Newsletter #7

In 2026, universities, universities of applied sciences, and student, employee, and PhD candidate organizations will once again be eligible for a grant to help strengthen social safety in higher education and academia! In January, we will organize several online information sessions where you can ask questions about this grant scheme. During these sessions, we will also share a number of lessons learned from the 2025 grant round.

The online information sessions will take place on:

• 21 January 2026, 10:00–11:30 (target audience: general)

• 26 January 2026, 15:00–16:30 (target audience: applicants not awarded funding in 2025)

• 27 January 2026, 14:00–15:30 (target audience: students)

This spring, the Social Safety in Higher Education and Academia program will organize several networking events for professionals in higher education. These events provide a space to share knowledge and actively contribute to the future of social safety within our sector. Following the success of the inspiration fair during last October’s conference, these networking events are a great next step. The program team of the steering group will share insights from the program plan and present the projects currently being carried out. Input and feedback from the sector are essential to strengthen these initiatives.

The events are intentionally small-scale to allow room for conversation, networking, and the exchange of experiences and best practices. We warmly invite you to attend one of these gatherings!

The networking events will take place on:

• Monday 10 February 2026, 14:00–16:00, TU Delft

• Monday 2 March 2026, 10:00–12:00, TU Eindhoven

• Monday 9 March 2026, 13:00–15:00, Utrecht University

Laurie will be on leave and will be temporarily replaced by Ineke van Halsema as program manager of the Social Safety Steering Group until April. Ineke is an anthropologist by background and has worked in various roles in higher education. She spent around twenty years as a lecturer and researcher at several universities, mostly in gender studies, followed by management and executive positions at universities of applied sciences, including as programme director for Diversity and Anti-Discrimination. The theme of Social Safety has therefore been a consistent thread throughout her career.

In addition, after completing his internship, Arne will continue in his role as program secretary until Laurie returns, ensuring continuity within the program team during Laurie’s leave. We wish Laurie a wonderful leave and lots of happiness!

The Social Safety Steering Group for Higher Education and Academia has submitted a formation letter to negotiator Buma and to the higher education spokespeople in the House of Representatives. In our letter, we emphasize that additional investment in social safety is necessary in order to meet the needs expressed by the sector.

We also advocate for extending the steering group beyond 2027, so that the knowledge and expertise developed by the steering group—together with the sector over the course of two years—can be better implemented within higher education institutions and student, PhD candidate, and employee organizations.

The highly successful conference held this past October is barely behind us, but work on a follow-up is already well underway behind the scenes. For now, we can already share the date: the second edition of the conference on social safety in higher education will take place on Monday, 5 October 2026. More information will follow, but be sure to mark this date in your calendar!

Portrait series: Bas Nieuwenhuizen

In our LinkedIn portrait series, we highlight the people working behind the scenes. What they all have in common? They are deeply committed to creating a socially safe study and working environment in higher education and academia. This time: Bas Nieuwenhuizen, Leiden University of Applied Sciences.

Why are you committed to social safety?

“From experience, I know both the impact of a socially and psychologically safe environment and that of an unsafe one. Feeling unsafe has affected me negatively, both at work and in my personal life. But in a safe environment, I felt seen and heard. I could be myself, use my talents, and grow. I want everyone to have that.”

“I also see among colleagues how valuable an environment is in which you are allowed to be yourself, especially when things are uncomfortable. With my work, I hope to contribute to that a little bit every day.”

What are you doing in practice to promote social safety?

“Leiden University of Applied Sciences is a diverse learning community. Inclusion goes beyond valuing differences — it requires space for mistakes, clashing perspectives, and the courage to have conversations. That’s why we developed a three-year action plan in which safety becomes a shared responsibility and a daily habit.”

“In workshops, we focus on key skills such as giving feedback, deep democracy, and collaboration. In addition, we work closely with partners in the city of Leiden to build social safety not only within but also beyond our institution.”

Sexual misconduct occurs everywhere: at school, in nightlife, at work, in sports, at home, and on the street. In the majority of cases, the perpetrator is a man. Men and boys can play an important role in preventing sexual misconduct by calling each other out on their behavior. The campaign “Men, speak up about it!” shows how to do this in a light-hearted way. Will you help us spread this message?