The Dutchlink Board was inaugurated in 2003 with representatives from three pillars – Business, Social and Cultural. Currently the Board is chaired by Bert Bardoel. His colleagues on the Board are Akky van Ogtrop, Annerie van Maarschalkerweerd, Lieke Scherbeijn, Dorus van den Biezenbos, Tjarko Edzes, Laurens Visscher and Elle van Beijsterveldt. Jacqueline Clements is the Executive Manager and she manages the day-to-day operations of Dutchlink and is its central point of contact.
The Government is represented via Netherlands Consul-General Hugo Klijn.
Bert Bardoel
Chairman
Born in the Netherlands, Bert arrived in Australia in the mid eighties, is married with two children and currently living on Sydney’s North Shore. Bert completed his MBA at the AGSM and UNSW Australian School for Business in 2009 Bert Bardoel is an Executive Director with Ernst & Young in Sydney.
Akky van Ogtrop
Director
Akky van Ogtrop (born in The Netherlands), graduated from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, s’Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands and has a Masters Degree Fine Arts, Sydney University. As a director and manager of major arts events Akky has proven experience as an arts administrator and creative manager with extensive contacts and national and international project experience.
Annerie van Maarschalkerweerd
Director
Annerie moved to Sydney permanently in 1984. Since February 1986 she has been employed as an International BFA Flight Attendant.
While there is currently no International travel Annerie has become a volunteer at the Addison Road Community Organization in Marrickville
Dorus van den Biezenbos
Director
Following his studies in International Business & Languages in Maastricht, Dorus started his career at ABN Amro Bank in Amsterdam and Luxembourg as Private Banker. In 2005 he stepped into Management Consulting with a focus on Customer Experience and Digital Transformation in Financial Services. Dorus has worked across Europe, Asia Pacific and moved to Australia in 2011. Most recently as entrepreneurial executive coach and co-founder of multiple businesses.
Elle van Beijsterveldt
Director
Elle has almost a decade of experience in the wine industry, having worked in various (digital) marketing roles across Europe and Australia. She relocated to Sydney in 2017 and joined Dutchlink in 2019 as Executive Manager, a position she held for three years. Currently, she’s working as a marketing specialist for AIX Rosé, a premium rosé wine from Provence.
Tjarko Edzes
Director
Following his studies in Law and MBA, Tjarko worked in international real estate investment roles across Europe and Asia-Pacific. He moved to Sydney in 2018 to open a pan-APAC office for real estate investor Bouwinvest. He joined Scape, the largest rental housing developer and operator in Australia, as Chief Capital Officer in 2022. Tjarko also plays in the ‘best Dutch band Down-Under’ Hollandse Nieuwe.
Joost Heymeijer
Director
Joost is a globally recognised hospitality and tourism leader with a distinguished career spanning over 30 years in senior positions across four continents. His extensive career includes 12 years of Food and Beverage Management with Hilton International, catering management with Sodexo, the design and development of Emirates Wolgan Valley Resort & Spa, SVP Global Inflight Catering at Emirates and CEO at Tattarang’s Z1Z Hospitality.
Nicoline van Cann
Director
Nicoline has over 10 years’ experience in the international relations and diplomatic sectors. She worked for the economic department of the Consulate General of the Netherlands in Sydney for over 6 years, managing Australia-wide economic diplomacy and trade & investment facilitation. She joined the New South Wales government in 2021, leading a team of export advisors, facilitating businesses to export to global markets.