Our roots

Aart van Beuzekom and Gerrit Timmer founded ORTEC in the early 1980s, based on their conviction that applying mathematics was, and still is, valuable for sustainable long-term growth for society at large. 

Over the years, ORTEC has put this belief into practice by contributing its expertise to societal initiatives and projects with organizations such as North Star Alliance, The Ocean Cleanup, Amref Health Africa, in partnership with the University of Amsterdam (UvA) and Analytics for a Better World (ABW).

The ORTEC Foundation was established in 2025 by ORTEC B.V., together with Aart van Beuzekom and Gerrit Timmer, to further professionalize and strengthen these activities through a dedicated foundation. These longstanding partnerships with UvA and ABW will remain important to the Foundation as it develops its activities and builds new collaborations.

This shared belief — that mathematics, analytics, optimization, and technology can contribute to a better society — lies at the heart of the ORTEC Foundation.

The ORTEC Foundation believes that societal organizations and initiatives can significantly increase their effectiveness and positive impact when decisions are supported by data, analytical insights, and technological innovation. By making this expertise available, the Foundation aims to contribute to a better and more just society.

Our mission is to support initiatives and organizations worldwide through a combination of financial support, analytical expertise, and collaborative partnerships, particularly where mathematics, analytics, optimization, and technology can help create sustainable and measurable impact.

The ORTEC Foundation distinguishes itself through a data-driven approach to philanthropy. The ORTEC Foundation focuses on initiatives that apply analytics, optimization and technology to address societal challenges. It combines financial support with analytical expertise and supports initiatives with the potential to create scalable societal impact.

The Foundation does not focus on one specific Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) or a limited number of SDGs. Instead, it supports initiatives that use analytics, optimization and technology to help address societal challenges more broadly. In doing so, the ORTEC Foundation aims to contribute to accelerating progress across all SDGs.