It’s a wrap: the successful fourth edition of Utrecht Science Week

We look back on a wonderful week full of inspiring events around groundbreaking science at the Utrecht Science Park. A week in which it became even more clear how crucial education, research and innovation are to providing solutions to major societal challenges.  

From 27 September to 6 October, the Utrecht Science Park was well attended during the Utrecht Science Week. The programme included more than 30 components with various topics focusing on the themes of health and sustainability. In cooperation with many different partners at the Utrecht Science Park, a varied programme was realised. The Utrecht Science Week is interesting for various audiences, both employees and students at the Utrecht Science Park, but certainly also professionals and residents from the entire region or country.

The Utrecht Science Week was officially opened on Friday 27 September by board directors Jan Henk van der Velden, Anton Pijpers, Wilma Scholte op Reimer and Arno Hoes. This was followed by the Utrecht Science Lecture by Peter Luijten, which was dedicated to his farewell and in which he and colleagues discussed the developments, collaborations and successes of the Utrecht Life Sciences.   

To make research and innovation in the field of cancer treatments even more efficient, a collaboration platform, ‘Utrecht Cancer’, has been established by various partners at the Utrecht Science Park. Monday 30 September saw the official kick-off of the collaboration platform at the Walking Dinner.   

Monday 30 September saw the official kick-off of the collaboration platform at the Walking Dinner, in the presence of board members, entrepreneurs and scientists from the Utrecht Science Park, representatives from the city, region, The Hague and national organisations.     

Tuesday 1 October was the ‘Dag van de Duurzaamheid’ (Sustainability Day) at HU University of Applied Sciences Utrecht, filled with inspiring lectures, workshops, a Climate Casino and the Spacebuzz. In the evening, the Ziekenhuis van de Toekomst (Hospital of the Future) opened at the UMC Utrecht, where impressive presentations and demos were given on the latest innovative cell techniques, which accelerate healing and recovery.   

For the very first time, the Utrecht Science Park Pubquiz was organised, this time for students. 13 teams gathered at Café Minnaert on Wednesday evening and took up the challenge to put their knowledge of sports, science, Utrecht and, of course, the Utrecht Science Park to the test. And with success: the commitment of the teams was strong and there was a lot of laughter. On to the next edition! 

Artificial Intelligence (AI), automation and digital transformation are playing a major role in healthcare and laboratories. This was nicely reflected on Thursday afternoon during Genmab’s ‘Healthcare and Laboratories of the Future’ event, which looked ahead to groundbreaking (digital) developments within healthcare.    

Throughout the week, there were also various components from Life Sciences and Planetary Health, with interesting lectures, meetings and workshops on the relationship between planetary health and human health. 

The Utrecht Science Week ended over the weekend with the finals of the Sustainable City Challenge on Friday afternoon and the ‘Weekend van de Wetenschap’(Weekend of Science) on Saturday and Sunday.  

In the Sustainable City Challenge, a five-day pressure cooker challenging teams of students to come up with creative ideas for a more sustainable Utrecht, Team ‘Utrecht Oost’ won with their idea around ‘Green Corridors’ near stadium Galgenwaard. 

During the ‘Weekend van de Wetenschap’ thousands of people of all ages visited the Utrecht Science Park for experiments and workshops. From growing cells to making your own flower bulbs. And from soil research with fungi to practising in court. There was plenty to experience! 

Besides the events mentioned above, there was more to see during the Utrecht Science Week. Check out the recap. More photos and the aftermovie will be added here in the coming week: https://utrechtscienceweek.nl/en/edtion-24/ 

Many thanks to all speakers, organisers and partners who contributed to this successful Utrecht Science Week!  

See you next year!