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On 27 May 2025, Utrecht ľ¹Ï¸£ÀûÓ°ÊÓ (UU) and the Netherlands Institute for Social Research (SCP) signed an agreement to formalise their cooperation for the next five years. With the agreement, the knowledge institutes aim to give an impulse to joint research and knowledge dissemination on important societal themes.

Researchers and administrators from UU and the SCP met on 27 May. After the opening by Anton Pijpers (President of the UU Executive Board) and Karen van Oudenhoven (Director of the SCP), they jointly reflected on successful projects that the cooperation has already established so far and looked ahead to new projects for the future.

I am proud of the long-standing cooperation we have with Utrecht ľ¹Ï¸£ÀûÓ°ÊÓ and am therefore very pleased that we are going to expand it further. Because researchers, postdocs and PhD students work together on research projects, we give an impulse to knowledge development on important societal themes.

The agreement between UU and the SCP focuses on social and societal issues, including social security, the democratic rule of law, social cohesion and social resilience. In addition, the agreement involves cooperation on innovation in research methods.

With the formalised cooperation, the two knowledge institutes aim to enrich their scientific research to contribute to the solution of societal issues with their knowledge. The cooperation agreement will simplify future collaborations. Whereas previously, agreements were made on a project-by-project basis, the basic terms are now already established. The agreement is valid for a period of five years.

At Utrecht ľ¹Ï¸£ÀûÓ°ÊÓ, we already collaborate a lot across the borders of disciplines, especially in our strategic themes. Collaborations with parties outside the university add an extra dimension to that. We see how much energy it gives when people from our organisations work together, exchanging their knowledge and experience. That results in creativity, job satisfaction and additional scientific insights.