspiring and progressive professionals in the Netherlands and attract a large number of applications from entrepreneurs and top talent. The three-day event is therefore a hotspot of influential entrepreneurs; capital investments are attracted, startups are formed and valuable connections are made,” Says Lars Crama, private lead Upstream.
Upstream for innovative startups
The main events of Upstream Festival take place at Bird Rotterdam. A three-day program, each with its own focus. All these events are accessible with a three-day ticket (except the invite-only events). Co-creators also organize events spread all over the city. For these events, individual registration is required. There are events at 42 Workspace, Erasmus Centre for Entrepreneurship and CIC in Groothandelsgebouw.
‘The festival has grown rapidly in the past two years and doesn’t seem to be stopping there. With more and more innovative startups setting the course for entrepreneurial Netherlands, there is a need for a centralized event where the Dutch top comes together. That is Upstream in a nutshell’ concludes Lars Crama, private lead Upstream. The municipality of Rotterdam, Schiedam, Delft, Rijksdienst voor Ondernemend Nederland (RVO), Rabobank, KPN and ICOS support the event.
