15 community-building
projects receive financial support
The 50th anniversary of Maastricht University (UM50) in 2026 will be celebrated together with the city and the region. In this context, 15 projects will receive financial support through the open call JoinUM50. In doing so, the university is supporting initiatives that strengthen the connection between science and society.
Between 16 January and 5 March, applicants were able to submit their project proposals. In total, the programme committee received 40 submissions. Chair Teun Dekker: “We are pleasantly surprised by the number, quality and creativity of the proposals. This demonstrates strong engagement with the university and the anniversary, and shows how diverse ‘community-building’ can be. The selected projects will make UM50 visible in the city and region and encourage encounters, dialogue and collaboration.”
Selection
Following a careful assessment based on the pre-established criteria, the UM50 Programme Committee has selected the following 15 projects:
- 50 Pints of Science: UM Faculty of Science and Engineering
- Maastricht Theatre Dialogue Collective: UM Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, UM School of Business and Economics, UNU-MERIT, Zuyd University of Applied Sciences and local artists
- Living Library: UM Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Office, UM University Library, Maastricht City Library and Living Library NL
- Soapbox Science Maastricht: UM Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences
- Zwemloop: UM Sports and student triathlon association Ferro Mosae
- Welcome Picnic: UM Student Services Centre, Maastricht Housing and UM Guesthouse
- AI for Parents: UM Faculty of Science and Engineering and SVO|P
- Maastricht History Clinic: UM University Library
- AI x Innovation Day: UM School of Business and Economics
- Reading the Hospital Together: UM Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
- Samen Veerkrachtig: UM Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience
- Plastic Recycling Heroes: UM Faculty of Science and Engineering, Brightlands
- Doorspace x Circular Engineering: UM Faculty of Science and Engineering, Doorspace Foundation and MSV Moebius
- Verbindende Roeiclinic: UM Student Services Centre and M.S.V.R. Saurus
- Beer Inspired by the Archaeobotanical: UM Faculty of Science and Engineering, Maastricht City Brewery
In the coming period, the initiators will further develop these projects. Once the activity dates have been finalised, they will be published in the agenda on this website.
