Build up or locking in? Analyzing the state of the transformation of education in the Netherlands

Transformations are nonlinear and uncertain but can nevertheless be studied and –to a certain extent– influenced. At Npuls, national programme involving over 100 public tertiary education institutions in the Netherlands, this is exactly what we aim to do.

In this interactive session, we explore how the X-curve model (Loorbach/DRIFT) helps to visualize and navigate systemic transformation. The model shows how emerging “niches” — experiments and new practices — interact with and gradually replace established regimes.

This session offers insights gained from a recent DRIFT baseline measurement on the state of transformation education in the Netherlands, but mostly focus on one of the key methods used by the “action researchers”.

Participants will engage in a guided exercise, placing themselves on various stages on a ‘transition path’. In doing so, they will be exploring processes of build-up, institutionalization, lock-in, and dismantling.

Literacy: G. Diercks, D. Loorbach e.a. Sturing in transities – Een raamwerk voor strategiebepaling (NSOB, Drift, 2020) Geels FW, “Technological transitions as evolutionary reconfiguration processes: a multi-level perspective and a case-study”, (Research Policy, 2002) https://doi.org/10.1016/S0048-7333(02)00062-8 Hebinck, A., Diercks, G., von Wirth, T. et al. An actionable understanding of societal transitions: the X-curve framework. Sustain Sci 17, 1009–1021 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-021-01084-w

Method: Participants will be invited to position themselves on various stages of the "X-curve" of transformation, and reflect on why they chose these postions. The process will be guided by the speakers.

Contributors: Esther Eumann