INTERVIEW WITH MARGRETHE JONKMAN, PRESIDENT OF THE EXECUTIVE BOARD OF VU AMSTERDAM
HARNESSING KNOWLEDGE AND COOPERATION FOR SOCIAL IMPACT
Reflecting on her first year as Executive Board president at VU Amsterdam, Margrethe Jonkman is clearly passionate about her job. With her broad experience and vision, Margrethe is committed to making a social impact through multidisciplinary research, innovative teaching and long-term partnerships. From its unique home base in Zuidas, the university is building bridges between science, enterprise and society.
What motivated you to take up the post of Executive Board president at VU, and how do you like it so far?
“I have been at VU for around a year now and like it very well. The thing that has always motivated me is my desire to harness knowledge for impact. I’ve done this in various roles over the course of my business career, and what particularly drew me here is how much of an impact the university’s knowledge and education can make. It’s really part of the DNA and legacy of VU Amsterdam. I think it’s important that those who have knowledge use it to solve societal problems. This idea chimes well with my vision and motivations.”
What are the main objectives you want to achieve in your first few years at VU?
“My aim is to continue building on VU’s existing strengths. As a comprehensive university with disciplines ranging from religion and theology to engineering and medicine, one of our key strengths is multidisciplinary collaboration. Society’s problems can’t be solved by disciplines operating in isolation; you need to work together across disciplinary boundaries. I want to ensure that VU Amsterdam really capitalises on this strength, not only on an individual basis but all together, as a community.”
What initiatives have you kicked off already or do you intend to prioritise to attract and support international talent?
“VU welcomes many international students and employees. I think it’s important that we embrace a variety of cultures and backgrounds as this gives us diverse perspectives on problems and opportunities. On the education side, we have multi-classrooms and international exchanges to promote this. And for our employees we encourage dialogue and support them with things like Dutch language courses. We will continue developing VU as a strong international university. As a multicultural city, Amsterdam is a great home base for this.”
What do you think makes the combination of education, research and a campus in Zuidas so inspiring?
“VU Amsterdam plays a vital role in society and Zuidas amplifies that. The university, companies and residents are working together in research, teaching and projects like community service learning. Our campus, with a Grand Café, theatre, cinema and courses, is a place where all are welcome, and this openness has made us an active partner in the community. We are also focusing on entrepreneurship and utilising knowledge in areas like sustainable innovation and AI. Our proximity to companies in Zuidas provides job opportunities for students, including first-generation students.”
What sorts of campus developments are helping to propel innovation?
“What I love is how we are investing in innovation and entrepreneurship. We’ve opened a state-of-the-art physics and science building and are currently developing a new laboratory plus spaces for medtech and health technology startups. We really want to encourage this sort of knowledge-based enterprise.”
How does sustainability factor into VU strategy?
“Sustainability is one of our core values and is reflected in everything we do. Our education explicitly links issues such as diversity, inclusion and climate to the Sustainable Development Goals. We’re also working in many international partnerships, such as the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, which we joined recently. This is a network that brings universities, companies and governments together to work on solutions to global challenges, and ties in perfectly with VU’s own mission, which is to work together based on everyone’s individual strengths. VU wants to be a driving force for sustainability in the Netherlands, not only in education and research, but in partnerships too.”
How does VU see its role as a partner for enterprise and society?
“VU Amsterdam occupies a unique position here in Zuidas. It is a small, diverse district with businesses, residents and our university, and this presents tremendous opportunities. We are very keen to partner with companies large, medium and small in all kinds of sectors. For example, by matching students with companies for small projects. We need to start small and then look at how we can support each other. I firmly believe in the power of knowledge and partnerships. Together, we can tackle societal challenges while helping people and organisations keep pace with this fast-changing world.”
