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At MNEXT, we currently have 7 professorships, each led by a professor. Recently, we have also introduced associate professors—individuals who work at the lector level but focus on a specific field within the professorship. This allows us to delve deeper into themes that are important to MNEXT. We spoke with our recently appointed associate professors, Miaomiao Zhou, Qian Zhou and Tanja Moerdijk about their motivations and plans.

Do you remember the Biobased Bridge? In 2017, it was constructed as a result of an ambitious grant project and installed at the Eindhoven University of Technology. Now, 6 years later, the bridge returns to Avans Den Bosch. Jasper Sluis, involved in the project, shares the journey of this sustainable bridge, which is not only a technical marvel but also continues to play a role in education and research.

Do you remember the Biobased Bridge? In 2017, it was constructed as a result of an ambitious grant project and installed at the Eindhoven University of Technology. Now, 6 years later, the bridge returns to Avans Den Bosch. Jasper Sluis, involved in the project, shares the journey of this sustainable bridge, which is not only a technical marvel but also continues to play a role in education and research.

Thousands of people, including none other than Queen Máxima, walked on the unique floor tiles made from recycled thermoset biocomposites during the Dutch Design Week in Eindhoven. Researcher Lennart Zoeter from the HZ research group Biobased Building at MNEXT created these special tiles for the OPZuid project BRIC. "It may sound simple, but recycling a thermoset composite is incredibly challenging."

Thousands of people, including none other than Queen Máxima, walked on the unique floor tiles made from recycled thermoset biocomposites during the Dutch Design Week in Eindhoven. Researcher Lennart Zoeter from the HZ research group Biobased Building at MNEXT created these special tiles for the OPZuid project BRIC. "It may sound simple, but recycling a thermoset composite is incredibly challenging."

A new project for the Biobased Resources & Energy research group at MNEXT. The project, named "Protein of Columbus," contributes to the protein transition, aiming to shift from animal- to more plant-based protein production. This project focuses on optimizing the use of by-products generated during the cultivation of protein-rich crops, with the goal of establishing a realistic revenue model for various stakeholders in the chain.

Myron Koster, researcher & project leader of Biobased Building at MNEXT, is making significant strides in the materials and energy transition within the construction sector! Recently, he has published two studies focusing on cross-laminated-timber (CLT) sourced from Dutch resources and developing calculators to assess circular value.

In the Academic Workshop Climate & Energy at Tilburg University, MNEXT (Avans University of Applied Sciences), Alliander, Stedin, Enexis, Essent, the Province of Noord-Brabant, Tilburg Municipality, Vereniging Eigen Huis, Netherlands Enterprise Agency, Midpoint Brabant, and Heijmans join forces to accelerate the energy transition in the region. What stands out in this academic workshop is that not only technological but especially social innovation in the context of the energy transition is highlighted. MNEXT is a crucial partner in this collaboration due to the contributions of the Smart Energy research group, the education portfolio on energy transition, and the SEnD Lab. The connection with the Smart Energy research group provides a practical, technically substantive boost to the university.

Have you ever thought that a solution to our plastic problem could come from wastewater? With the Interreg North-West Europe project WOW!, that's exactly what's happening! Wastewater often contains sugars, fatty acids, and starch that can be converted into PHA bioplastic by bacteria. WOW! has previously demonstrated the possibility of producing PHA based on sewage, and this time, the focus was on residual streams from food processing industries.

The year is 2073, and the world runs on 100% sustainable resources and energy sources. The market value of oil giants like Shell and Saudi Aramco has evaporated. What has led to the emergence of companies with a market value of 1,000 billion euros, deriving their value solely from biobased resources? What were the, at the time small, transitions that laid the foundation for overcoming the addiction to fossil resources?

Max was an passionate colleague, full of ideas and enthusiasm. An expert of the outer category. Despite the fact that he had not been involved in the Biobased Construction lectorate for very long, his expertise and friendliness were greatly appreciated by colleagues from day one. Both from hands-on research, as from education and business, everyone knew how to find Max quickly.

A new border region project that will recruit, train, retrain and upskill young people and adults for professions to enable energy transition has started. For the next three years, Avans University of Applied Sciences will be the secretary of the Energy(k) Education project, which is being implemented from the Interreg programme Flanders Netherlands with a grant from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). In the project, 18 educational institutions, governments, a regional career fund, a regional intermediary and a business organisation from the south of the Netherlands and Flanders are working together. The project came about last year through intensive cooperation between the project partners and Promint project management and has a size of €4,200,000.