Fostered by The Hague Southwest Thesis Hub, the LDE Centre, De Haagse Hogeschool, and housing associations Haag Wonen and Staedion joined forces and signed a memorandum of collaboration on October 7. The initiative connects aspiring students, professionals, policymakers, and community stakeholders by bridging academic knowledge with practical applications. It aims to foster co-creation, community building, and meaningful change. As the project manager of the Hague South West Thesis Hub, Mandy Koenraads shared with us:
This event showed the added value of working together on social urban topics as different partners all have their own indispensable knowledge regarding a topic. We only started three years ago as a program, and the fact that our partners see the value of our presence and work in the city and, therefore, initiated this long-term partnership is a great endorsement of the impact we create with our students in the program in The Hague. This was a celebration of the beautiful things we already do and a clear sign of the commitment of all parties to grow this collaboration to its potential further.”
The partnership emphasises the social aspects of critical urban challenges, including housing shortages, livability, and energy transition. The main goal is to integrate the social component further into these urban challenges, which is also the central focus of the collaboration. Read more about the signing of the memorandum below.