Eindhoven News moderated the city election debate in English and we are proud of being the voice of the international residents of Eindhoven. The debate was hosted by the municipality while Beena Arunraj was the moderator.
An introduction to the political system is the key in understanding the Dutch political system which was presented by Jean-Paul Close (Sustainocrat). Beena Arunraj (Editor-in-Chief) was the moderator and Remco van der Weel (SIPE chairperson and Eindhoven News Events section head) was the timekeeper.
Politcal parties (alphabetically): CDA (Miriam Frosi), D66 (Tom Brouwers), GroenLinks (Eva de Bruijn), PvdA (Tjeerd Ritmeester), VOLT (Ankie van der Sar) and VVD (Ed Winters).
Special pitch: Ouderen Appèl (Wilma Richter), Partij voor de Dieren (Jonas Roothans).
Part 1 – History of Dutch Political system by Jean-Paul Close:
Part 2 – Beena Arunraj’s speech on internationalisation and international cultural mosaic of Eindhoven:
Part 3 – Party ideology:
Part 4 – Housing:
Part 5 – Social Cohesion:
Part 6 – International students:
Part 7 – Local needs in education:
Part 8 – Ouderen Appèl (elderly party) and Partij voor de Dieren (animal party)
On Thursday, 16 November, the new Dutch (naturalised Dutch) and the internationals interested in knowing how the ideologies of the political parties will affect their lives will have an opportunity to attend an election debate organised by Eindhoven News. The debate will take place in the Raadzaal of the city hall (Stadhuis).
The goal of the debate
The New Dutch citizens and internationals have many questions, such as inflation, taxation, housing issues, the 30% ruling, immigration policy, higher education courses in English, economic growth, childcare allowance and so on. The number of internationals with a vote in the Brainport region has increased significantly. According to Alle Cijfers, forty percent of Eindhoven is international. About nine hundred thousand people of non-Dutch origin live in the Netherlands. So, if you have a vote, and you want information in English and interact with the candidates on the national list, you should consider attending the debate before deciding whom to vote for.
What to expect
The candidates from parties possibly forming the next government and candidates from the incumbent parties will be present. The participating parties are D66 (Democratic 66), CDA (Christian Democratic Apple), VVD (People’s Party for Liberals and Democracy), PvdA-Gl (Labour and Green left coalition) and VOLT (Pan-European political movement). People have an opportunity to meet probable members of parliament such as Mpanzu Bamenga, Eva de Bruijn, Valerie Pajak, Inge van Dijk, Jan Joosten and many more.
The debate has many rounds based on diverse topics. The topics and questions will hover around internationals and their lives/livelihoods in the Netherlands. Beena Arunraj, editor-in-chief of Eindhoven News, is the moderator, and guest moderators include representatives from NL Times, Dutch News and RadioBrainport. After the moderated rounds of questions, the floor will be open to questions from the audience. The debate will be followed by networking and drinks in the hall van hundred. Other local politicians, council members and influencers will be present.
The debate is supported by Eindhoven Airport, Brainport Development and Gemeente Eindhoven.
KommuS Radio is a local Geldrop radio station. They will be playing on Horecaplein in Geldrop.
That will happen on Sunday, 16 August, between 12:00 and 23:00. The DJ’s will broadcast live on the square.
People sitting on the terraces can ask for their holiday greetings to be aired. Or ask for a nice number to be played. Or just tell us how they like their holiday so far.
The organisers do, however, warn, “Because of the anti-coronavirus measures, dancing or even staying at the studio too long is, unfortunately, not allowed. So make sure you find a nice table on one of the terraces, order a cold drink, and enjoy the summer”.
The TAC (Temporary Art Center) will be transformed into a light exhibition during GLOW.
For expo ‘… in the dark’, artists involved with TAC have created their own creations and there are also existing works from the Van Abbemuseum. In addition, there are a number of new works of art to be admired that are in line with ‘Shadows and Light’, the theme of GLOW 2018.
