We are proud to share that Paul de Graaf of the Rural Sociology Group will be defending his PhD thesis entitled “Trying the impossible. Urban agriculture as an alternative planning reality”.
📅 When: 14 September 2026 at 15:30 📍 Where: Omnia Auditorium, Wageningen Campus & online streaming
𝗔𝗯𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁 How can civic initiatives contribute to the spatial planning of the city? Reflecting on the rise and demise of the Rotterdam urban agriculture planning policy with planners and initiators, Paul de Graaf studied the planning processes surrounding the realisation of civic urban agriculture initiatives.
Focusing on the interaction between planners and initiators in these processes, the thesis shows that bottom-up initiatives can contribute to planning on different levels. They engage in an exchange of ideas with municipal planners and their departments that invokes innovative ways to plan and think of planning. However, this experimental ‘alternative planning reality’ exists parallel to regular municipal planning practice.
Persistent, structurally embedded ways of thinking in planning inhibit the transfer of lessons learnt to regular planning practice. A better understanding of the role and significance of civic initiatives in planning may reveal pathways toward a planning practice capable of addressing the challenges of our time in a complex and pluralistic society.
🔔 For those unable to attend in person, the ceremony will also be livestreamed via: https://wur.yuja.com. A link will appear in the “Event” section approximately 5 minutes before the start of the ceremony.
We’re pleased to welcome Giacomo Giulietti to the Rural Sociology Group as a visiting scholar from the University of Perugia, Italy. Giacomo is a PhD candidate whose research explores the role of local food systems in fostering sustainable development and territorial regeneration in rural, peripheral and internal areas. His research is grounded in the South-West Orvietano Internal Area in Umbria, Italy, with a particular focus on the Valle del Chiani. During his time at RSO, he is further developing his work on local food systems and Alternative Food Networks, while engaging with broader debates on food system transformation, rural development and food governance.
Research focus
Giacomo’s research focuses on how the reorganisation of local food systems and Alternative Food Networks can strengthen territorial resilience, support local agricultural production, and reconnect food, communities and territories. His work also examines how farmers, consumers, public institutions and civil society can contribute to developing more sustainable and locally embedded food systems.
His research brings a perspective on local food systems and territorial change to broader debates in rural sociology, food system transformation, rural development and food governance, connecting insights from his case study in Umbria to wider theoretical and comparative discussions.
Current work at RSO
During his visiting stay at the Rural Sociology Group, Giacomo is further developing the theoretical framework of his PhD research on local food systems and Alternative Food Networks in rural and internal areas. He aims to deepen his understanding of current debates on food system transformation, rural development and food governance, while exploring different perspectives on community engagement and participatory approaches.
This visit also provides an opportunity to exchange ideas with researchers working on related topics and to place his case study within a broader international research context.
Why RSO and Wageningen?
Giacomo was drawn to Wageningen for its strong expertise in food systems, rural development and the social dimensions of agricultural and territorial change. The themes addressed within RSO, particularly food provisioning and rural development, closely connect with his PhD research on local food systems and Alternative Food Networks in internal areas.
This visit offers valuable opportunities to engage with different theoretical perspectives, exchange ideas with an international research community and further develop his research within a stimulating interdisciplinary environment.
Beyond research
Outside his academic and professional work, Giacomo enjoys spending time outdoors, especially walking and exploring rural and natural areas. He has a particular interest in maps, rural landscapes and the history of traditional rural buildings. He also enjoys researching the stories behind old farmhouses, agricultural structures and traces of past land use.
Yoshida Shrine and reflections on field work in Kyoto
It is a hot day in Kyoto city. The heat and incessant sound of Cicadas (蝉, Semi) indicate the end of the rainy season and start of the summer heat in Japan. Notorious for its high temperatures and high humidity, we were warned prior to our arrival that we should brace ourselves for this warm period. Usually running from half July to half September, because Kyoto is surrounded by high hills, the summer period in the city is often described as more intense compared to other cities in Japan. The heat becomes trapped in the urban maze and lingers around with little room to escape.
After a day in the air-conditioned office, before going home I figured to visit the Yoshida shrine close to the Kyoto University campus. Before exiting the air-conditioned office, I took a moment to brace myself for the one-two punch of heat and humidity that is forced upon you. Walking out of the Law and Economics faculty building, I have quickly found an optimal route through buildings and under trees to reach the campus gate. From here on out, the sun hits the tarmac with no shade in sight, so I am forced to face the heat head on. Taking a sharp left, I am greeted by a large vermilion Torii（鳥居) gate, which indicates a boundary between the mundane physical realm and the spiritual realm. Inconveniently, this Torii gate first leads to a parking lot from where you can see the stairs going up a hill to the first actual shrine area. Dragging myself over the parking lot, the spiritual realm does not offer any relief in temperature so far.
We’re delighted to share that the call for panels, roundtables, workshops, and tutorials is now open for the XXI IASC Biennial Conference, taking place 21–25 June 2027 in Makassar, Indonesia, with opportunities for online participation.
