Only you can set your own limits
Ralph Ivar Berkman
Master’s student Ralph Ivar Berkman attended special needs education and then went on to university after a year at a university of applied sciences. He now wants to bridge the gap between special needs education and further education. With his foundation ‘L’Oiseau Bleu’, he has won the 2025 Student Societal Impact Award, made possible by the Erasmus University Rotterdam Fund.
Ralph Ivar began his Bachelor’s degree in Sociology in 2019, which he combined with a Bachelor’s degree in Philosophy of a Specific Discipline. He is now studying for three Master’s degrees: Media Studies – specialising in Media & Creative Industries at the Erasmus School of History, Culture and Communication (ESHCC); Management of Innovation at the Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University (RSM); and the part-time Master’s in Philosophy of Culture and Humanity at Tilburg University.
Ralph Ivar: ''It is, of course, a great honour to win the Student Societal Impact Award. Not only because it recognises the work that my team at L’Oiseau Bleu and I do, but also because it shows that only you can set your own limits. When you consider that I started out as a young person in an unstable home situation, then spent a period in special needs secondary education. And that I now have my own foundation, whilst I’m completing three master’s degrees… Then this is a truly wonderful recognition of what a person’s potential can be, if they’re in the right environment in which they can develop.''
L'Oiseau Bleu
''Everyone has experienced events that have shaped them. You can use the experience you gain in life to make things easier for others going through the same thing.'' With this in mind, Ralph Ivar, as part of the Erasmus School of Philosophy’s honours programme and in collaboration with the Bildung Academie in Amsterdam, founded L’Oiseau Bleu, a foundation dedicated to promoting equal opportunities for students in special needs education. In his role as an expert by experience, Ralph Ivar offers an eight-week course for students in special needs secondary education who wish to progress to further vocational education (MBO), higher professional education (HBO) or university education (WO). The first edition took place last summer at the HefHouse in Rotterdam. More about L'Oiseau Bleu (in Dutch)
Support with the transition from special education to further education
Ralph Ivar looks back on a successful first edition of his eight-week programme. Ralph Ivar: ''We put together a really great programme, in which we were able to welcome seven young people. Every week, new speakers came along to talk about society, what you can achieve, and also how to make an effective transition from special needs education to further education. There were some really brilliant speakers! For example, a veteran from the former Yugoslavia, a creative writer, a video game champion, a Member of the European Parliament and professors from Erasmus University Rotterdam. I’m also very grateful to members of my team such as Sarah Ghede and Pepijn Stoop; it was thanks to their dedication that this programme was possible.''
The programme is set to run for a second edition and, as Ralph Ivar is now studying for a master’s degree in Tilburg, the second edition will be offered not only in Rotterdam but also in Tilburg, in collaboration with Janneke de Vos. Ralph Ivar: ''We’re still looking for guest speakers who are keen to work towards inclusive education and have a unique or inspiring story to tell.''
As if his studies and the foundation weren’t enough, Ralph Ivar is currently also working on a book. The book is intended as a contribution to the debate on inclusive education. It will feature personal accounts by Ralph Ivar and Pepijn Stoop, a social context analysis by Lara Berkman, and philosophical reflections by Han van Ruler.
From the jury report:
''L’Oiseau Bleu focuses on a social group for whom the path to higher education is not a given. In recent years, the EUR community has been committed to providing better support for students with disabilities, and Ralph Ivar and his team support this group during the crucial transition phase from secondary education to higher education.
Ralph is regarded by the jury as a highly charismatic leader, a role model for many students (both locally and further afield) and someone who has overcome significant personal challenges to set up an inspiring project driven purely by inner motivation. In the words of the rector: he has made the impossible possible.''
About the Student Societal Impact Award
The Student Societal Impact Award is presented annually to a student, or a group of students, who are undertaking or have undertaken an initiative and have demonstrated leadership in creating a positive societal impact. The award was established to support our students in becoming game-changers and embracing social responsibility. The Student Societal Impact Award is made possible by the Erasmus University Rotterdam Fund.