Bas Minnema
Former Research & Knowledge Exchange Intern
My name is Bas Minnema, and I am studying for my master’s degree in Science, Business & Innovation (SBI) at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. SBI is an interdisciplinary program that contains elements of business administration and the natural-, social- and organizational sciences. The program has two tracks: life & health and energy & sustainability. I am doing the first one.
I have a wide range of interests, and they all seem to converge in psychedelic science and therapy. Also, I very much wanted to live in Berlin for a while. The MIND Foundation was a perfect match, and the values and vision I found on their website resonated with me a lot. The possibilities that the psychedelic experience has to offer in therapy and self-development intrigue me endlessly. Luckily, there was an assignment for me that fit my study program.
For my internship, I conducted a case study on OVID, MIND’s sister organization that will become a psychedelic therapy provider, as it was being founded. Psychedelic therapy is on its way to becoming a major mental health care innovation, and I got a chance to take a close look at the process of founding a startup that is implementing this treatment method. I studied how entrepreneurs introduce a new healthcare intervention to the market. During my internship, I also helped with network building and the development of OVID’s business plan.
My internship allowed me to work with and learn from some of the loveliest and brightest people I have ever met, who share many of my interests and values. It also taught me a great deal about how a highly innovative organization is run, and I really had the feeling that history is being made here, and it felt great to be part of it.
The MIND Foundation really lives up to its core values: compassion, integrity, innovation, professionality, innovation, and community. It is a place for people who want to make a difference by combining idealism with pragmatism, intuitive with rational thinking, and creativity with intellect. The standards are high, but there is a warm atmosphere, and Henrik has a knack for recognizing people’s potential and facilitating them in finding a role in which they can thrive. If you have a heart for science, the human mi