Former Visiting Fellow awarded grant for groundbreaking citizen collective research
Former Exeter College Visiting Fellow Professor Tine De Moor has helped to secure a €6.8 million grant from the Dutch Research Agenda (NWA) to lead a major new research initiative: Empowering Citizen Collectives in societal transitions (ECCO). The project brings together a broad consortium of universities, government bodies, and civil society organisations to explore how citizen-led groups can play a transformative role in addressing pressing societal challenges.
ECCO aims to develop practical models, methods, and tools that promote equal partnerships between citizen collectives and public authorities. The initiative will focus on areas such as housing, healthcare, and sustainability, equipping communities with the knowledge and skills to actively shape their environments. A central component of the project is the knowledge exchange platform CollectieveKracht, founded by Professor De Moor at the Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University. This platform will serve as a hub for collaboration and dissemination of research findings.
Professor De Moor, who previously held a Visiting Fellowship at Exeter College, expressed enthusiasm about the project’s potential impact:
“Thanks to this grant, an incredibly enthusiastic and engaged group of fellow researchers and societal partners can provide even stronger support to the citizen collectives movement. ECCO equips citizen collectives with the tools they need to tackle the challenges of the future in areas such as housing, care, and sustainability.”
The ECCO consortium includes leading Dutch institutions such as Erasmus University Rotterdam, Utrecht University, Delft University of Technology, University of Groningen, The Hague University of Applied Sciences, and Leiden University. It also involves numerous governmental and civil society partners, including the Association of Netherlands Municipalities, Buurkracht, and the Ministries of Climate and Green Growth, Housing and Spatial Planning, and the Interior and Kingdom Relations.
This significant funding underscores the growing recognition of citizen collectives as vital contributors to societal resilience and innovation. For more information about the ECCO project and its developments, visit the CollectieveKracht platform at collectievekracht.eu/ecco.
