Utrecht Science Park Summer Café: Farewell to Managing Director Jan Henk van der Velden
On Monday, 6 July, the Utrecht Science Park Summer Café took place at Grand Café Living on Utrecht Science Park. This edition was dedicated to the farewell of Jan Henk van der Velden, Managing Director of the Utrecht Science Park Foundation, after nine years in which he played a key role in the development and positioning of the ecosystem.
Opening Utrecht Science Week with keynote by Juliette Legler on the hidden influence of environmental chemicals
On Friday, September 25, the annual science festival ‘Utrecht Science Week’ kicks off once again at Utrecht Science Park. We are pleased to announce that this year, Prof. Dr. Ir. Juliette Legler will deliver the Utrecht Science Lecture. Juliette Legler is Professor of Toxicology at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at Utrecht University and leads the ‘One Health Toxicology’ group at the Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences (IRAS).
The north side of UMC Utrecht is set to undergo a major redevelopment in the coming years. Utrecht City Council and the teaching hospital have presented plans for a new main entrance, a central car park and a green reception area designed to improve connections between the hospitals at Utrecht Science Park. The plans have now been submitted to the city council.
Utrecht, 2 July 2026 – As of 1 September 2026, Petra Baarendse will take office as the new Managing Director of Stichting Utrecht Science Park. She succeeds Jan Henk van der Velden, who has stepped down and will take on a new role as Managing Director of Stichting Nationaal Park Utrechtse Heuvelrug.
From Friday 25 September to Sunday 4 October, the sixth edition of Utrecht Science Week will take place. Utrecht Science Park will open its doors to everyone interested in (applied) science and innovation in the fields of life sciences, health, and sustainability.
The first programme elements have now been announced and registration is open. Many more events and activities will be added to the programme in the coming weeks.
Earlier this month at UMC Utrecht, a patient with advanced heart failure became the first person in Europe to receive a BrioVAD ventricular assist device. The new system is being evaluated in a European study and may offer advantages over the existing ventricular assist device. For UMC Utrecht, the implantation marks a new milestone in a long history of innovation in the field of mechanical circulatory support.
On 4 June 2026, researchers, technology experts, facility staff and innovation partners from across the Utrecht Life Sciences community gathered at Utrecht Science Park for the first edition of Utrecht Life Sciences TechConnect. The new annual event was created to strengthen connections between researchers and technology facilities, showcase advanced research technologies, and stimulate collaboration across disciplines.
This year, 1081 species have already been recorded at Utrecht Science Park during the Biodiversity Challenge, a nationwide initiative in which fifty educational institutions are studying biodiversity on and around their campuses. Biology students in Utrecht alone managed to document at least 573 species in a single day.
Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako of Japan visited the Princess Máxima Center for pediatric oncology on Friday, June 19, together with King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima. The visit focused on international collaboration in the effort to improve outcomes for children with childhood cancer and was part of the state visit of the Emperor and Empress to the Netherlands.
The lights are flashing, the music is thumping through your body, and you’re completely lost in the moment. But what’s happening in your head at the same time? Neurologist Sandra van der Salm from UMC Utrecht is going to find out this year at Lowlands. Together with her team, she’ll be measuring festivalgoers’ brain waves in real time to understand how strobe lighting affects a healthy brain. This knowledge should ultimately contribute to better care for people with epilepsy and safer festival policies.
PhD candidate Marjolein Kes has identified new therapeutic targets for the treatment of rhabdoid tumors (MRT). In the laboratory, Kes found that inhibiting the production of DNA building blocks slows the division of tumor cells and can even cause them to disappear. These findings form the basis for the development of a new clinical study. Yesterday, she received her PhD from Utrecht University.
A person’s health is shaped by more than access to medical care. Factors such as income, housing, stress, social environment, and access to essential services all play an important role. That is why researchers, healthcare professionals, students, and residents are working together to reduce health inequalities and create healthier communities.