On the 19th of April, the LDE GMD centre, together with the Gemeente Den Haag, officially kicked off the Den Haag Zuidwest thesis initiative.
What is this initiative?
The municipality of the Hague wants to transform The Hague Southwest from a vulnerable area into an attractive, vital, resilient, and sustainable residential area in The Hague, with more employment opportunities, accessible and wide range of education, strengthening the level of facilities, better accessibility, and a diverse range of housing. The thesis initiative will consist of two thematic clusters in which groups of students from different fields of study carry out fieldwork and work on research questions. In this, they also seek to collaborate with other educational institutions, municipal policy officers, and social parties in the neighborhood.
The kick-off
The kick-off started with an introductory word from the Hague's alderman, Martijn Balster, where he reiterated the initiative hopes to bring about a "place of hope and change". The LDE alliance Dean Wim van den Doel thereafter extended his welcome to all attendees and reiterated the importance of this initiative, not only to the students but to the residents of the southwest region of The Hague. A number of practitioners from the municipality of the Hague were also in attendance, including Martijn van Weert, the programme manager of the Regio Deal. Three participating students were able to present preliminary ideas behind their research and were also able to pose questions to the different practitioners and scholars.
The students will now work closely with the practitioners as they embark on their thesis project.