What does the UG do?

Social safety is an important prerequisite for the UG to achieve its ambition of deepening existing connections and stimulating and facilitating new ones. This involves connections with and between talented individuals, knowledge partners, societal organizations, businesses, the region, and the rest of the world. Above all, it involves internal connections across various disciplines. Read more about this in Making Connections, the Strategic Plan 2026.

In the vision of the UG, social safety contributes to the health and well-being of staff and students, thereby improving the quality of education and research. The urgency of this issue stems from the increasing complexity and polarization in society, highlighting the importance of meaningful discussions that allow for different perspectives. To sustainably embed social safety within the university community, a programme was established in 2023 to coordinate all activities related to social safety.

Ambassadors

We invite everyone to be an ambassador for social safety, taking responsibility for this new approach to interacting within their work and study environment. If you would like to share your story, please email the programme team at socialsafety@rug.nl. We look forward to hearing your inspiring story!

Within the Executive Board, Hand Biemans is the figurehead for social safety. José Weitenberg, cluster director of HR & Health, is also an important pioneer in this field.

Drs. Hans Biemans, September 2025: ‘Social safety is extremely important for being able to work or study well and enjoyably. That is why we encourage to consciously become proficient in respectful and equal behaviour. In recent years, we have organised training courses and dialogue sessions for this purpose, and we will continue to do so. We also want to be able to identify and tackle undesirable behaviour, such as intimidation and aggression, even more effectively. The new Central Contact and Information Point for Social Safety is an important contribution to this.’

Mr. José Weitenberg, September 2025: ‘The conference we organized in May 2024 was a good start to raising awareness. We all acknowledge that there is still a lot to be done. Only together can we change the culture. Focusing on dialogue will help us to achieve this.’

Read the interview with José Weitenberg (Cluster Director of HR & Health), and Anne-Marie Petter, Programma Manager of Social Safety.

Programme

The mission of the Social Safety programme is to increase and sustainably embed social safety within the UG. The programme was launched in 2024 and focuses on how the vision, structure and culture surrounding social safety influence one another, and the innovation and support this requires. If you have any questions or suggestions for the programme team, please send an email to socialsafety rug.nl.

The programme’s specific goals for 2025 are as follows:

1. Initiating and promoting dialogue in order to:

• Raise awareness of (un)desirable behaviour;
• Make dilemmas discussable;
• Strengthen participatory leadership.

To this end, the programme uses, amongst other things, Art of Hosting. This method offers insights and tools for creating safe and inviting working and study environments in which people create their own spaces for dialogue, co-creation and innovation.

2. Improving the internal support structure so that:

• Staff and students can always call on a strong network of advisors and confidential counsellors;
• Everybody involved with the UG has quick and easy access to a clear process for discussing behaviour that hinders social safety.

In 2026, the programme will build on the insights and tools of Art of Hosting to further stimulate participatory leadership. In addition, work is being done to further strengthen the support structure by setting up a network of local confidential advisors, and the Social Safety Reporting and Information Center is being further developed.

Activities

To achieve the programme’s goals, the programme team has established several project groups that organize various activities, including lectures, training courses, dialogue sessions, and e-learning courses. In 2024, the programme ran the awareness campaign ‘When you feel it’s probably not your task: just ask’, and hosted the theater performance Safe Space. In 2026, the UG will participate in a new national university campaign.

Would you like to contribute to social safety? Read more on the projects and activities page.