We’re especially proud that our colleague Oona Morrow is serving on the programme committee, reviewing submissions for the Food as a Commons theme.
This theme challenges the dominant view of food as a commodity and instead explores food as a shared resource that is governed collectively, valued beyond markets, and essential for social and ecological justice. It welcomes contributions on topics including: >> Governance and institutions for food commons >> Shifting narratives and values around food >> Decolonial, Global South, and more-than-human perspectives on food systems
Regional examples from Indonesia and neighbouring countries are particularly encouraged, alongside cross-thematic collaborations.
The theme aims to bring together evidence from food commons initiatives worldwide while co-developing policy proposals for Universal Food Access and strengthening North–South and South–South collaborations.
🗓️ Submission deadline:12 August 2026
Please note that this is not the call for individual papers, but for those wishing to organise panels, roundtables, workshops, or tutorials.
We encourage our network of researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and community partners to consider contributing to this important conversation on resilience, collective action, and the future of food systems.
Discussies over het landelijk gebied gaan vaak over cijfers, modellen en beleid. Maar achter deze discussies staan mensen: bewoners en professionals die zich dagelijks inzetten voor verbeteringen in hun gebied. Vanuit dit idee nam onze collega Marleen het initiatief voor een nieuwe verhalenbundel die juist de menselijke kant van gebiedsgericht werken laat zien.
Over de bundel
De bundel verzamelt de ervaringen van mensen die werken én wonen in verschillende gebieden in Zuid-Holland. Vanuit hun eigen rol dragen zij actief bij aan de ontwikkeling van hun omgeving.
In plaats van abstracte analyses laat de bundel zien wat er speelt in de praktijk: van samenwerking en idealen tot dilemma’s en spanningen. Tegelijk biedt de bundel waardevolle inzichten voor iedereen die werkt aan gebiedsgerichte opgaven. De bundel nodigt uit om met een open en nieuwsgierige blik te kijken naar de perspectieven van anderen — niet alleen als professional, maar juist ook als mens.
“Gebiedsgericht werken is geen wondermiddel. Het legt een zware druk op de schouders van de betrokkenen: boeren, ambtenaren en natuurorganisaties. Tegelijkertijd wemelt het landelijke gebied van initiatieven. Zoals een boer vertelt: ‘We moeten ons pad blijven volgen – laten zien dat wij ook natuurbeheer kunnen doen.’”
In gesprek met Marleen
Waarom heb je dit initiatief genomen? Ik werkte al een tijdje met narratieve interviews, ook met studenten, en zag hoe krachtig deze vorm van verhalen vertellen is in een wereld waarin cijfers en technische oplossingen vaak domineren. Vanuit dat idee wilde ik verhalen verzamelen, die de zachte, menselijke kant van gebiedsgericht werken laat zien. Het idee was om persoonlijke verhalen van bewoners, boeren, ambtenaren en andere betrokkenen samen te brengen, zodat praktijkervaringen zichtbaar en bespreekbaar worden.
Wat maakt deze verhalen belangrijk in het huidige debat? Het debat over het landelijk gebied is vaak polariserend. Daardoor raken constructieve worstelingen en positieve initiatieven van mensen onderbelicht. Deze bundel laat zien dat er bereidheid is om nieuwe, duurzamere manieren van samenwerken te zoeken. Het biedt een realistisch én hoopvol beeld van wat er daadwerkelijk gebeurt en hoe het anders kan.
Wat hoop je dat lezers meenemen? Ik hoop dat lezers een genuanceerd beeld krijgen van alle pogingen die via gebiedsgericht werken worden ondernomen om verandering te realiseren. Hopelijk inspireren de verhalen het landelijke beleid om de condities te scheppen die deze initiatieven ondersteunen, zodat natuur en landbouw beter kunnen samenwerken in stad en land.
Van cijfers naar verhalen
Volgens Marleen biedt de bundel een belangrijk tegenwicht in een tijd waarin discussies over het landelijk gebied vaak polariserend zijn. Door persoonlijke verhalen centraal te stellen, ontstaat meer begrip voor de mensen achter de opgaven én voor de complexiteit van gebiedsgericht werken.
De bundel is ontwikkeld binnen het actieleertraject Gebiedsgericht Werken van ACCEZ, dat gestart is bij het Zuid-Hollands Programma Landelijk Gebied. Hier staan samen leren en reflecteren centraal—essentieel voor effectieve samenwerking in gebiedsprocessen en voor de ontwikkeling van een vitaal landelijk gebied.
Verhalen spelen daarin een sleutelrol. Ze helpen ervaringen te delen, perspectieven zichtbaar te maken en verbinding te creëren tussen betrokkenen.
De bundel is mogelijk gemaakt vanuit ACCEZ, waarin onder andere Wageningen University & Research als partner betrokken is. Zo wordt wetenschappelijke kennis verbonden met praktijkervaringen in het landelijk gebied—zodat professionals leren van analyses én van elkaar.
Praktische informatie
De bundel wordt vandaag gelanceerd tijdens de Gebiedendag van de Provincie Zuid-Holland.
Rural Sociology Wageningen University 