Newsletter February 2025

Wonderful examples of the power of collaboration at the Utrecht Science Park New Year's Café

Tuesday evening 21 January was the Utrecht Science Park New Year's Café. Various themes that played a role in the past year at the biggest science park in the Netherlands were highlighted by means of an interactive quiz. Questioners from partners looked ahead and looked back at some great developments at the Utrecht Science Park. All developments are the result of many collaborations and connections between the knowledge institutions, research institutes and companies at the Utrecht Science Park and within the Utrecht region.

Bilthoven Biologicals, situated at Utrecht Science Park Bilthoven, officially inaugurated its Pandemic Preparedness vaccine facilities on 30 January. The facilities aim to be better prepared for future pandemics. The facilities allow rapid and large-scale production and delivery of viral vector vaccines in the event of emergencies in Europe. The new facilities have been approved by the European Commission's EU FAB. This opening further strengthens the powerful ecosystem of the Utrecht Science Park and Utrecht Science Park Bilthoven.

On Thursday 6 February, the completely renovated living room at the Wilhemina Children's Hospital (WKZ) in Utrecht was officially inaugurated. On the second floor of the WKZ, the living room of Ronald McDonald Huis Utrecht has been indispensable since 2011. After all these years, the room was in need of a major refurbishment and, thanks to sponsors, donors and the efforts of the 60 active volunteers of the living room, the result is beautiful; a warm haven of peace close to the wards of the children's hospital.

From 1 February 2025, the first post-COVID centres of expertise have opened for children at Amsterdam UMC, Maastricht UMC+ and UMC Utrecht. These centres focus specifically on children and adolescents with long-term symptoms after COVID-19 infection. The combined expertise of the UMCs in care, research and education gives children from all over the Netherlands access to diagnostics and treatments according to the latest scientific insights.

With the start of the design phase for the new faculty building for the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University makes an important step in the transformation of USP East towards a future-proof and sustainable campus. The building will become an example of circular constructing and embodies the ambition of Utrecht University to put sustainability and innovation into practice.

There are several initiatives at the Utrecht Science Park that contribute to accelerating the transition to animal-free innovations. The HU's new 2-year master's programme, Change Engineering in Animal Testing (Free) Innovations, also contributes to this. The master is designed for professionals who want to play a key role in the transition to animal-free innovations. During the programme, students work on practice-based case studies linked to relevant issues, often in consultation with their work or client.

Utrecht University has launched the NEOLIVER project led by Bart Spee, associate professor at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine. The aim of the project is to address the global organ shortage crisis. The researchers aim to achieve this by developing bioprinting technology to create functional, implantable liver tissues. The four-year project brings together a consortium of European institutions and companies specialising in regenerative medicine, bioprinting and clinical translation.

Healthy Planet is Utrecht University's annual theme in 2025. Our planet is under pressure. We face complex challenges in areas such as sustainability, health and climate change. Drastic changes are needed. That is why Utrecht University works together with numerous partners on sustainable solutions that contribute to the health of all living beings as well as the planet.

From diverse areas of expertise, united under the flag Together Healthy, Hogeschool Utrecht is committed to reducing health and well-being gaps between people in the region and increasing their self-reliance. As many as four of these projects have now received a RAAK-public grant. With RAAK-public, the SIA governing board funds research by universities of applied sciences into practical questions from the public sector. Research that provides practically applicable solutions to these questions.

Last year, U.S.S.V. Softijs was the winner of the Gouden Voorzet, a subsidy paid annually to a student sports association by the Sportraad and Utrecht Science Park Foundation. The board used the grant to purchase a brand new music box, which they can put to good use during training sessions. To strengthen the Utrecht Science Park community and livability, a playful action is always linked to this as well. This time, this took the form of a Karaoke Crawl in the science cafés at the Utrecht Science Park that took place on 16 December.

Researchers worldwide now have access to the procedure of growing organoids from fetal brain tissue, which is developed at the Princess Máxima Center. The organoids can be used to model any type of brain tumor in the lab. This allows scientists to generate novel experimental models to study many, often rare brain tumor subtypes. Researchers thus hope to accelerate research into the origin and treatment of brain tumors in children.

How can you ensure that employees not only travel more sustainably but that you also remain an attractive employer and contribute to the accessibility of the Utrecht Science Park? With this key question in mind, UMC Utrecht, in collaboration with mobility providers Shuttel and Hely, took on the challenge. In an era where accessibility and climate change are increasingly significant issues, the answer was clear: combine the power of experience with the right incentives.