Sustainable urban development is the primary focus in my work as consultant at the Dutch Research Institute for Transitions. My background is in Energy Science (MSc at Utrecht University) and transition to sustainable energy is still one of the core themes in my work. Over the past years, I worked on this theme in Aberdeen (UK), Assen (NL) and Ghent (BE), among many other cities. However, my focus is broader than just energy; my expertise is the governance of sustainability transitions in the urban context. My work involves performing in-depth analyses of urban sustainability challenges, facilitation of co-creation processes as well as capacity building. In my home city Rotterdam (NL) I led a multi-actor process drafting an agenda for the future of mobility, and currently work on a project promoting of cycling as a means for socio-economic development. In Rosario (AR) I support a local NGO in a similar project regarding cycling. Other themes I work on are spatial development strategies (Ghent, BE; Tilburg, NL); neighborhood development (Rotterdam, NL); and addressing child poverty (Leuven, BE). Two of my key publications are about sustainable urban development: “Transition management in the urban context: guidance manual.” (2014) and “Urban Development: the State of the Sustainable Art” (2011).

I worked on transnational learning between five European cities as work-package leader in the Interreg IVb-funded project Mitigation in Urban Areas, Solution for Innovative Cities (MUSIC, 2010 – 2015). This included preparing and facilitating half yearly transnational workshops; taking the role of ‘city coach’ for two cities, assisting them in adapting and implementing the Transition Management approach; and writing a guidance manual updated yearly to include new insights emerging from experiences in the project. Furthermore, I prepared and facilitated workshops in Krakow, Milan and Rotterdam, to disseminate and discuss insights from the FP7-funded project InContext; and a similar workshop preceding the final conference of the MUSIC project. The workshops each involved about 20 participants from cities across Europe. Over the course of 1,5 to 2,5 days, the participants were introduced to the methodology of transition management by taking part in a ‘pressure cooker’ format application of the approach; thus learning about the approach while reflecting together with fellow city officers on their own role in sustainability transitions. I learned important preconditions for successful peer learning are the willingness to share and critically reflect on own experiences, and the curiosity to listen to others. Extensive preparation contributed to a meaningful exchange of experiences. See also my article “Learning in a transnational project: the case of MUSIC” (2013).