Anyone who walked past the laboratories and lecture halls of our faculty in 2025 would have seen research and education in full swing. At the same time, there was also an awareness that we face many challenges. 2025 was a year in which everything happened at once. Growth and doubt. Pride and pain. Open days full of curious youngsters, and meeting rooms full of concerns about budgets. 2025 was not a comfortable year, but it was a meaningful one.
Let me start with what was visible. In the autumn, the new Research Building was filled to capacity during Science Weekend: a wonderful bottom-up initiative. Kids peering through microscopes, parents amazed by robots and sensors, researchers explaining their work with clear passion and joy – it was a moment when the faculty showed what it does best: making complex science tangible and helping people understand why science and technology are so important in our daily lives.
This social relevance was a recurring theme last year. In education and research, there was a strong focus on themes such as health and life, climate and energy, and data and technology for a sustainable, healthy and resilient society of the future. From smart measuring instruments to AI applications, from fundamental physics to applied life sciences: the faculty continued to invest in interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary collaborations, particularly with the University of Twente. After all, the major social issues of our time cannot be confined to a single discipline.
But 2025 was also the year in which the vulnerability of that same science became painfully apparent. The discussion about the future of Earth Sciences cast a shadow over the faculty. Financial deficits, declining student numbers and tough choices forced reflection. The postponement of decision-making and the establishment of the task force provided room for dialogue, but did not reduce the uncertainty. It was not a high point in a festive sense, but it was a defining moment. I look forward to the next step towards (financially) sustainable Earth Sciences education and research at VU.
Meanwhile, academic life continued unabated. Doctoral degrees (around 100), new research projects, international collaborations and prestigious grants marked a year of substantive strength.
What this year has shown above all is a faculty in transition. A resilient faculty that is redefining its role: more open to society, more focused in its choices, and ambitious about the future. With a view to new infrastructure and innovation activities in the Zuidas business district, we are looking ahead without shying away from the difficult questions. 2025 was not a year of easy successes. It was a year of change. And perhaps that is the greatest highlight: a faculty that dares to change.
My sincere thanks for everyone's boundless dedication and passion for our wonderful faculty.
I wish you all a 2026 in which inspiration leads to new insights, successes are shared and celebrated, and solidarity remains the foundation.
Aletta Kraneveld
Dean of the Faculty of Science
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam