Wageningen Social Sciences

How much trust do the social sciences really need? Join our next Lebo Talk on Public Trust in Social Sciences, where we open up the discussion on a topic that sits at the heart of research and its impact. We will explore questions such as: ✔️ Should we aim for trust or encourage healthy scepticism? ✔️ Can better communication actually strengthen trust, or do we need more dialogue instead? This session is an open invitation to share experiences, doubts and perspectives. Curious? Join the conversation! See you Thursday May 7th at 12:00md in the Leeuwenborch canteen. Théo Konc Niels G. Mede

Is academic freedom quietly shrinking? Not through dramatic restrictions, but through everyday pressures like funding structures, workload and shifting expectations. In our latest article, we reflect on how academic freedom is being reshaped in practice and what universities can do to protect it. From the role of time and trust to the influence of funding, the discussion raises questions that concern all of us working in and with science. Curious to hear your perspective. Take a moment to read and share your thoughts in the comments 👇 Auke Pols Jessica Duncan 🟥Edwin AlblasThéo Konc Shayegheh Ashourizadeh Aarti Gupta Ellen Mangnus Joost de Laat

🎉 Congratulations to Machiel Lamers on his inaugural lecture as Personal Professor of Tourism and Environmental Change at Wageningen University & Research. His research reveals a fundamental paradox: we travel to experience untouched nature, while our presence reshapes it. By studying tourism as a global system of movements — people, ships, emissions and rules — Machiel shows why governing tourism is more complex, and more urgent, than ever. From Antarctica to coral reefs, his work asks a crucial question: who takes responsibility for protecting the places we value most? 🎥 In this short video, Machiel shares how one moment between tourists and penguins led to a much bigger research agenda on governing tourism and environmental change. Join his lecture online tomorrow at 16:00 hours here: https://wur.yuja.nl/ Environmental Policy Group @WUR

Three small tweaks towards a fossil-free home 🏡 What would your home look like without fossil-based materials? Research from Cees Leeuwis and Harriëtte Bos show us how this could look: Less plastic packaging in the kitchen, with more room for reusable and bio-based alternatives. Fewer synthetic fabrics in your wardrobe, replaced by more natural and longer-lasting materials. And in your living room, furniture made with renewable, higher-quality materials that are built to last. Fossil resources are not just in energy, they are hidden in many of the things we use every day. And when these materials are burned at the end of their life, they release CO₂ The good news: you do not need to overhaul your entire home. Start small. 🛋 In your living room Swap a material. Choose wood, wool or linen instead of plastic or synthetic fabrics  🍳 In your kitchen Choose reusable options where possible and opt for products with less or more sustainable packaging. 👕 In your bedroom Buy less, choose better. Fewer clothes, higher quality, and keep them in use longer Living fossil-free is not about an empty house. It is about rethinking what your home is made of. Curious what this looks like in practice? Step inside this house and see what a fossil free house might look like. 👉 [link to PDF] make sure to download to walk around. Paulien Harmsen Fred Beekmans

Congratulations to the AMS Institute on a successful and inspiring event! Great to see the strong contribution from Wageningen Social Sciences colleagues, with Eveline Van Leeuwen, Katrien Termeer and Liesbeth de Schutter and many others, sharing insights that connect research to real-world urban challenges. A clear reminder of the value of collaboration across disciplines and institutions in addressing complex societal issues. Looking forward to what comes next!

🎉 Congratulations to Bram Büscher on receiving a fellowship from the French Institutes for Advanced Study (FIAS/PIAS). During this fellowship, Bram will work on a project that explores how capitalist development and biodiversity shape each other in complex and uneven ways, particularly in the context of today’s biodiversity crisis. Rather than viewing species loss as a simple outcome of economic growth, his research highlights the intricate interactions between ecological and social change. In collaboration with leading French research institutions, and through archival research at the Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle (MNHN), and interdisciplinary exchange, the project will contribute to a deeper understanding of human–nature relations in an age of extinction. We wish Bram an inspiring and productive fellowship and look forward to following his research. Sociology of Development and Change

🌍Health policy without the planet? It no longer works. Climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss are already shaping our health. Yet policies are still made in silos. That gap is exactly what a new WUR-led consortium, led by Marleen PM Bekkerr, aims to close. With the Co-creation and Integration of Planetary Health Impact Assessment in policy practice (CINPHIA) consortium, planetary health is moving from concept to practice. The idea is simple: every policy decision should consider its impact on both human health and the planet. Because the reality is clear. Air pollution, heat stress, food systems and infectious diseases are all connected. Treating them separately creates blind spots. Over the next five years, the consortium will develop practical tools to help policymakers make better, more integrated decisions. This is not just about better science. It is about changing how policy works. Congratulations to Marleen and her team for this exciting new project! 👉 Curious how planetary health is entering policy practice? Read more here:https: //https://lnkd.in/etEgwtvD

What happens when scientists step out of their armchairs and truly engage with society? David Ludwig argues for “science with a human face”. In his recent book, Transformative Transdisciplinarity, he calls for a shift in how we think about research: not as something done about people, but with and for them. From climate change to food security and inequality, today’s challenges are deeply interconnected. According to Ludwig, addressing them requires more than interdisciplinary collaboration within academia. It calls for genuine partnerships with farmers, fishers, health professionals, policymakers and communities whose knowledge is often overlooked. This also means rethinking whose knowledge counts and how research is organised. Simply adding local knowledge to academic projects is not enough. Real transformation happens when communities help shape the questions, goals and outcomes of research. Ludwig’s message to research funders and policy makers is clear: support longer-term programmes, recognise societal impact and value collaborative processes that cannot always be reduced to quick publications. Curious to learn more about community-based philosophy and transformative transdisciplinarity? 👉 Read the full article and access the open book here: https://lnkd.in/eiakXsVR

Congratulations to researcher Marleen PM Bekker who received a NWA grant to lead the Co-creation and Integration of Planetary Health Impact Assessment in policy practice: CINPHIA consortium, focusing on something that feels increasingly urgent: how policy can better connect human health with the health of our planet. This project highlights a key shift. Health, environment and policy can no longer be treated separately. Tools like the upcoming “Planetary Health Compass” aim to help policymakers make more informed, integrated decisions. A strong example of how together we can shape more coherent and future-proof policies. Great to see this important step forward for #PlanetaryHealth

Maarten Voors appointed Personal Professor at WUR 👏 We are pleased to share that Maarten Voors has been appointed Personal Professor of Economic Development Policy and Institutions at Wageningen University & Research. As a development economist, Voors studies how economic policy can reduce poverty, with a strong focus on countries in sub-Saharan Africa. In his new role, he will further explore how policies can tackle two urgent challenges at once: reducing poverty while supporting nature conservation. His research looks at how economic incentives shape real-world outcomes. Policies intended to protect forests, for example, can sometimes have unintended effects if households use additional income to expand land clearing. Understanding these dynamics is central to his work. A key example is his long-standing collaboration with the Gola Rainforest Programme in Sierra Leone, where he has worked for seventeen years on projects funded through carbon credits. Voors hopes WUR can play a stronger role as a knowledge centre on carbon credits, an area where opportunities are growing but risks also remain. Congratulations to Maarten Voors on this well-deserved appointment! https://lnkd.in/edtjC9gn