The exhibition focuses on playing with light and shadows. There are works of art that show the viewer a new perspective, but also a work of art that makes heat and coolness visible.
The TAC is open from Saturday 10 to Saturday 17 November between 16.00 and 23.00. Tickets are available online, but also at the TAC itself.
For the second year in a row, single elderly people were invited to Christmas lunch. This was held in the Boemerang community centre in the Eindhoven district of Eckart, on Tuesday. More than 40 single seniors were treated to live music, sandwiches and soup.
“It is nice to pamper the elderly”, Joke Verkooijen, one of the organisers of the lunch, says. “It is nice to see everyone enjoying themselves so much. It makes me feel good.”
Many senior citizens experience loneliness during the holidays. “Our children celebrate Christmas Eve with friends or with our grandchildren”, one of the visitors said. “They usually come for a visit on Boxing Day”. Another guest added, “Being alone during the holidays is boring. For us, this is a pleasant afternoon and a real Christmas lunch”.
The little theatre in Arno Huibers’ backyard may be small, but that intimate touch is exactly what makes the performance. The “secret place of Eindhoven”, as Arno himself calls it, lends itself perfectly to his subdued clown acts.
“I’m not a clown with frills. On my nose I put a tiny clown nose and of course I have costumes”. Arno sits in his gypsy wagon where all sorts of clown stuff is displayed and which doubles as a cash register. “Most people really like that, too. That they enter the garden and step into a little paradise”.
Arno has been a clown himself for more than 40 years. As a tribute to the clowns of the past, he plays his show “Homage to the Clown”, in which he reviews various artists such as Charlie Chaplin, Rowan Atkinson and Slava Polunin. The performance can be admired at Arno’s Theater (theatre) in the Tongelre district starting in March.
There are more than 30 different nationalities among the 181 graduates at the Design Academy’s Graduation Show 2019. Among all these graduation projects is one that deals with the city of Eindhoven – Sense of Place, by Bloeme Groenewold.
Bloeme has divided Eindhoven up based on emotions. She asked 150 people from Eindhoven how they feel about certain places in the city. Stadhuisplein, for example, is a bit of a sad place. But at the same time, it gives a feeling of freedom. This is because of the skaters who skate there every day.
In Woensel, there is a feeling of belonging, thanks to the people from a wide range of cultures that live in the area. At the same time, those people sometimes miss the customs of their homeland. Each area in Eindhoven has its own feeling, and Bloeme has mapped this out using colourful objects.
Intense
During Dutch Design Week (DDW), the Design Academy’s Bachelors and Masters students present their graduation productions. This takes place during the Graduation Show. According to graduate, Anne Kamps, the students work towards this event throughout their studies.
“It is very intense,” she says. “You get up in the morning and certainly do not feel completely rested”. However, she enjoys it enormously. The visitors are involved and ask a lot of questions. They sometimes even have a viewpoint of her work she had not even thought of yet.
Six-winged chicken, rotating pig, and meatless milking goat
Anne Kamps’ project. Photo credit: Studio040
Anne’s graduation project is in response to news about a six-winged chicken. The fast-food chain, KFC, is said to have developed a six-winged chicken. This is so they can get more wings from fewer chickens.
Many readers believe the news; among them, Anne. She wonders what kind of fantasy creatures can be imagined and what kind of fabulous animals actually exist.
The result is a book with a rotating pig ‘of which you can cut slices off more easily’. The meatless milking goat has also been given a place in her work. “I do not have a very strong opinion about my subject at all. I eat meat myself. Not so often, but sometimes I do. It is more about making visitors think about the meat industry. As consumers, they have the power to make their own choices. Sometimes they do not realise that”.
Not only abstract ideas
Many of the projects exhibited at the Graduation Show are abstract. They zoom in on society and make visitors think about social themes. But self-proclaimed ‘very down-to-earth’ graduate Malou Kremers thinks differently.
She made a sleeper-chair. This is a sofa bed which can fold into a chair. In no time at all, you can have a bed or an armchair in your living room. Practical, with no deeper meaning – just a handy, stylish piece of furniture.
