Tim Baarslag (Information and Computing Sciences) and Liesbeth van de Grift (History of International Relations) are joining The Young Academy (DJA), an independent platform for top young scientists and scholars with outspoken views about science and scholarship, created by the Royal Netherlands Academy for the Arts and Sciences (KNAW). In order to qualify for membership of The Young Academy, young researchers must have already made their mark in science. They must also have a broad interest in science and scholarship, in the role that science plays in society, and in science policy.

LIESBETH VAN DE GRIFT

Liesbeth van de Grift is associate professor in History of International Relations. Van de Grift studies political participation in the twentieth century and the changes in underlying ideas of democratic legitimacy. Last year, Van de Grift received a Vidi grant for researching the role of consumer organisations in Europe. In her research, she focusses on the role of interest groups and the organisation of citizens in the history of European integration. She advocates to increase attention to the European Union in education. Van de Grift is also deputy chair of the Utrecht Young Academy. As a member of The Young Academy, she wants to contribute to discussions on the role of universities in a polarizing society.

TIM BAARSLAG

Tim Baarslag is an expert on Artificial Intelligence and studies how computers can negotiate with each other to improve collaboration. He is affiliated to the national research institute for Mathematics and Computer Science in the Netherlands (CWI) and to Utrecht University. Earlier this year, Baarslag was selected for the Talent Special of Financieel Dagblad, which presents fifty young entrepreneurial talents under the age of 35.

Baarslag advocates to show the positive and negative effects of new technologies. For example, artificial intelligence can potentially decrease our control over our private data. Baarslag wants to counter that by studying how we can use computers to increase our ownership over data. As a member of The Young Academy, he will press for open science, with a focus on public support for practical solutions and challenges of new technologies.

THE YOUNG ACADEMY

The Young Academy has fifty members who are each appointed for five years. Each year, ten new members are appointed who have obtained their PhD less than ten years ago. The Young Academy consists of top scientists of all scientific disciplines, who are employed at a Dutch university or research institute. Members each focus on at least one of the following themes: interdisciplinarity within science and scholarship, science policy, science and society, and internationalization.