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Newsletter #30
September 2017
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What's Making News?
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And off they go: Bridgestone World Solar Challenge 2017
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8 - 15 October 2017, Photo: Jérôme Wassenaar
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After a long period of preparations and hard work the solar teams can finally show what they are made of. And the Dutch Solar Teams can be really proud of the first results. The challenge started on Sunday the 8th of October. Reigning champions Nuon Solar Team started third and finished first in the Challenger Class after day one. A less fortunate qualification run meant Solar Team Twente had to start on the twentieth position. Despite this rough start Solar Team Twente managed to overtake sixteen of the other solar teams and finished fourth on the first day! Solar Team Twente also was held up by a kangaroo that jumped in front of their RED Shift. Luckily, the driver
managed to dodge the kangaroo just in time. Solar Team Eindhoven took the lead in the Cruiser Class during the first day.
The second day of the race was quite thrilling as Nuon Solar Team had a suspension problem with their car Nuna 9. For a while Tokai University was catching up to the reigning champions. Luckily, Nuon Solar Team solved their technical malfunction within ten minutes and pretty soon the team managed to regain first position in the Challenger Class. Solar Team Eindhoven kept their first position in the Cruiser Class throughout the second day. They even managed to drive energy-positive, which means they generated more energy than used while driving. Solar Team Twente finished third on the second day.
Day three of the race is in full swing right now. You can follow the teams via the official tracker, click below. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay posted on the latest news.
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Click here for the official tracker
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Royal HaskoningDHV switches to electric vehicles
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September 2017, Photo: Royal HaskoningDHV
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In the first week of September, Dutch paper ‘Het Financieele Daglad’ reported that big companies in the Netherlands are switching to electric cars. Royal HaskoningDHV, one of the largest Dutch consultancies, has announced its fleet of 500 leased cars will be 100 percent electric by 2021.
In a press release the consultancy explains that because of this, their employees will contribute to a thirteen percent reduction in the company’s
CO2 emissions in the Netherlands through means of sustainable mobility.
Royal HaskoningDHV is not alone in this decision. Energy companies Eneco and Nuon are also switching to an all-electric fleet. Moreover, TV and internet company KPN announced to only use cars operating on biogas, hydrogen or electricity from 2025 onwards. Dutch companies seem to be taking big steps towards a sustainable future.
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Read more
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Arcadis joins Smart Cities Council Australia New Zealand
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20 September 2017
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On the 20th of September Arcadis, the leading global Design & Consultancy firm for natural and built assets, announced that they joined the Smart Cities Council Australia New Zealand (SCANZ) as a Regional Partner.
Arcadis was originally founded in the Netherlands and can trace its history back to 1888. Greg Steele, CEO Arcadis, Australia Pacific said: “we’re in the business of Australia’s future cities, so we are very excited to join the Smart Cities Council and help drive the cities agenda.''
SCANZ is part of the Smart Cities Council, the world’s largest network of smart cities companies, practitioners and policy makers, embracing technology, data, and intelligent design to accelerate liveability, workability, and sustainability in our cities and towns.
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Innovative wastewater treatment technology used in Kingaroy, QLD
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8 September 2017, Photo: courtesy of the Australian Water Association
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At the 2017 Australian Water Association’s Annual Queensland Gala Dinner, Aquatec Maxcon, along with South Burnett Regional Council, won the Infrastructure Project Innovation Award for the successful delivery of the Kingaroy Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) upgrade.
Peter Ferrando, Aquatec Maxcon Director, said “Kingaroy WWTP is our first Nereda® Plant in Australia and to have the Water Industry recognise our achievement in delivering this job is encouraging.'' Aquatec Maxcon is the exclusive partner of Royal Haskoning DHV, the technology provider for Nereda®. Aerobic Granular Sludge, Nereda® technology has become a sustainable alternative to activated sludge processes and is gaining worldwide prominence in the water industry with the largest plant under design in Dublin.
Kingaroy WWTP has also received special recognition by the Dutch Government which issued a postage stamp celebrating the relationship between Australia and the Netherlands.
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Widely used Dutch Water Transfer System exhibited in Sydney
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4 - 7 September, AFAC 2017, International Convention Centre, Sydney NSW
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During AFAC 2017, an annual conference and exhibition in Australia aiming to improve performance in emergency management, the Hytrans’ Bulk Water Transfer System was exhibited.
This Dutch system can continuously move thousands of litres of water over large distances and is set up within half an hour. It was developed in the 1980s by the Dutch machine manufacturer Hytrans Systems and the Dutch Government to combat flooding due to possible levee failures.
Now it is a widely used system with many hundreds of these Hytrans systems used globally. In the last few years the Country Fire Authority in Victoria and the New South Wales Fire & Rescue brigades have adopted this system with great success. Hytrans units in Australia have now been used for many fires and flood situations. The Hytrans distributor for Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific Islands is Bluemont.
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The Netherlands is the fourth most competitive country in the world
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September 2017
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For the second time in a row, the Netherlands is among the four most competitive countries around the globe, according to the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report 2017-2018.
The Netherlands ranks fourth globally, after Switzerland, the United Stated and Singapore. Within the EU the Netherlands ranks first, followed by Germany and Sweden.
As mentioned in the report, globally we score especially high on the quality of our port infrastructure (#1), quality of air transport infrastructure (#4), quality of scientific research institutions (#4) and university-industry collaboration in Research & Development (#5).
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Read the report
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Conversation on the World of Work
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4 - 6pm, 19 October 2017, Level 13, 333 George Street, Sydney NSW
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Every month Veldhoen + Company hosts a free session called 'Conversations on the World of Work'. These sessions discuss a number of topics that Veldhoen + Company believes are meaningful and will support the work community in creating new ideas or solutions that can contribute to a better world of work.
Their next session ‘Human Connection – could this be the silver bullet?’ will take place on Thursday the 19th of October and will be co-facilitated by Millie Letori, Allison Tsao and Florine Kemp. Veldhoen + Company invites you to join them in the dialogue to explore possibilities and create new connections. Please click below to read more about this session.
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What's Happening?
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Artificial intelligence: Amsterdam is the place to be
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15 September 2017
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On the 15th of September this year, the Amsterdam based Growth Tribe academy launched a new artificial intelligence training programme. The Growth Tribe academy is Europe’s first growth hacking academy and opened its doors in Amsterdam in 2015. The new programme, AI for Marketing & Growth, teaches people who don’t have a technical background about artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML).
The programme teaches participants how AI is used by companies such as Netflix and Amazon. Students also learn about how AI can be useful for making better-informed decisions. For example, in predicting consumer behaviour. Other partners in the new programme include StartupAmsterdam, Microsoft, and the Dataiku data science platform.
“Growth Tribe shows what education needs to look like in the future,” said Amsterdam’s Deputy Mayor Kajsa Ollongren. “I am proud that this leading organisation is committed to narrowing the digital skills gap. This puts Amsterdam on the map as a forerunner in modern education, with a focus on the newest digital skills.”
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Websites Ministry of Foreign Affairs
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Consulate-General of the Netherlands in Sydney
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Level 23, Tower 2 - 101 Grafton Street (cnr Grosvenor street), Sydney, Australia Bondi Junction NSW 2022
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T: +61 2 8305 6807
E: syd-ez@minbuza.nl
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