Netherlands Red Cross, BUas and LCB partnership extended
On Tuesday 1 April 2025, the Netherlands Red Cross, Breda University of Applied Sciences (BUas), and Logistics Community Brabant (LCB) renewed their partnership. They did so during a lecture in which the new partnership agreement was officially signed. This marks the continuation and intensification of a unique collaboration that has been in place for five years. The partnership, which has repeatedly demonstrated its added value, promises a future filled with innovative solutions and significant social impact.
- About BUas
- Collaboration
- Logistiek
The partnership between the Netherlands Red Cross and BUas/LCB began just before the COVID-19 pandemic reached the Netherlands. In a period when society was turned upside down, this alliance proved its tremendous flexibility and relevance. The Netherlands Red Cross had to drastically adjust its role in society in a short period of time. Student involvement in the planning of various relief activities, including large-scale vaccination programmes, proved invaluable. Another important initiative was the partnership within the LCB Regio Deal project ‘Medication Returns’ (later expanded to include the collection of incontinence supplies). The Netherlands Red Cross played a key role in facilitating the collection, transport, and redistribution of these supplies.
Harm Goossens, General Director of the Netherlands Red Cross, stated:
’The Red Cross is constantly adapting its organisation and working methods to the changing world around us. The contributions of young people from different disciplines help us move forward. In recent years, we have seen that a fresh, youthful perspective combined with solid expertise is of great benefit to us.’
The renewed signing of the partnership agreement marks an important step forward. Previously, the collaboration mainly involved students from the Logistics programme, but it is now expanding to include multiple academic disciplines within BUas. The fresh perspective of students on organisational processes often leads to new insights into operational management. By combining different BUas disciplines, unique cross-pollination occurs, creating even more opportunities for innovative and socially relevant collaborative projects.
Ingrid Timmermans, Vice-President of the Executive Board at BUas, commented:
’Expanding and deepening this partnership across other academies within BUas is a good way of fulfilling our shared social responsibility in this society.’
New projects in the pipeline include optimising the stock management of aid materials, joint deployment of staff and volunteers at events, and the potential roll-out of the successful approach in the Central and West Brabant District to other districts of the Netherlands Red Cross. Additionally, the Digital Atlas—a digital twin developed by Argaleo and LCB—will be used to provide real-time information for poverty alleviation and related activities of the Netherlands Red Cross.
Daan Quaars, Director of Logistics Community Brabant, expressed enthusiasm for the renewed partnership:
’We look forward with interest to continuing our partnership with the Netherlands Red Cross. Over the past few years, we have been able to complement each other in various research projects. In the near future, we will carry on with this and work together once again to reduce medicine waste, redistribute unused medical supplies, and make logistics operations more sustainable.’
