UCL welcomes leaders from Delft University of Technology to strengthen institutional links

The TU Delft group, which included board members and deans from five faculties at the university, visited UCL’s Bloomsbury and East campuses.

TU Delft is the oldest and largest technical university in the Netherlands. For several years, UCL and TU Delft have collaborated in areas of shared expertise, predominantly in the fields of engineering and architecture, to solve urgent societal challenges.

Academics in UCL Engineering, including Professors Tiziana Rossetto (Vice-Dean International), Peter Munro (Vice-Dean Research), Liz Jones (Vice-Dean Education) and Rob Thompson (Vice-Dean Enterprise), welcomed the group to discuss growing research collaborations and opportunities for student mobility between the Faculty and TU Delft.

Professor Tiziana Rossetto (Vice-Dean International, UCL Engineering) said: “At UCL, we are proud to be working with TU to co-create technological solutions to complex global challenges. The visit from my colleagues at UCL Delft sparked many rich discussions, and I look forward to further enhancing our research and education connections.”

The delegation also visited UCL at Here East where they were given a tour, led by Professor Wendel Sebastian (UCL Engineering), of the engineering science and built environment facilities housed there. They were then welcomed to UCL East by Professor Paola Lettieri, Pro-Provost (UCL East), and Helen Fisher (Director of Operations, UCL East). 

In June 2023, TU Delft announced its intent to operate new educational, research and innovation activities in Rotterdam. Inspired by the opening of UCL's new university campus at East Bank, the delegation sought insights into UCL’s approach to civic engagement, interdisciplinary study and cross-disciplinary research.

The TU Delft delegation consisted of Prof.ir. Dick van Gameren (Dean, Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment); Lucas van Vliet (Dean of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Sciences); Aukje Hassoldt (Dean, Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management); Stefan Aarninkhof (Dean, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences); Fred van Keulen (Dean, Faculty of Mechnical Engineering); Carola de Vree (Director of Communications); Han Derkx (Programme Director); and Irene Haslinger (Director of TU Delft Library).

Professor Lucas van Vliet said: “TU Delft is developing a new campus in Rotterdam around emerging fields in transition engineering with a strong ambition in civic engagement. UCL’s lesson-learned and the inspirational discussions will help us in further defining our plans. Thank you to our colleagues at UCL for the valuable insights.”

UCL and TU Delft

In December 2023, The Bartlett, UCL’s Faculty of the Built Environment, signed a partnership agreement with TU Delft Faculty of Architecture & the Built Environment to advance research and education in the areas of circular cities, circular built environment and circular economy.

Stemming from this agreement, In March 2024, academics from TU Delft’s Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment attended a series of workshops with researchers from The Bartlett, UCL's Faculty of the Built Environment, focusing on circular urban systems.

The visit concluded with a panel discussion and networking reception, hosted in partnership between UCL Global Engagement, UCL Circularity Hub, and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in London, on the theme of circularity with representatives from academia, industry and policy in the UK and the Netherlands.

Between 2019 and 2023, UCL produced 190 collaborative publications with TU Delft, and during Horizon 2020, UCL academics collaborated on 18 Horizon projects with TU Delft counterparts.

Links

• UCL and Europe
• Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) 
• UCL and Delft University of Technology scale up circular economy collaboration
• UCL Faculty of Engineering Sciences
• UCL East
• Here East - UCL

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Professor Tiziana Rossetto (left) with the delegation from TU Delft