Activities of Thriving & Healthy Youth
A selection of upcoming events and other activities organised by our community:
Resilience funding call
The Thriving and Healthy Youth community opens a new call to stimulate university-community collaborations around the theme resilience. Do you have a research idea in mind in collaboration with a societal partner(s)? We may then be able to support you! We can offer maximum €10,000,- funding per project. The submission deadline is 23 October 2026. Two grants of €10,000,- each are available, each grant will be given to a different applicant.
Start of the Academic Year 2026-2027
The Thriving & Healthy Youth community is contributing content to the Start of the Academic Year 2026-2027, which is dedicated to the theme 'Healthy Youth'. By putting youth at the center and collaborating closely with many others, Utrecht University and the strategic theme Dynamics of Youth are building a better future for all young people.
Keynote speakers are Mirjam Sterk, Minister of Long-term Care, Youth and Sport, and Sanne Nijhof, Professor of Interdisciplinary Preventive Paediatrics at UMC Utrecht. They will be followed by a panel discussion on the theme of healthy youth featuring Heidi Lesscher, Odilia Laceulle, and Sara Brouwer.
A dialogue on inclusive sport and play
Children with a disability or a chronic illness (25% of all children!) often feel excluded. They face barriers to playing with their peers, attending (mainstream) school, or taking part in sport or other leisure activities. During this dialogue session on September 30 at Playground Griftsteede, Utrecht, the researchers will gather input and discuss inclusivity for children, the barriers that hinder inclusive sport and play for children, and solutions to facilitate inclusive sport and play.
Heidi Lesscher and her research team will incorporate the specific ideas arising from this dialogue session into the major research project SPACES.
Moedt Festival
On 28 January 2027 researchers of Thriving & Healthy will be taking part in the Moedt festival at TivoliVredenburg in Utrecht. Moedt is an event at which musicians, artists and organisations are invited to entertain and inform young people on the theme of mental health. Further details to follow.