Opening Academic Year 2023/24
On Monday 4 September, we will open the academic year 2023/24 at the Theater aan het Vrijthof.
UM President Rianne Letschert will open the academic year with a speech. Our keynote lecture will be delivered by entrepreneur Yama Saraj. We will award the Edmond Hustinx Award, the UM Student Award and the Impact Award. All in all, it promises to be an inspiring afternoon full of new insights.
You can sign up using the link in your personal invitation, which was sent out via email in the week of 26 June.
Alternatively, you can follow the live stream of the academic year opening ceremony on this webpage, starting at 15.15.
If you experience problems with this livestream, please click here.
Theme: 'Compassion and challenges: flourishing through resilience'
Our culture is obsessed with quantifiable success, status, and achievement. This obsession transcends work and is increasingly present in the rest of our lives. How do we create space for wellbeing and a sense of belonging? For failure and pain? And for healing and growth? Maastricht University wants to start a conversation and make a positive change.
Keynote speaker Yama Saraj
We are honoured to welcome Yama Saraj as our keynote speaker this year. He shares his story – from fleeing his home country Afghanistan to the Netherlands, to his own company, SensAI Technologies, gaining worldwide recognition.
In his speech, Saraj will delve into the existential crises faced by students, the societal pressures on academia to address social and environmental issues, and how academia can evolve to meet or change these demands. How can we combine critical thinking and celebrating our successes?
