Erasmus University Rotterdam celebrated its 113th Dies Natalis on Monday 9 November. The festive ceremony focused on how academia and society can strengthen one another. Besides that, the university presented two honorary doctorates and three awards, and there was also time for music and spoken word.
In her Dies speech, Rector Magnificus Jantine Schuit reflected on the role of the university in current challenges: 'Knowledge becomes meaningful when it is set in motion. Between disciplines. Between science and practice. Between people with different experiences and backgrounds.' According to Schuit, the university's strength lies in bringing together different disciplines. 'That is what our university is strong in. A university of health, behavior, economics, law, and business, exactly the areas needed to make technology work for people. We bring those perspectives together.'
At a time when debate is sometimes becoming more polarised and opinions are retreating into like-minded groups, bringing together different perspectives is one of the most important responsibilities of our university, according to Schuit. 'New insights often arise when different ways of thinking come together. After all, science is ultimately a shared conversation.'
A broader perspective on the effects of social security
In her keynote speech, Professor of Economics Anne Gielen explored the deeper effects of social policy and social security. How, for example, are the futures of children of benefit recipients affected by policy changes? Her research helps us to better understand socio-economic inequalities in our society and how we might break them down.
Awards for multi-talented individuals
Research Prize
Dr. Sadaf Soloukey received the Erasmus Research Prize 2026. The doctor, neuroscientist and philosopher is researching very fast ultrasound that reveals super-small blood vessels in the brain. The technique can help to make surgery for brain tumors safer, because it becomes more visible where healthy, functional brain tissue ends and the tumor begins. In addition to her work as a researcher, Soloukey gets a lot of questions about the functioning of the brain in her work as a doctor. That is why, in addition to her work as a doctor and researcher, she also wrote the children's book Darya and the thinking machine.
The Lambers Student Excellence Award
The Lambers Student Excellence Award 2026 was presented to Maxime Noordermeer. She is a PhD candidate at Erasmus MC and completed her Master’s degree in Law & Technology cum laude in 2025, whilst undertaking clinical placements as part of her medical degree. The jury praised her combination of medicine, engineering and law, as well as her community involvement.
FAME Athena Award
Ana Uribe Sandoval and Katarina Putnik received the 2026 FAME Athena Award for their work on the "Advancing Inclusive Academia" programme. This is a network of academics at our university who work together to promote career development and collaboration. The winners are praised for the safe space they have created within the programme, where people can identify and explore the challenges and barriers they face at EUR.
Two honorary doctorates for innovations in healthcare that go beyond technology alone
Prof. David Abbink
Abbink is Professor of Haptic Human-Robot Interaction at Delft University of Technology and researches the collaboration between humans and technology. In doing so, he involves the end-user, often a nurse, from the very beginning. He accepted the honorary doctorate, visibly moved, from his honorary supervisor, Professor Stefan Sleijfer of Erasmus MC.
Prof. Jeffrey Braithwaite
Braithwaite is affiliated with the Centre for Healthcare Resilience and Implementation Science at Macquarie University in Australia. His career has been dedicated to improving and innovating across the entire healthcare sector, and he frequently collaborates across a wide range of disciplines. He was awarded his honorary doctorate by his honorary supervisor, Maarten IJzerman, on behalf of the Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management.
The ceremony was further enhanced by music from Beatriz Lima, spoken word by Tyler Koudijzer and a presentation by Dore van Duivenbode. Jantine Schuit concluded the ceremony with the following words: 'That is a university at its best. A place of connection, of curiosity, of questions, perspectives and of progress. And that fills me with optimism. Congratulations on 113 years of progress.'
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