We are facing complex challenges: health disparities, social inequalities and climate change, just to name a few. Education can act as a powerful engine to organise radical change. In this event we will not repeat the why of societal transitions. Let's focus on the how.
Join our annual festival Erasmus: CTRL+N on May 30 and 31st in Rotterdam where we challenge the status quo and imagine alternatives. Scroll down for the program and registration.
Tools of Transformation are 10 social experiments designed by 40 interdisciplinary honours students of Erasmus University Rotterdam. We call those experiments Teach-Ins: original, innovative learning experiences with which students show alternatives to the status quo of academia and explore new paths to achieve (y)our sustainability ambitions.
These Teach-Ins include serious games, collaborative methods and a healthy dose of audacity. They may provoke, speculate, and confuse. They may succeed or they may fail. That is the nature of learning and experimentation.
Teach-Ins will take place in person, in Rotterdam, and are open to everyone interested in doing things differently.
The advent of formal academia revolutionized society in many ways, but in doing so it stifled epistemic access for the public and lost its ability to produce the meaningful change it is necessary for. Join us for a Teach-In that breaks down the barriers between academia and the public by communicating science in a renewed, intentional way.
Through our gamified simulation, you will be the protagonist of this change: you, along with your group, will compete to communicate science to different audiences effectively, clearly and concisely. You will leave with a deeper understanding of the challenges facing academia and the changes that need to be made to ensure a sustainable, accessible, and interesting future for all. This Teach-In is for everyone working in or interacting with academia who are keen to transform it!
Location: Campus Woudestein
By: Elisa Laures, Farida Amr, Maria Sofia Milano and Raf Giesbers
TUESDAY May30
Understanding the racial barriers that stifle the sustainability of feminism in the Netherlands. In a diverse country like the Netherlands, have you ever wondered if hidden biases and prejudices stifle the move towards equality? How does the intersection of race and gender impact the sustainability of feminism in such a society? In an immersive experience you will step into the shoes of everyday women as you uncover the hidden truths about the challenges they face. By working together through a thrilling escape room, you will gain an understanding and reflect on how we can create a more inclusive world.
Location: Campus Woudestein
By: Aicha Zupancic, Lakshmi Menon, Sonja Stojiljkovic and Yannis Diakantonis.
Individualistic colors are ever present in the world: personal brush strokes splashing over society’s canva. How can we, with our unique colors, come together and add more beauty to the painting of life? To embark on this journey, the "Sustainable Showdown" is the ultimate game show where sustainability takes center stage in a world of colors! Using food coloring, hand paints, and good company, you will join several exciting games combining eco-friendly challenges and thought-provoking questions to both entertain and educate, with practical tips for embracing a sustainable lifestyle while having a blast. Let the Showdown begin!
Location: Campus Woudestein
By: Doga Akdogan, Phuong Ha Nguyen, Arjuna Bertholee and Erik Bononi Belli
In a world in which resources are scarce, we sure don’t seem to share a lot with each other. Initiatives such as car-sharing, book sharing and public spaces like parks and beaches go underutilized as everyone wants to express their identity. Can we channel these different identities to work together for a sustainable future? In the ‘Dare to decide’ Teach-In exhibition you will get a chance to consider dilemmas based on real life cases and make your path towards possible commons-based solutions. You will get to reflect on how identity affects your choices and consider both environmental and social sustainability perspectives.
Location: Erasmus Sports Hall, Campus Woudestein
By: Luuk Hakvoort, Navya Kala, Hanna Plewnia and Miguel Apa
The ceaseless chase to get our hands on the next best thing has become woven in the fabric of the modern times. We consume more and more but are only getting hungrier. We are simultaneously liberated and shackled by faster, better, cheaper. The need for more power, stronger technology, cheaper textiles and mass-produced agriculture has buckled the city of Zem many eons ago. Now, the imminent catastrophe has caught the attention of the bourgeois. In this Teach-In, you will become immersed in an experimental game, focused on saving one of the 4 at-risk districts from the threats of hyper consumption. You will challenge to collaborate, innovate and maybe even solve a mystery or two along the way... She who foresees it all, is calling upon you. Will you be able to save Panem?
Location: Campus Woudestein
By: Melih Yeşilel, Kamilah El Kanfoudi, Sam Jobse and Selin Yaman
What if you could discover the hidden secrets of history through a fun and engaging scavenger hunt? Embark on this journey to uncover the dark and unsettling tales about the past, wherein the relationship between two nations is explored. This transformative experience emphasizes the morbid accounts of Dutch colonialism and exploitation in the Moluccan islands. In collaboration with others you will solve riddles, obtain tokens and learn more about unspoken truths that will challenge Westernized beliefs, instill empathy towards marginalized groups, encourage accountability and broaden your perspective of the world around us.
Location: Campus Woudestein
By: Zhanica Arrindell, Donia Alnajar, Lano Mohealden and Mattis Escames
WEDNESDAY May 31
In a world where untouched nature is devalued and continuously shrinking, how might we reconnect people who are living in the city back to nature? Are you passionate about the natural world and have a sense of duty to bring about a more sustainable future? In our Nature Rave, you and like-minded nature enthusiasts will travel to the year 2123 where you must band together to save humanity. Together we will evolve strategic thinking and reflective behaviour skills to facilitate a new perspective on humanity's relationship with nature. By discovering your powers collectively, you have the potential to save the earth!
Location: Kralingse Plas, Rotterdam
By: Jeremy Evans, Kamlesh Jagesser, Anita Reutova and Mai Sitnik
Ever struggled to find a decent place in Rotterdam? You are not alone! With rising housing costs and environmental concerns, the problem has never been bigger. Explore the complexities and competing interests of stakeholders while sharpening your negotiation skills. Taking part in a negotiation game, your task will be to immerse yourselves in the roles of residents, developers, landlords, environmental activists and the municipality with the goal of creating a future-proof Rotterdam! You will learn about the current challenges and familiarize yourselves with how we can break the vicious cycle of unsustainable housing.
Location: Campus Woudestein
By: Nina de Geus, Lili Horváth, Shraddha Qaundinya and Tim Prager
Rotterdam. The most diverse city of the Netherlands, comprising over 170 nationalities. As a city shaped by migration, how is social cohesion achievable? How do the barriers individuals face impact social cohesion within society? In our Teach-In, we will explore the limiting factors of migrant inclusion in Rotterdam and the role of education. In collaboration with others, you will experience the perspective of various nationalities through different activities strengthening social cohesion.
Location: Erasmus University College, Rotterdam
By: Iyad Sarroukh, Onno Dessing, Taylor Gregory and Ida Loeschel
The beach is the only place where you can have your head in the clouds while keeping your feet on the ground. Climate change is multi-faceted and complicated. Limitless dreaming is necessary to create solutions. But where does the impetus come from and how can we translate clean energy ideas into reality without negative externalities? Join us May 31st, 15:00 on Strand de Esch and get creative as we build castles and futures out of sand.
Location: Strand de Esch, Rotterdam
By: Giselle Timmers, Raphael Bergerhausen and Gavin Shao