De Tafels van Moedt

The “Tafel van Moedt” is the result of a December 2024 meeting with representatives from various umbrella organizations in the research and science domain, as well as bottom-up initiatives like GreenLabs NL, Green Young Academy, and Students for Tomorrow. The starting point was the idea of using designers and transition workshops to facilitate action-oriented conversations that accelerate the transition to sustainable science and bring together various initiatives. Invited by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (OCW), NWO, DRIFT, and KIN, they worked together during a transition workshop on the sustainability of science in a scoping session. They did this in collaboration with theater director Arlon Luijten, Ties van Daal, and Almar Bok from DRIFT. The Tafels van Moedt are the result of these sessions. They are ‘urgency creators’ that can inspire leaders of major organizations in science to take action.

Physical Object and Methodology

The Tafel van Moedt is both an interactive physical object and methodology that can help a learning community prioritize collaboration over competition, utilize collective knowledge, and provide space for vulnerability and innovation. The “Tafel van Moedt” creates an intermediate space where courage and gentleness prevail, leading to effective action. The methodology invites participants to make courageous choices. Engaging with it requires courage, but the tables also provide courage. It’s about dreaming together, doubting together, and ultimately taking concrete steps.

Currently, KIN, in collaboration with partners, is further developing the ‘Tafel van Moedt’. This fall, we will test ‘The Tafel’ in six large sessions. Originally conceived to give momentum to the sustainable of science, we see a broader potential for the Tables. Therefore, further development of the ‘Tafels van Moedt’ is planned under the KIN program line ‘Science in Transition’.

Under the ‘Science in Transition’ program line, KIN is exploring new forms of collaboration and funding, as well as facilitative methods and processes that can support and accelerate just and sustainable climate transitions.