Principle 01
Encounters instead of pure information
Close should not just show what exists. The platform should help people take the next small step into a real-life encounter.
About Close
Helping people feel more connected, close to home.
We are a Dutch non-profit foundation developing Close, a neighbourhood app that helps people find local activities, shared interests and opportunities to meet.
Why Close
Local opportunities need to be easier to find.
Close supports the work already happening in neighbourhoods. We want to help people discover local groups, activities and places to meet.
01
Many offers in the neighborhood already exist but are not found by everyone.
02
Many people want more connection but don't know where to start.
03
Municipalities, providers and housing companies invest in neighborhood work, but visibility, activation and impact often remain difficult.
Close does not solve loneliness alone. But Close can make a concrete contribution: creating visibility, facilitating first steps and showing partners where activation is needed.
Our stance
What guides our work.
We build around everyday encounters, local knowledge and respect for people’s privacy.
Principle 02
Local instead of anonymous
The starting point is always the neighborhood: places, offers, organizations and people reachable in everyday life.
Principle 03
Common good before advertising
Close is not designed to sell attention. What matters is whether local participation becomes easier.
Principle 04
Trust from the beginning
Data protection, clear roles and a careful handling of sensitive information are at the core of the product.
The founders
Meet the people behind Close.
Alexander develops the app and its technology. Mathias works with local organisations and public services. Together they founded Close Foundation.
Alexander Akbik
Product & Technology
Alexander develops Close and the technology behind it. His focus is making the app practical and straightforward for people and local organisations.
- Product
- Engineering
- Foundation setup
Mathias Fallak
Partnerships & Public Sector
Mathias builds relationships with councils, housing providers and community organisations, bringing their experience into the development of Close.
- Partnerships
- Public & social sector
- Housing
We are not building an app that wants attention. We are building the shortest possible path from ‘I don’t know where to go’ to ‘I can try this.’
Stichting Close Foundation Against Social Loneliness · The Hague, Netherlands · KVK 42089202
Common good orientation
Our purpose comes first.
Close is being developed to help people meet and take part locally. Our foundation keeps that social purpose at the centre of our work.
Working formulation
Close is being built as a non-profit foundation.
This structure ensures that the platform creates trust, works with municipalities and providers and enables local encounters.
What matters to us
Supporting the people already working locally.
The platform is created with a focus on people in the neighborhood and the organizations that perform work there every day.
We want to make existing social infrastructure more visible.
We want to bring people into contact at low threshold.
We want to relieve local actors, not replace them.
We want to make impact measurable without spying on people.
We want to build a platform that is also trustworthy for public and social partners.
What Close is not
Where Close fits in.
Close is not a replacement for local social work. It is a digital tool that makes real-life encounters more likely.
Close is not
- another social network for endless scrolling
- an advertising-funded neighborhood platform
- a replacement for neighborhood work
- a tool that solves social problems alone
- a marketplace that sells local attention
Close is
- a digital bridge to real-life encounters
- a tool for neighborhoods, organizations and people on the ground
- a platform that makes local offers discoverable and usable
Let’s work on stronger neighbourhoods together.
Do you work with local communities, activities or meeting places? We would like to hear about your work and explore how we could help.