The H2LS Grand Challenge workshops
The Grand Challenge workshops at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam are a series of events designed to foster innovation and collaboration within the Human Health and Life Sciences (H2LS) profile theme community. The first of these dynamic workshops took place on 16th April, marking the birth of the participative research project known as Dream Green. This initiative addresses the environmental challenge of creating a symbiosis between nature and the human-made environment, aiming to build tomorrow’s healthy living environment in the Amsterdam metropole region, and sustainable health and well-being for all.
Dream Green: from hazing to greening
Dream Green is not merely a research project but a participatory movement starting now. Engaging students early in their academic journey, the project seeks to establish a culture where healthy and sustainable living becomes the norm rather than the exception, much like the social transitions seen with smoking and amalgam teeth fillings. This project engages first-year bachelor's students as proactive change agents, empowering them to take personal responsibility, integrate sustainable practices into their daily lives, and influence their peers.
Why Dream Green?
Dream Green leverages the enthusiasm and adaptability of young students, combined with the expertise of researchers from diverse fields such as dentistry, neuroclinical psychology, health sciences, and the humanities. These researchers had not collaborated prior to the H2LS invitation but came together to share their expertise over a sustainable vegetarian dinner, sparking the innovative ideas behind Dream Green.
Workshop outcomes
The project received an enthusiastic reception, earning H2LS seed funding of €10,000 to kickstart its activities. The future course of Dream Green will be shaped through a co-creative process with students, starting with a focus group to explore how to truly motivate first-year students to become change agents and actively participate in co-creation on this specific topic of healthy and sustainable living. The expected outcome of this research project is a groundbreaking methodology and a toolbox designed to facilitate ongoing co-creation, fostering a continuous dialogue and increasingly encouraging students to become change agents for healthy and sustainable transformations within their own spheres of influence.
Marjolein Visser, H2LS Team Leader and professor in nutrition at the Health Sciences department and Amsterdam Public Health Institute, on funding Dream Green: “Dream Green is a transformative initiative that spearheads a broader movement toward sustainability, initiated by the vibrant minds at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. This project, which aligns seamlessly with the H2LS mission of promoting health and well-being, impressed us with its collaborative approach and educational focus, meriting our full support through seed funding.”
The role of first-year students: pioneers of change
First-year students are at the heart of Dream Green’s vision. They are challenged to actively contribute to this participative research, which seeks to understand how new students can become change agents. The goal is for these students to help their peers, families, neighbours, and others in their networks to adopt green and healthy lifestyles, which in turn will ripple out to create a broader impact, starting from the VU campus and potentially setting new social norms.
Call to action for students and researchers
Dream Green invites first-year students to lead the charge in sustainable living, offering a chance to make a real impact while gaining skills and building valuable networks. Researchers are also called to participate in upcoming Grand Challenge workshops, essential for fostering multidisciplinary collaboration and innovation in human health and life sciences.