Opening talk of the symposium ‘On Quality’ by James Wilsdon.
At the end of 2018, Paul Wouters will retire as director of CWTS. To celebrate his achievements as director of the institute, CWTS organized the symposium ‘On Quality: What will the future of valuing science and scholarship look like?’ on December 14.
The symposium, organized in the Poortgebouw in Leiden, featured four prominent international speakers who each offered their perspective on the notion of quality: James Wilsdon (University of Sheffield), Sabina Leonelli (University of Exeter), Jesper Schneider (Aarhus University), and Steve Woolgar (Linköpings University and University of Oxford). At the end of the symposium, a panel discussion took place reflecting on science and technology studies research in the Netherlands and its contribution to science policy.
After the symposium, the program continued with a reception and a dinner in the city center of Leiden. Hanna Swaab, dean of the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, and Sarah de Rijcke, Paul’s successor as director of CWTS, thanked Paul for the important contributions he has made to CWTS. Sarah praised the successful way in which Paul afforded room to expand the research agenda of the institute and to professionalize and diversify the product offerings of CWTS BV. Without any doubt, the highpoint of the program was the musical contribution made by a number of CWTS colleagues (the ‘5th floor grooves’ band), culminating with the final song, ‘sexy als ik dans’ (‘sexy when I dance’).
CWTS is extremely grateful to Paul for his inspiring leadership during the past eight years. We wish Paul all the best as the new dean of the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences.
