A diverse and inclusive TU Delft, one Tribe Session at a time

The Study Climate at TU Delft is going through a transition: The focus is slowly shifting from the importance of excellent grades and a swift graduation journey (aka study success), towards a more student centred focus, where attention is paid to the multifaceted development of engineers so they become competent, responsible, confident and (last but certaintly not least), happy. This is what the Study Climate Team has coined as “Student Success”. 

In the last years, the Study Climate Team has made efforts to form and expand what is now a community of change agents across the TUD. This community is shaped by teachers, students, faculty staff and all TU members who want to improve the Study Climate at TU Delft. The community gets together once every couple of months during a so-called “Tribe session”, where current topics are discussed and explored through different sessions, given by passionate professionals. 

On June 3rd it was time for another Study Climate Tribe Session! This session focused on the topic of Diversity and Inclusion at TU Delft. For the first time in years, the community was welcomed offline at Vakwerkhuis. 

Attendants were able to enjoy each other’s company whilst having lunch in the Sun. The feeling of unity and excitement were tangible and created a nice atmosphere for learning and conversing. 

Four different sessions were hosted: Astrid van Laar (featured in last edition of the Educator) spoke about the reasons for learning Dutch and taught attendants how to have a conversation with someone who knew only 300 words in Dutch. Colleagues of Studium Generale spoke about transforming narratives into campus wide initiatives, and activated participants to take on new projects. Yasir Aydemir used is student perspective and brainstormed with attendants about how the social bubbles at TU Delft could be “popped”, setting examples of other universities who faced similar issues. Lastly, Michiel de Jong and Marcell Várkonyi from the Library introduced attendees with Open Educational Resources, which allow students to fit education to their own needs. 

All these sessions attempted to break barriers and make the TUD a more inclusive environment for all its members. Attendees were very participative, and left the session motivated to take on new things.  

This was one of many more Study Climate Tribe Sessions, and one of many more steps to take towards a more diverse and inclusive TU Delft!