Room for Discussion celebrates anniversary with prominent guests

Line-up lustrum series

Special guests in the lustrum series include:

• Sir Nick Clegg, President Global Affairs at Meta, on 11 March;
• Marjan Rintel, CEO of KLM, on 14 March;
• Lieutenant Admiral Rob Bauer, chairman of NATO Military Commission, on 26 March;
• Robbert Dijkgraaf, caretaker minister of OCW, in April (date TBD);
• Bernd Reichart, CEO A22, Super League, on 8 May;
• Kajsa Ollongren (caretaker minister of defence) on 13 May.

In the weeks before the European parliamentary elections in June, a special series dedicated to the EU will take place with several interviews and a major European Election Debate. Names and dates will be announced at a later date.

For and by students

After 15 years, the format of Room for Discussion remains the same: interviews for and by students to bridge the gap between academia and (economic and political) reality. Many professors, entrepreneurs, economists, politicians, philosophers, CEOs, journalists and others – both domestic and international - accepted the invitation to take a seat on the distinctive Room for Discussion stage (see photo).

'Room for Discussion gives students control over the conversation,' says chair Ella Otterbeck, third-year PPLE student. 'We still have a committee, not a board. This now includes 23 students, mostly interviewers.' The committee members pitch potential guests to each other and, through a feedback process, choices are made, ideas further developed, guests invited and interviews prepared.  'At Room for Discussion, we can talk about what we learnt at university. It's simply cool to be able to invite guests like we've had and be able to question them on a stage.'

Room for Discussion will take place in the hall of Building E on the Roeterseiland campus. Admission is free.

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