Skip to content

About the Issue Congress

The Issue Congress provides annual insight into how organizations and companies can get a topic on the social and political agenda. Every year we organize this afternoon with inspiring speakers from business, journalism and politics. A moment to look back on the past year and look ahead to the year that has just started. During this conference we will highlight an aspect of our profession that we believe is important.

The Issue Award is also presented every year during the Issue Congress. The Issue Award is a prize for a person or organization that has been best able to put an issue on the social and political agenda.

Issue Congress 2024

On January 25, 2024, the Issue Congress 2024 took place in De Balie in Amsterdam. The theme was Sticking your head above the mowing or Malieveld: getting opportunities also means taking responsibility. We discussed this theme with Issuemakers par excellence: Bénédicte Ficq (lawyer and XR activist), Wanda de Kanter (lung specialist against smoking), Ron Steenkuijl (ADG Services Group), Teun van de Keuken (journalist) and Donald Pols (director Milieudefensie). Journalist Jeroen Smit gave the keynote.

The annual Issue Award was also presented, won in 2024 by Elvis Paul, himself an asylum seeker from Nigeria, and his employer MPeople. Thanks to their successful lawsuit, the work permit for asylum seekers is being extended. Asylum seekers were allowed to work a maximum of 24 out of the 52 weeks per year, but thanks to this lawsuit they are now allowed to work all year round.

Issue conference 2022

On June 16, 2022, the 12th edition of the Issue Congress took place in De Balie in Amsterdam! The theme of the 2022 issue conference was World improvers: What characterizes the world changer? What types of do-gooders are there? As a world improver, how do you not get stuck in ideals, but also take concrete steps? Why do do-gooders provoke resistance?  

Three speakers addressed these questions, namely Arie Koornneef (director of ASN Bank), Eva Rovers (art historian and author of the book Practivism) and Roos Vonk (professor of social psychology and author of the book You are what you do). At the conference, the Issue Award was also presented to winner Eva González Pérez.  

Want to know more about the nominees and winners of this year's and previous years' Issue Award? Then look up www.issuemakers.nl/issueaward.  

Issue conference 2021

Due to corona, the 2021 Issue Congress could not take place in its normal form this year. That is why we have chosen to organize a digital Issue lecture for this edition, focused on one of the most important developments of 2020: the ongoing tension between truth and madness. Whether it is about corona, BLM or 5G: conspiracy theories and alternative facts are more visible than ever. How has our perception of being critical changed? And how can we best deal with this as a society or organization?

Legal historian and media critic Madeleijn van den Nieuwenhuizen – also known as Zeikschrift – will give her view on this subject during the lecture. The regular parts of the Issue Congress - the presentation of the Issue Award and the presentation of the results of Issues to Watch 2021 - were also included during this special meeting.

Learn more about the nominees and winners of the Issue Award for issue management of this year and previous years? Then look up www.issueaward.nl.

Issue conference 2020

The 11th Issue Congress took place on January 23, 2020 in De Balie in Amsterdam. This year's Issue Congress focused on the increasing social role that companies play and the friction this can cause with the interests of shareholders.

During this conference, the Issue Award was presented to sheep farmer Bart Kemp of Agractie Nederland. The jury, led by behavioral scientist Reint Jan Renes, appreciates the large-scale and impressive demonstration with which Kemp and his organization have put the nitrogen problem in relation to Dutch farmers on the social agenda.

Learn more about the nominees and winners of the Issue Award for issue management of this year and previous years? Then look up www.issueaward.nl.

Look here for more photos from the 2020 Issue Congress.

Issue conference 2019

On January 24, 2019, the 10th Issue Congress took place in De Balie in Amsterdam. During this conference, the Issue Award was presented to Tim Hofman and his team from #BOOS, with which he drew attention to the children's pardon. In addition, Arjan Lubach won an oeuvre award for the way in which he has managed to draw attention to various social issues over the years.

 

Look here for photos of the 2019 Issue Congress.

Back To Top
en_GB