The graduates’ works all vary. However, according to Marc Ruis of the Design Academy, there is indeed a connection in the exhibited work. Students are increasingly concerned about the future.
Nature and the environment, for example, are recurring topics. One graduate made new products out of flower waste. Another used human stools as manure. All 181 graduation projects can be seen during DDW in the old Campina factory on Kanaaldijk-Zuid in Eindhoven.
There will be extra security on Geldropseweg during this year’s Carnaval parade.
In addition to the glass and cans ban that applies throughout Eindhoven, there will be an organised event location on Geldropseweg at the intersection of Stratumsedijk and Bilderdijklaan. “We are going to place fences here”, Dorus de Bruyn, owner of Dijk 9, announces. “We have arranged extra security.”
“Those security guards are in direct contact with the organisation that will keep an eye on everything, from afar. If it gets too crowded, the fences will close temporarily, so that it does not get too crowded on this narrow stretch of road”.
Last year things got out of hand. Drunken spectators wreaked havoc on seven cars. “It was just too busy here last year, and with too many people in one place, it simply becomes unsafe”, De Bruyn says. “We want to avoid that. Carnaval should be a celebration for everyone. It is a pity that security is needed, but safety comes first”.
The yearly ‘Park Hilaria’ has started last Friday and is open until Sunday 12th. 90 rides and attractions over a 600 meter stretch are awaiting the public to join them. There are also plenty of foodstalls, terraces and many performances of, mainly Dutch, artists and DJ’s. The entrance is free and its in the Southern part of the Kennedy laan.
In the previous century Eindhoven knew many local ‘kermisses’, almost every neighborhood had their own kermis. Some bigger then others, but in general they had the appeal of local fairgrounds of smaller towns. Very nice for the locals, but not something to attract many remote people. However in 2002 the local government decided to group it all together, to have the appeal of a big city fair. Therefore they created Park Hilaria, that combines all fairs together and therefore brings fun for every one, has their own terraces and places to eat. It now takes place for the 17th time.
There are also many artists. They mainly focus on the ‘typical’ Dutch entertainment and songs. Maybe not everybodies taste, but it gives a good idea of the Dutch culture as its still alive with the common people. Also traditional Dutch snacks like poffertjes and typical ‘kermis food’ is present. As the entree is free, and kids always seems to love it, it sure its worth a visit.
Cultural Heritage Agency decides to give the status of a national monument to former Philips head office on Boschdijk.
There have been plans already for some time to give the building this status. The building is part of a long list of national monuments from the period of reconstruction of the Netherlands.
The building dates back to 1964 and served as the headquarters of Philips Netherlands until 2001. The building was also the tallest in the city for a long time. Soon it will be redeveloped by Bekke & Partners from Eindhoven and Ten Brinke from Eindhoven and Helmond respectively. The project developers are still contemplating on how they should develop it, probably a housing complex
Next to the Philips building, the new Vredeoord neighbourhood has been built in recent years. There will also be housing around the building. Housing corporation Trudo has purchased land for this purpose.
Hanging building
At the official designation event as a national monument, the various people present were enthusiastic. According to architectural historian Emil Uriot of the Cultural Heritage Agency, the building’s monument status is more than justified. “It is, so to speak, a hanging building,” says Uriot, referring to the narrow base and thick ‘upper body’ of the building. “You see such a construction more often nowadays, but when the building was built it was rare.”
Eindhoven icon
“What makes it special is that it is really part of the reconstruction culture. The building’s position is also important, with a view of all the places that were important to Philips in the past.” According to Uriot, the building’s typical construction, together with its size and the place where it stands, make it an Eindhoven of Eindhoven.
“I come from Eindhoven myself, and when I think of the city, I also think of this building. I grew up with it. In addition, the building was used by Philips, which is, of course, Eindhoven through and through,” says Uriot.
Eindhoven News is working together with SamenUitAgenda.nl which is a platform where you can find all sorts of interesting events. The nice and special thing is that you can get in touch with people before the event or after.
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