What Movement On The Ground does

Movement On The Ground is a Dutch-registered humanitarian nonprofit foundation (Stichting Movement On The Ground) founded in October 2015 in direct response to the European refugee crisis, with co-founders including Adil Izemrane and current CEO Patricia Vermeulen (appointed November 2024). The organization delivers community-driven humanitarian programs through its proprietary 'Camp to CampUs' methodology, operating field programs across Greece (Lesvos, Athens, Samos), Syria, the Netherlands, Gaza, Lebanon, and Sudan, with past operations in Morocco, Ukraine, and Ghana. Program offerings span three pillars: meeting basic needs (food, clean water, shelter, emergency relief), training and employment (vocational hospitality training at ERGON Lesvos, digital skills and AI training at the Lebanon Digital Livelihood Academy), and sense of belonging (Athens CampUs for aging-out unaccompanied minors, Lesvos CampUs community hub, Beat the Heat summer support, planned Children's Village in Gaza). With 350+ daily participants — 80% from refugee or migration backgrounds — 878 community volunteers in the Netherlands, and 250,000+ displaced people impacted cumulatively, the organization describes itself as operating 'for the community, by the community' with peer-led program co-creation.

The organization has no proprietary technology platform; 'Camp to CampUs' is an operational framework rather than a software product. Revenue is entirely charitable: individual donations from hundreds of supporters, institutional partnerships with 41+ entities including international NGOs, government bodies (notably COA in the Netherlands), and UN agencies, plus corporate and foundation grants from partners such as the Johan Cruyff Foundation and the Dutch National Lottery. Cumulative funds raised total €25M since 2015. Aid and programs are provided free to beneficiaries; there is no commercial pricing. Distribution occurs through direct field operations, partner NGO networks (Stichting Nidos, The Home Project, Arava Institute, Damour, Let's Have Hope, Odyssea, Red Cross Netherlands), and community-led program delivery via local volunteer structures. The organization maintains a wholly-owned Greek subsidiary, Movement on the Ground Hellas AMKE, for local operations.

Name

Movement On The Ground

Legal name

Stichting Movement On The Ground

Website

https://movementontheground.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Movement On The Ground is a Dutch-registered humanitarian nonprofit founded in 2015 that delivers community-driven humanitarian aid, vocational training, and safe housing through its Camp to CampUs methodology to displaced populations in Greece, Syria, Gaza, Lebanon, Sudan, and the Netherlands.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Humanitarian Aid Services

NAICS

Emergency and Other Relief Services (624230), Emergency and Other Relief Services (62423), Community Housing Services (62422), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Refugee, IDP & Migration Humanitarian Assistance (BPAGAAAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Disaster Recovery, Reconstruction & Resilience Programs (BPAGAAAK), Refugee, Migration & Displacement Support (BPAGABAH), Refugee & Immigrant Support Services (BPAGAEAI), Refugee, Crisis & Humanitarian Education Partnerships (EiE) (EDADALAG)

Keywords

• Humanitarian aid services
• Refugee support programs
• Community integration services
• Emergency relief operations
• Vocational training programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Amsterdam

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: Powered by the generosity of hundreds of individuals who make donations to support humanitarian aid programs worldwide.
2. Institutional Partnerships: Support from more than 41 supportive partners including international NGOs, government bodies, and UN agencies to provide humanitarian aid and scale impact through Camp to CampUs programs.
3. Corporate and Foundation Grants: Partnerships with organizations such as Johan Cruyff Foundation, Dutch National Lottery (NPL), and other institutional funders for specific projects like football fields and humanitarian programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Movement On The Ground is a humanitarian nonprofit that delivers direct aid, shelter, and integration support to displaced persons and refugees, primarily through its flagship "Camp to CampUs" methodology. The program bridges emergency camp relief and longer-term community integration by combining immediate humanitarian assistance with education, vocational training, and social reintegration activities delivered directly in the field.

