Beurs van Berlage selects ItsME Foundation as its social impact partner for 2026
Every year, Beurs van Berlage selects one charitable organisation to actively support. Through this initiative, the Amsterdam-based conference and event venue aims to create lasting impact on the city and society. For 2026, Stichting ItsME has been chosen, a foundation dedicated to research into encephalitis and meningitis.
As an international meeting place where thousands of people gather each year, Beurs van Berlage believes it has a responsibility to use this position to contribute to social engagement as well. Supporting a charitable cause is part of the organisation’s broader sustainability strategy, in which creating social impact and meaningful connections plays a central role.
This year, the choice of the ItsME Foundation became especially personal. In 2024, colleague Kaitlyn lost her best friend Suus to the consequences of meningitis. Suus was only 17 years old.
In the summer of 2022, Suus likely contracted a flesh-eating bacteria after a fall. The bacteria spread through her bloodstream to her brain, leaving her in a coma for a week. Despite a long recovery period and the incredible strength with which she fought her way back, she unexpectedly passed away in her sleep in May 2024, possibly due to an epileptic seizure resulting from the illness.
Suus’ story deeply touched many colleagues within Beurs van Berlage.
“Kaitlyn told us how little people actually know about meningitis and how it can happen to anyone,” says Evelien van Kessel, Commercial Director of the Beurs van Berlage. “That made a huge impression on us. When we later connected with the ItsME Foundation, it immediately felt like everything came together.”
The ItsME Foundation was founded by Jur Deitmers, known from the Dutch NPO documentary The Boy Without Yesterday, and is committed to raising awareness and supporting scientific research into encephalitis and meningitis. The foundation collaborates with various specialists and professors, including experts affiliated with Amsterdam UMC, and is supported by ambassadors such as Professor Erik Scherder and Olympic champion Ranomi Kromowidjojo.
Remarkably, the partnership came together at exactly the right moment. Less than a month before first connecting with the Beurs van Berlage, the ItsME Foundation had internally discussed how the relatively young foundation could gain more attention and visibility.
Throughout the year, the Beurs van Berlage will organise several initiatives in collaboration with the ItsME Foundation, including a charity event, volunteer activities for employees, and participation in social initiatives and sporting events. Clients, visitors, and event organizers will also have the opportunity to contribute to the foundation.
“We hope that together we can not only raise funds for research, but above all create greater awareness,” says Nicole Fuchs, Director of the ItsME Foundation. “Suus’ story shows how vulnerable life can be and how important it is to appreciate the small things.”
The Beurs van Berlage invites partners, clients, and visitors to join this initiative and contribute together to greater awareness and improved treatment of encephalitis and meningitis.
For more information about the partnership and how to donate, please visit this page about the ItsME Foundation.