Jasper's Day
Jasper Knoester is the dean of the Faculty of Science. How is he doing, what exactly does he do and what does his day look like? In each newsletter, Jasper gives an insight into his life.
Thursday February 2
‘It’s a beautiful morning and I enjoy the sunrise from inside the train. I like this time of the year when the days are getting longer. The morning is controlled by personnel matters and a few strolls around our administration building, having a chat left and right. Downtime, as Annetje Ottow recently called it in her column. A nice concept for sure. Unfortunately, we don't do it enough, although it is of great importance. Maybe I should try strolling around for a whole day, so I get further into our buildings.
Maybe I should try strolling around for a whole day.
The meeting of the Faculty Board with the scientific directors will start at noon. Two hours have been reserved for this today. That's longer than usual, but we haven't been together much lately, even though there is a lot to talk about. That makes the meeting intensive, good, and with plenty discussions. We talk about the budget for the policy resources of the faculty, the starters and incentive grants, PhD candidates with a foreign scholarship that’s too small, and the process towards a new faculty strategic plan. Regarding the latter, I urge everyone to register for the consultation sessions that will take place on February 14 and 21 and March 7. It is the single best opportunity to join the conversation about the decisions that the faculty faces.
Then I have a conversation with Peter van Bodegom, professor at the CML. Among other things, he tells me about his activities in Westland, where he works with horticulturists to make their operations more sustainable. I know it's a huge challenge, one that I was recently introduced to as a board member of ACCEZ (a program for accelerating the circular economy in South Holland). Entrepreneurs must make major decisions about the upcoming transition, and it is good that they are being aided with insights from the university.
We should cultivate and talk about it a bit more, not only in our research, but also in our education.
After this I receive 12 people from the Division of Research and Innovation of the University of Bergen in Norway. I proudly give a short introduction of our faculty after which a conversation about the relationship between the university and the outside world ensues. How do we connect with societal challenges and applications? How do you make connections with the business community and government organizations without compromising our fundamental research? Traditionally, this is not at the top of our faculty's mission list, but there are still several researchers who do wonderful things there, which they also use to further strengthen their research. The conversation with Peter half an hour ago is a good example and there are more. We should cultivate and talk about it a bit more, not only in our research, but also in our education.
I close the working day with a rather late New Year's meeting of NL Space, held at the Space Expo in Noordwijk. Fun and useful! Space travel is strong in our region and here too there are many opportunities for the faculty to make connections. I speak to Leiden alderman Fleur Spijker (who has economics and knowledge in her portfolio, among other things) and invite her to come and see all the beautiful and important work that is happening at our faculty.
I travel home by bus, train and bicycle, where I help with some homework, after which I go for a swim. More sport and exercise are a new year’s resolution, and the beautiful gym nearby motivates me. If I keep strolling through the faculty in addition, that resolution will be fulfilled with ease.'