At the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU) we are very excited to participate in the Active8 project Its goal to innovate education to engage students in societal challenges aligns perfectly with our own ambitions.
As a university we have a clear vision and ambition when it comes to sustainability. Sustainability is an integral part of our teaching and research, operations management and the buildings and the VU campus.
That is why the faculty of Social Sciences decided to join this project. With the Active8 project we provide our students with the opportunity to use unconventional approaches to sustainability and have a huge impact with their master thesis. We focus in particular on the paradigm shift to a eco-driven mindset, which we call a people and planet-centred mindset.
Wonder how to create healthy living for the vulnerable people?
Research Field Challenge
The built environment can play an important role in the well-being of healthcare professionals and patients. Appropriately designed indoor heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, for instance, may reduce infection rates and medical errors, improve indoor air quality (IAQ), speed up patient recovery, shorten the duration of hospital stay. These systems, however, are often designed in line with technical goals and with limited understanding of the impact they have on people. How do staff and patients perceive the indoor environment? Are they satisfied? Does it meet their needs in different wards? Does it contribute to their well-being and health? This is where the Active 8-Planet research comes into play, aiming to bring user-based knowledge that can help better contribute to Healthy Living as well as vulnerable patient-centred care. In the indoor design of healthcare environment, we add a people-centred approach that brings staff and patients’ views to the table.
HEALTHCARE INSTITUTIONS: We can offer you free support!
Are you interested in obtaining new insights into people-centred healthy living through qualitative research for vulnerable people?
We have years of experience in qualitative people-centred research in combination with a technical approach and look forward to putting them into action to answer your questions!
We are now shaping our team to start the project this september. We are offering a position on our team for an interested healthcare facility and 4 students.
Are you interested? We would love to speak to you to define your case specific problem. If it’s a match, our researchers will be your eyes and ears on the floor between September 2021 – June 2022.
STUDENTS: Will you help us make a difference?
Do you want to foster real change towards a more sustainable world? We offer you a unique opportunity to do research for your master thesis and the Active8 project from September – June. You will conduct research on a people and planet-centred approach in healthcare facilities in the Netherlands.
Healthcare facilities should be the healthiest buildings in the world. But what does a healthy building look and feel like? And for whom?
We are looking for four master students who will conduct their own, individual research for our project. We will guide you with your research and will utilize our network to your benefit. If you want to have an impact on the world around you, create a more sustainable healthcare system in the Netherlands and would like to collaborate with businesses and organizations, then this is for you.
Are you the master we’re looking for?
We are looking for a master student who:
- Is interested in interdisciplinary research and applied anthropology
- Wants to contribute to a more sustainable healthcare system in the Netherlands
- Want to collaborate with organizations and businesses
- Follows the master’s program MSc Social and Cultural Anthropology or MSc Culture, Organization & Management
- Is proficient in Dutch
- Is willing to work from a people and planet-centred approach
Let us know you’re interested
Want to stay up to date? Send an email to active8@vu.nl and let us know what interests you in this opportunity. As soon as all partners and application procedures are clear we will update you.
