Citizens are at the heart of creating and renewing the Dutch Research Agenda. The link between society and science is a key element of the NWA programme. Governments, researchers, civil society organisations and citizens work together to develop and use knowledge to achieve scientific and societal impact. And through science communication, knowledge is shared in society to increase engagement and trust in science. Accordingly, the projects that have been awarded will be taken up by a broad consortium of universities, civil society organisations and other knowledge partners.
In this round, nine projects receive funding. Radboud University is not the coordinator in any of these projects, but is part of the consortium in six different projects. The themes range from a new approach to biodiversity restoration in livestock farming areas to the consequences of scaling up offshore wind farms.
EmPowerED
Enabling Positive Energy Districts through citizen-centered socio-technical models for upscaling of the heat transition
The EmPowerED research project helps accelerate the transition to renewable energy and heat in neighbourhoods, towards so-called ‘Positive Energy Districts’ (PEDs, neighbourhoods that generate more energy than they consume). Within this project, Radboud University's Nijmegen School of Management will contribute to this by researching how these energy-positive districts can be governed and organised, what the energy planning of these districts can look like, and what laws and regulations are important in this process. It specifically looks at the cooperation between the technical and energy aspects of neighbourhoods, the steps towards energy-positive neighbourhoods and how the energy planning for these neighbourhoods can be done. It also examines how residents themselves can participate in the governance of energy and heat solutions and how this cooperation fits within the laws and regulations that support a fair energy transition. Part of this research is done together with the HAN and the municipality of Nijmegen in the Kanaalzone in Nijmegen.
Within Radboud University, this project involves Saskia Lavrijssen, Henk-Jan Kooij and Mark Wiering, in addition to partners from the university such as Alliander. The coordinator is Floor Alkemade from TU/eindhoven. The project will receive €7 million, excluding co-financing in kind of €1.2 million.
Emergence at all scales
What are the building blocks of space, time and matter? Can we understand the mind-boggling variation in properties emerging when Lego is played with billions of fundamental particles, atoms, molecules and little chunks of materials? These questions are amongst the deepest, and the scientists asking them do research into emergence. We want to understand emergence at all scales: from the terribly tiny to the cosmologically colossal. Our goal is the discovery of the general laws of emergence, written in the language of mathematics. We are joined on this journey spanning sixty-orders of magnitude by citizen-scientists, artists, school-kids, and cool cocktail-mixologists.
The coordinator is Jácome Armas from the University of Amsterdam. The project will receive €7.1 million. Walter van Suijlekom, Frank Saueressig, Annegret Burtscher and Renate Loll at Radboud University are part of this consortium.
CurveBend
From biodiversity loss to a nature-positive society through mobilisation of collective action at the landscape scale
Biodiversity is under significant pressure worldwide, and restoration efforts often fall short. This project proposes a new approach to restoring biodiversity in areas where livestock farming dominates land use. The research stimulated and studies new collective initiatives where all relevant regional parties — including residents, farmers, conservationists, recreational entrepreneurs, the agrifood chain, municipalities, and water authorities — work together both within and across sectors. By comparing different areas in the Netherlands, South America, and East Africa, the project aims to develop effective, region-specific solutions and foster the exchange of innovative ideas.
The coordinator is Han Olff from the University of Groningen. The project will receive €7 million.
PRELIFE
Pathways, Reactions, and Environments leading to LIFE: An interdisciplinary approach
The origin of life is one of science's greatest unsolved puzzles. Several theories exist, but there is no consensus. PRELIFE is built on an interdisciplinary approach in which astronomy, biology. chemistry, computer science, earth and planetary sciences, education science, mathematics, and physics work together on the question 'How and under what conditions did life arise on Earth, and how common are these conditions in the universe?' These questions are also alive in society, which is why teachers, schoolchildren and the public will be involved in the search for answers, through educational projects and collaborations with artists and museums.
The coordinator is Inge Loes ten Kate from Utrecht University. The project will receive €7 million, excluding co-financing in kind of €60,000. Within this initiative, Herma Cuppen and Evan Spruijt, researchers at the Institute for Molecules and Materials, will contribute in separate research projects.
ExpACT
Exposome ACTion perspectives
The Netherlands faces significant challenges related to pollution, known as the exposome. Air pollution is a major source of pollution and causing political and societal debate. Major transitions in sectors like mobility, energy, and agriculture are occurring in residential areas. These transitions affect air quality, leading to conflicts and decreased mutual trust between governments, companies and residents. There is a clear need for better technological measurement methods and stakeholder involvement in the collection and analysis of air quality data. ExpACT addresses these gaps by combining innovative measurement technologies with participatory methods, focusing on industrial, agricultural, urban, and workplace environments.
The coordinator is Roel Vermeulen from Utrecht University. The project will receive €7 million. Researchers Simona Cristescu, Joris Meurs and Amir Khodabakhsh from the Life Science Trace Detection Laboratory (TD-Lab) at Radboud University have been awarded €840,000 to develop and apply two innovative techniques for in-situ detection and monitoring of the chemical exposome in air at different length scales. Read more about the role of the TD-lab at the project page.
DE-ESCALATING
De-escalating Aggressive Encounters between Frontline Workers and Citizens
Aggression between citizens and workers in law enforcement, healthcare, public transport, and service provision occurs too often. The DE-ESCALATING project studies how situations, involved individuals, and their interactions contribute to this. The researchers analyze videos of real situations, along with stress measurements and the motivations of both citizens and professionals. Based on these analyses, they develop strategies to prevent or reduce aggression and violence. The effectiveness of these de-escalation strategies is then tested. In this project, practice and research collaborate to make professionals better in de-escalating aggressive encounters in their workplace.
The coordinator is Marie Rosenkrantz Lindegaard of the NWO institutes organisation NSCR. The project will receive €7.2 million.
More information on all nine projects and a complete overview of all consortium partners can be found on the site of the Dutch Research Council (NWO).