Biography

Martijn Wiarda is a PhD candidate in the section of Economics of Technology and Innovation where his research is dedicated to the topic of Responsible Innovation. In 2022, he spent 6 months abroad in Paris to conduct a research visit at Science Po. Martijn obtained degrees in Mechanical Engineering (BSc, 2016), and Innovation Sciences (MSc, 2019). Prior to his PhD, he worked as an engineer and as a pre-incubation manager in the start-up environment.

Projects

Martijn is involved in three research projects: the H2020 ‘Co-Change’ project for which he researches how organizations can innovate more responsibly; the H2020 ‘PRO-Ethics’ project for which he focuses on making research funding more inclusive; and the ISO 'Climate adaption standards for sea-level rise' project in which he explores what climate adaptation measures (e.g. risk assessment) should be standardized on a global scale to make coastal areas more safe.

Awards

Together with his peers, Martijn was nominated in 2019 for being the best extracurricular student of the Utrecht University. They received this nomination for their contribution to the regional entrepreneurial ecosystem. They founded the university-wide student association 'UtrechtInc Students' which connects and support high-tech student start-ups.

Expertise

Martijn focuses on the topic of Responsible Innovation in the context of societal challenges. He strives for a better understanding of whether, and how, actors can collectively overcome societal challenges through inclusive, anticipatory, reflexive, and responsive approaches to research and innovation. Some key questions that he works on are: How can we institutionalize Responsible (Research and) Innovation? What kind of challenge-led innovation policies are needed to mobilize actors? How can we navigate contestation? and can we collectively standardize innovations responsibly?

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