In 2019, ICIS, the International Centre for Integrated assessment and Sustainable development, moved from what was then the Faculty of Humanities and Sciences (now FSE) to the SBE, changing its name to MSI. The institute was thought a better match for the economists, whose strategy spearheads sustainability. Arrangements were made about how education – the Master’s programme Sustainability Science, Policy and Society – and research at MSI would be compensated. But that led to a lot of extra work for both the institute and faculty, the Faculty Board and MSI director Annemarie van Zeijl-Rozema said in an extra Faculty Council meeting, last Thursday.
A different way of working
On the table lay a proposal by the board to fully incorporate the MSI into the faculty. Among other things, this will mean that the institute will be treated in the same way financially as other departments at the SBE. They receive compensation for their education and research activities from a central faculty budget of government funds according to fixed ‘standard hours’.
Therin lies the rub for MSI, because according to the institute, that system doesn’t match its “interdisciplinary” way of working, said a written submission to Faculty Board in March. It takes more time than ‘ordinary’ research and (particularly) teaching, it said, but that is not taken into account when dividing the money.
That potentially leaves MSI with a hole in the budget – up to half a million euros a year, according to council documents. To compensate this deficit, the institute receives extra money in a ‘transition fund’ every year until 2028; the idea being that this will create enough room to change to a different of working. But the fear of the MSI board is that this ‘different way of working’ might lead to MSI staff giving up or moving jobs.
No real alternative
SBE dean Mariëlle Heijltjes acknowledged the MSI’s fears in the meeting. “We have heard them well,” she said. “We explicitly name them in our proposal, but we cannot necessarily allay them.” This may have led to questions in the council, but after a fairly tame debate, it agreed to the board’s proposal almost unanimously. Council member Marc Dijk, part of the MSI management team, abstained.
So now what? Accept reality and look to the future, Van Zeijl-Rozema told Observant. “There wasn’t really an alternative to this proposal. Other than quitting the partnership entirely. But who would benefit from that?” She is just pleased that something has been decided. “For a year and a half, MSI has been unable to make any strategic decisions. Or hold annual appraisals, because you can’t promise people anything if you don’t know where the organisation is even headed.”
She called the money pledged by the Faculty Board for strategic investments – a maximum of 1.5 million euros – “an important instrument to deal with the listed worries”. The strategic plans will be discussed today (Thursday).