Product overview

Movement On The Ground is a humanitarian nonprofit organization (not a technology company) operating across Greece, Syria, the Netherlands, Gaza, Lebanon, and Sudan. The organization offers a portfolio of humanitarian programs under the Camp to CampUs methodology, which focuses on transforming refugee camps into thriving communities through community-driven approaches. The portfolio includes: Syria housing and education initiatives, the ERGON Vocational & Integration Centre providing hospitality and digital skills training, Digital Livelihood Academy in Lebanon for technology education, Gaza emergency relief and Children's Village projects, Lesvos and Athens CampUs community hubs, Unaccompanied Minors support in the Netherlands, and seasonal initiatives like Beat the Heat. These programs address basic needs, training and employment, and sense of belonging for displaced populations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Camp to CampUs Program

Quantifiable outcome

• 250,000+ displaced people impacted across 9 countries and 3 continents
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Johan Cruyff FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 September 2025Collaboration to build Cruyff Court football fields for local communities. Third field built in Mytilene, Lesvos, with funding from Dutch National Lottery. Johan Cruyff Foundation was founded in 1997 by Dutch footballer Johan Cruyff to provide children, especially those with disabilities, opportunities for sport and play.
• Stichting NidoscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration for unaccompanied minors program in the Netherlands. Stichting Nidos exercises legal guardianship over unaccompanied minor refugees, working closely with Movement On The Ground's shelter and support programs.
• The Home ProjectmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Athens CampUs 18+ Shelter Project, providing safe housing and support for young refugees aging out of care upon turning 18.
• Amis des Ecoles (ADE)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership in Morocco earthquake response, working together to provide sustainable solutions for communities affected by the September 2023 earthquake in 49 villages.
• Corps AfricamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) project in Zaazi, Ghana, addressing critical health, social, and environmental issues through installation of sanitation facilities.
• Relief Crew FoundationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for WASH project in Ghana, working in close collaboration with local community to construct 51 WASH facilities benefiting 750 residents.
• Arava InstitutemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Gaza initiative 'Jumpstarting Hope for Gaza' combined with Damour, planning both short-term and long-term intervention in Gaza.
• DamourmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Gaza initiative 'Jumpstarting Hope for Gaza' combined with Arava Institute, planning both short-term and long-term intervention in Gaza.
• OdysseaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration for culinary training program at Athens CampUs, providing intensive cooking courses for residents to pursue careers in hospitality.
• Let's Have Hope (LHO)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Sudan operations, providing vital support to displaced families including food assistance and women-led community kitchens through exclusive local team.
• COA (Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Dutch government agency for Camp to CampUs methodology implementation in Dutch reception centers. Completed two successful programs in Budel (two-year initiative) and Huis ter Heide (eight-month program).
• Red Cross NetherlandsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPilot program at Almere Markerkant reception center in collaboration with Red Cross Netherlands, implementing community-led activities and Camp to CampUs methodology.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• HIAS: Jewish-founded refugee assistance organization providing resettlement, legal services, and integration support across multiple countries. Closely comparable nonprofit mission, donor-funded model, and program mix (housing, education, employment).
• Asylum Access: International refugee rights organization providing legal aid, community-based support, and integration services across multiple countries. Comparable grassroots nonprofit model serving displaced populations with community-driven programs.
• RefugeeOne: Chicago-based refugee resettlement and support nonprofit providing housing, education, and employment services. Comparable mid-sized refugee nonprofit with similar housing-plus-vocational-training program mix and community-led philosophy.
• Refugee Council: UK-based refugee support charity providing advocacy, housing support, and integration services. Directly comparable as a community-facing refugee support organization with similar program mix (housing, education, integration) and nonprofit funding model.
• Refuge (UK charity): UK specialist charity supporting women and children fleeing domestic violence and other persecution with housing and advocacy. Comparable mid-sized nonprofit providing shelter, support services, and community integration for vulnerable populations.

Broad incumbents

• Mercy Corps: Large humanitarian INGO operating in conflict-affected and refugee contexts worldwide with food security, economic recovery, and education programs. Overlaps in active country footprint (Syria, Sudan, Gaza) and program categories but at much larger scale.
• Refugees International: Advocacy and research-driven INGO focused on displacement crises globally with no direct service delivery. Adjacent peer with shared donor base and overlapping institutional advocacy on refugee policy.
• International Rescue Committee (IRC): Large INGO responding to humanitarian crises globally with refugee resettlement, education, and economic recovery programs. Operates at vastly larger scale across the same refugee-support category but as part of a much wider humanitarian portfolio.
• Caritas Internationalis: Global Catholic humanitarian confederation providing refugee and migration support, emergency relief, and integration services across 200+ countries. Comparable in mission scope and refugee programming but operates as a much larger federation.
• International Catholic Migration Commission (IOM/ICMC): UN-related intergovernmental organization coordinating global migration and refugee support with resettlement, shelter, and integration programs. Comparable footprint in displacement contexts but as part of a much larger intergovernmental system.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Movement On The Ground