The TU Delft integrity and social safety reporting point received 85 reports in its first six months. What were they about and what has been done about them?
It is doubtful that the ‘Future Proof – Nederland in Transitie’ (future proof – the Netherlands in transition) debate in the Aula helped undecided voters decide who to vote for, but it did show ‘that, unlike on TV, politicians do not usually break out in fights’.
The Netherlands Labour Authority will begin a follow-up investigation into work pressure and undesirable behaviour at TU Delft in February. The university must demonstrate improvement in both areas by then, or face enforcement measures.
The Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering (IDE) is hosting an interactive exhibition about menopause in the week of 6 October and the audience is encouraged to contribute to it. Delta asked IDE dean Caspar Chorus why he took this particular initiative. “Let’s not put the burden solely on women.”
Digital autonomy is not a luxury, it is essential. This was the message communicated this summer by researchers from the Rathenau Institute to Dutch knowledge institutions in a report about digital dependence on foreign technology companies. Delta asked ICT director Erik Scherff about the university’s position on this. His reply: “The current geopolitics forces us to negotiate.”
The ideas at the festival held by the Climate Action Programme on Thursday were primarily about solutions. Keywords were motivation and inspiration. But should the tone not be more concerned?
No forced redundancies, vacancies that will not be filled, and doing less maintenance of equipment. These measures are how the faculties and services are planning to meet their cost reduction requirements as can be read in plans that were published last week. Staff members are concerned about increasing workloads, not having a voice, and losing control.
Will the Works Council and the Student Council have enough of a say in the austerity plans? The representation bodies fear not. This is why, at a public meeting with the Executive Board last Thursday, the Works Council Chair, Ronald Kuil, pushed for sufficient time and opportunity to express their views.
Action group ‘TU Delft for Integrity’ has launched its own hotline for ‘cases of academic complicity and unsafety at TU Delft related to Palestine’. The group of staff and students has noticed a pattern and wants to make that transparent.
The EEMCS Faculty (Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science) building has been nominated as a new listed building. TU Delft is in charge of several other monuments. What makes a building valuable to keep for the future? A stroll around the campus with retired architectural historian Herman van Bergeijk.
