Bob van der Zande is Urban Strategist. Advisor of Cities, Regions, Investors and Developers. Focus on building-in-wood and mass timber, social impact, inclusive area development, public-private collaboration (Triple Helix).  

He is Director Mass Timber Programme in residential development in the Metropolitan Region Amsterdam (MRA): 20% of all new homes are to be built biobased/in mass timber by 2025. Successful in accelerating the timber movement together with 140 subscribers of the Timber Covenant (2021- 2025) and 30 real estate partners.  

In March 2023 he became member of the Board of Built by Nature Foundation that stimulates the use of timber and other natural materials in the building sector worldwide with grants. He is chair of the National Houtivation Foundation that is scaling up the use of timber in the real estate industry. Also chair of the National Knowledge Center for Biobased Construction. 

Chair of Urban Land Institute (ULI) the Netherlands for 4 years, past chair of the European Urban Regeneration ULI Council and Global ULI Trustee since 2018. 

Bob van der Zande has been working in the public sector for decades at the City of Amsterdam and the MRA (30 municipalities, 2 provinces).  

Director Residential Markets for the City of Amsterdam 2009-2019, responsible for several residential programmes in the city and the region, such as speeding up midsegment rental housing, the self-built housing programme and student and youth housing.  

He graduated as urban designer at the Delft University of Technology in 1978.   

Born in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), February 2nd 1953