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Ninah Tiemersma has been named the University of Groningen’s Alumnus of the Year 2026. Tiemersma, a teacher in classical languages, receives the award for the exceptional way in which she approaches her profession, employing her own unique pedagogical approach. ‘In everything she does, the central theme is that stories and literature can become meaningful at existential moments,’ the jury stated in their report.

Even in extreme circumstances, the green sulfur bacterium can still convert light into energy – and that could be a source of inspiration for a new generation of solar cells. Physicist Thomas La Cour Jansen of the University of Groningen studies how the structure of this unique bacterium allows it to harvest energy from light so efficiently.

The number of people with obesity in the Netherlands is rising. The government and many health organisations view this as a major problem: it affects people’s quality of life and costs society a great deal of money. It’s high time we did something about it, because with weight-loss medications like Ozempic, we can all choose to be a healthy weight, can’t we? Arie Dijkstra, Professor of Applied Psychology at the University of Groningen, disagrees: obesity is not a choice.

For many Dutch school pupils, climate change is an abstract concept. They know it exists and are concerned about it, but they hardly feel its effects in their daily lives. The dykes keep the water out; life goes on. It is precisely this distance that makes it difficult to empathise with people who are confronted with the consequences of climate change on a daily basis.

Quota-based publishing agreements: 2026 caps expected to be reached for Springer, Taylor & Francis, Oxford University Press, LWW and Emerald

Is sustainability really expensive? How can we get rid of PFAS? Is there a need for more vegan food in care homes? These and many other questions are addressed in the latest edition of the Science Shop Report, which highlights various Science Shop projects from the past year.

The Annual Report 2025 of the University of Groningen is available online. In this report, the UG provides an account, in text and figures, of the policies it implemented in 2025 and how it utilized the government income. In addition to education, research, and impact, the report addresses topics such as comprehensive safety, student well-being, and internationalization.

We have listed all our magazine articles from January to June 2025. So you can read them again at your leisure during the holidays. In each article, a UG researcher talks about their field.

Providing stability in a turbulent world, finding solutions to security challenges and empowering citizens to be resilient. According to René Paas, the King’s Commissioner, these are the university’s most important tasks regarding resilience and (national) security. As keynote speaker, he recently visited the Resilience Fair at House of Connections, where attendees learned about the latest developments in this area at the University of Groningen.

Iris Sommer has been awarded the Stevin Prize for her groundbreaking research into brain functioning, serious psychiatric disorders, and better treatment for female patients. Sommer is Professor of Psychiatry at the UMCG and UG. The Dutch Research Council (NWO) has been awarding this prize to researchers who have made exceptional achievements in the area of knowledge utilization for society since 2018. Together with the Spinoza Prize, it is the highest distinction in the Dutch academic world.