“Election offers opportunities for a future-oriented Netherlands”

The relief among many scientists, entrepreneurs, and educators was palpable when the results of the House of Representatives elections were announced. Not because one party won an absolute majority, but because the political landscape seems to leave room for something that the Dutch knowledge sector has been advocating for years: a long-term policy in which knowledge and innovation form the foundation of our society. The Kenniscoalitie (Knowledge Coalition), a partnership between universities, colleges, TO2 institutes, NWO, KNAW, and employer organizations, responded to the results with a clear manifesto: now is the time to move from words to action.

“We see opportunities to work with politicians to take steps towards a stronger knowledge and innovation country,” the coalition writes in its statement. The tone is remarkably hopeful. No lamentations about budget cuts or fragmented policy, but a call for partnership. The message is both simple and urgent: if the Netherlands wants to maintain its prosperity and well-being, it must dare to invest in knowledge, research, and innovation — structurally, not incidentally.

Europe

The Knowledge Coalition points out that other European countries have already significantly increased their public investment in research. Germany, Denmark, and France are moving toward or beyond three percent of gross domestic product, while the Netherlands is still lagging behind. This difference is not only economically relevant, but also socially relevant. Knowledge is the key to solutions for the major challenges of our time: climate change, digitization, healthcare, and energy security. The coalition emphasizes that “the choices we make now will determine whether the Netherlands will still be leading the way in 2030 or lagging behind.”

This long-term view ties in seamlessly with the theme that IO+ has focused on in several articles in recent weeks: the tension between short-term comfort and future-oriented policy. In Voting: short-term comfort or a future for our children, we wrote that the political debate is too often dominated by the question of what can be cheaper or easier tomorrow, rather than what needs to be better the day after tomorrow. The Knowledge Coalition now offers an answer to this. It does not ask for more money out of convenience, but for more direction out of conviction.

Social return

In its statement, the coalition emphasizes that investing in knowledge is not just a matter of science, but of social return. Research leads to innovation, innovation to economic activity, and economic activity to jobs and well-being. The link between science and society is, as the coalition states, “not a side issue but the beating heart of a resilient economy.” The appeal is therefore also explicitly directed at the business community: only in a close triangle of education, research, and entrepreneurship can the Netherlands maintain its position as a knowledge nation.

For those who have been following the political arena in recent months, this plea does not come out of the blue. In Rob Jetten is the winner – what could that mean for innovation, we already pointed out the possibility that new political relationships could create space for a genuine innovation agenda. Not an appendix to the coalition agreement, but a common thread running through all policy areas: energy, healthcare, education, defense, infrastructure. The Knowledge Coalition is now making precisely that point. It is asking the parties forming the new government to “put knowledge and innovation at the heart of the new coalition agreement” and warns that otherwise it will be difficult to maintain international competitiveness and social progress.

New phase

The tone of cooperation is striking. Whereas universities and knowledge institutions sometimes seemed to be at odds with politics in the past, the coalition is now explicitly opting for dialogue. It talks about trust, about taking steps together, about shared responsibility.

This is necessary because the challenges are too great for silo thinking. The energy transition, the aging population, the digitization of society—these require knowledge, but also the political courage to translate that knowledge into policy. In Political debate reveals vulnerability and opportunities of digital focus, IO+ already showed how thin the line is between technological ambition and administrative vulnerability. The Knowledge Coalition is now calling for stability and direction: policy that looks beyond the next budget cycle.

Whether politicians will take up this challenge will become clear in the coming months. But the fact that the knowledge sector is speaking out so unanimously and positively is in itself a sign of a new phase. Whereas in the past the focus was mainly on warnings about cutbacks, now a constructive message is being heard: we are ready to build the future together.

It is precisely this optimism that the Netherlands needs. Not naive, but ambitious. Not complaining about what is not there, but working on what could be. The Knowledge Coalition has outlined the contours of that future; it is now up to politicians to show their colors.