‘Wake-up call’ for Andy van den Dobbelsteen

‘Wake-up call’ for Andy van den Dobbelsteen

 

 

On LinkedIn, TU Delft sustainability coordinator prof.dr.ir. Andy van den Dobbelsteen this week shared a four-page letter from an anonymous sender: ‘Today I found fan mail from a supporter of the ‘real professor’ Guus Berkhout (who denies anthropogenic climate change). Very brave to send this kind of paperwork full of total nonsense anonymously to my work address.’

 

‘Wake-up call for all (political) climate geeks,’ the letter starts. ‘STOP your ramblings and lies. The elusive climate doesn’t care about you. (…) That humans would be the cause of climate change is a made-up belief.’

 

A day later, the message counted 53 endorsements and more than 250 responses. Marcel Collignon (friend of Van den Dobbelsteen and former housemate) seeks nuance in the debate: “Above all, let a doubter of heat pumps see and experience your heat pump. Do it! But then out of kindness and helpfulness, and not out of rancour or perceived superiority.”
 

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^{Andy van den Dobbelsteen doesn’t shy away from social media. (Photo: Roos van Tongeren, 2018)}

 

Van den Dobbelsteen no longer believes in that: “On Twitter, I had endless discussions with these people, openly, only to find out that they are not doing those discussions to find out the truth, just to express their displeasure. And then it stops sometime. This is thankfully not a threatening letter, it seems, but I have one too. The polarisation is not coming from us. Let that be clear.” (JW)

 

Also read: Are you under fire on social media? This is what TU Delft can do to help