Adapt! core team
In Adapt!, researchers from Utrecht University, Leiden University. Radboud University, Tilburg University and the University of Twente are working together to gather more knowledge and expertise on the adaptive capacity of societies in times of crisis.
Core Team
Prof. dr. Beatrice de Graaf
As a Distinguished Professor at Utrecht University, De Graaf has established herself as a leading worldwide authority on two research tracks: the contemporary study of conflict and terrorism, and historical security research.
Prof. dr. Kees van den Bos
Kees van den Bos is Professor of Social Psychology and Professor of Empirical Legal Science at Utrecht University. Van den Bos’s unique contribution lies in the integration of the social psychology of conflict with the empirical study of law. His focus is unravelling the complex dynamics and operative mechanisms involved in social conflict, civic and institutional (dis)trust, and radicalisation, extremism and terrorism.
Prof. Dr. Arjen Boin (Leiden University)
Arjen Boin is Professor of Public Institutions and Governance at Leiden University’s Department of Political Science.
Arjen Boin is also managing partner of Crisisplan, an international crisis management consultancy. Through his work at Crisisplan, Boin has the unique opportunity to apply his academic knowledge to concrete cases of international crisis management.
Prof. Dr. Lotte Jensen (Radboud University)
Lotte Jensen is Professor of Dutch Culture and Literature at the Faculty of Arts at Radboud University Nijmegen.
As a philosopher and expert on Dutch culture, Lotte Jensen focuses on subjects such as disasters, national identity formation and historical literature. She is the director of 'Dealing with Disasters, a research group which studies cultural responses to disasters in the Netherlands.
Prof. Dr. Ellen Giebels (University of Twente)
Ellen Giebels is Professor of Psychology of Conflict and Security at the University of Twente
In her research, Ellen Giebels focuses on human reactions and social interactions in risky situations. In 2015, Giebels was part of the research team that officially evaluated the functioning of the Dutch government after the MH17 disaster.
Dr. Rik Peels (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)
Rik Peels is associate professor in philosophy and religion & theology at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.
Over the last few years, Peels increasingly addresses issues at the intersection of theoretical, conceptual, and normative issues on the one hand and empirical issues on the other, such as topics related to polarisation, misinformation, and fundamentalism. Peels’s passion for this strand of research has resulted in him leading an ERC Starting Grant named Extreme Beliefs (2020–2025).
Affiliated researchers
| Dr. Scott Douglas | Associate Professor of Public Management (Utrecht University) |
| Prof. dr. Paul van Lange | Professor of Social Psychology (VU University Amsterdam) |
| Prof. dr. Roland Bal | Professor of Health Care Policy (Erasmus University Rotterdam) |
| Prof. Judith van Erp | Professor of Regulatory Governance (Utrecht University) |
| Dr Sanneke Kuipers | Associate Professor at the Institute of Security and Global Affairs (Leiden University) |
| Dr. Heleen Mees | Senior Lecturer in Climate Change and Climate Adaptation (Utrecht University) |
| Dr. Miriam Oostinga | Senior Lecturer in Psychology of Security (University of Twente) |
| Dr. James Patterson | Associate Professor of Institutional Dynamics in Sustainability at Utrecht University) |
| Prof. Stavros Zouridis | Professor of Public Administration (Tilburg University). |
