In March, the World Horti Center in Naaldwijk was opened by Her Majesty Queen Máxima. In the heart of the Netherlands greenhouse horticultural region, this is the world's first global knowledge and innovation centre combining teaching, research, the government and the business sector. Minister of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality, Carola Schouten, was also present at the official opening and in her speech emphasised the top international position of the Dutch horticultural sector. The Leiden-Delft-Erasmus Centre for Sustainability is the academic knowledge partner of the World Horti Center.
All the links in the horticulture chain will be presenting their latest innovations and developments all year round at the World Horti Center. Education institutions and the business sector are exploring sustainable solutions for global problems such as food security, food safety, water management, sustainability and health. Leiden-Delft-Erasmus is a knowledge partner in this, working from the Greenport Hub of the Centre for Sustainability.
Coen Hubers, coordinator of this hub, wants to draw universities’ attention to the Westland as an interesting research area: “Greenhouse horticulture in the Westland is not so well known among researchers and students, yet it forms a fantastic research area and is right on the doorstep of three of our top universities. Its strong worldwide position in the horticultural sector coupled with today's issues of sustainability and innovation make the Westland a truly challenging case study. I would like to warmly invite everyone, students, researchers, governmental bodies and the business sector to take part in the Greenport Hub!”
The Greenport Hub
The Greenport Hub is a group of students, researchers, companies, government bodies and other organisations in the horticulture sector who work together on research questions. This group is based in the World Horti Center in Naaldwijk and in September will be starting a new series of lectures along the lines of Angelo Vermeulen’s recent ‘Mission to Mars’. The hub is focused on the following themes in the horticultural sector:
1: Digitalisation
2: Biobased and Circular Horticulture
3: Health and Wellbeing
4: Sustainable Urban Delta’s
For more information on the Greenport Hub, please contact Coen Hubers: C.G.W.Hubers@tudelft.nl
For all the activities of the Greenport Hub, please see www.centre-for-sustainability.nl/the-greenport-hub
