Innovaties in de afzonderlijke transportmodaliteiten en in synchromodaal vervoer bieden mogelijkheden om transport efficiënt, flexibel, betrouwbaar en duurzaam te organiseren en daarmee in te spelen op de (individuele) wensen van de klant en specifieke netwerkomstandigheden (groot onderhoud, verstoringen). Deze innovaties leiden tot een verbetering van de concurrentiepositie van Nederland. Voordat innovatieve maatregelen geïmplementeerd worden is het nodig bewustwording te creëren, inzicht te bieden in effecten en draagvlak bij betrokken marktpartijen voor o.a. de benodigde samenwerking te creëren. Het doel van dit project is het identificeren van de (combinaties van) maatregelen voor verbetering van efficiëntie, betrouwbaarheid, flexibiliteit en duurzaamheid van logistieke ketens die het meest effectief zijn en het creëren van draagvlak bij betrokken partijen die de maatregel(en) met elkaar moeten implementeren. Hiertoe wordt onderzoek gedaan naar synchromodale planningsalgoritmes, zo mogelijk in real-time, data-driven simulaties, en serious games voor samenwerking en situational awareness waarmee de maatregelen ontworpen en getest kunnen worden. Het belangrijkste resultaat van het project is dat partijen betere en gedragen (unimodele, multimodale of synchromodale) oplossingen kiezen doordat in een theoretische omgeving reeds geëxperimenteerd is met maatregelen en deze door de (markt)¬partijen uitvoerig zijn besproken en bijgesteld. In dit project wordt niet alleen een vervolg gegeven aan de innovatie-community van samenwerkende marktpartijen en overheden die in het IDVV project rond het verbeteren van de binnenvaartketen is ontstaan, maar wordt tevens een impuls gegeven aan de innovatie-community rond de spoorgoederentafel en zal de innovatie-community rond synchromodaal vervoer (die er nu nog niet echt is) mede worden vormgegeven.

The DBHC is a group of 30+ scientists with an interdisciplinary research program on black holes. In our project we develop new technologies to observe black holes with telescopes - both above ground (Event Horizon Telescope) and underground (Einstein Telescope). In order to determine the correct location for the Einstein Telescope, we simultaneously study the geology of the Limburger soil. Above all, we try to answer deep theoretical and astronomical questions about space and time! There will also be a public app, which anyone can use to hunt for black holes, and an educational project for students. Read more: www.dbhc.nl

Aerosols are small particles in the atmosphere with diverse size, shape and chemical composition that affect climate, human health and energy production. Global aerosol simulations will be conducted in order estimate more accurately the aerosol emissions by combining model and observational data, a process known as data assimilation. In addition, global simulations will be used to assess the biomass burning aerosols over the Arctic for the past decades (1970-2020). Further, regional high resolution simulation will be used to assess the climate impacts of biomass burning aerosols.

The basic question addressed by this proposal is: what will be the influence of future Arctic climate changes on the Netherlands and how will this impact Dutch policy? The first part is subdivided into two (interrelated) questions: 1) how does Arctic climate change affect the climate of Western Europe (WE) and the Netherlands (NL), 2) to what extent does Arctic climate change provide opportunities for Dutch socio-economic activities in the Arctic (e.g. oil/gas exploration and exploitation, fishery, shipping and transport, tourism), and how does this pose challenges for potentially vulnerable ecosystems with possible impacts on biodiversity. Both issues will impact Dutch policy: 1) WE/NL climate change, affected by specific changes in the Arctic, will directly affect climate scenarios used for Dutch adaptation/mitigation policies. Recent studies suggest that Arctic-induced changes (both in means and extremes) on WE/NL climate might be substantial. However, significant uncertainties remain, which warrants a thorough quantification including uncertainty estimates. 2) Since the Arctic currently undergoes rapid climate changes that may lead to an ice-free summer Arctic possibly within one or two decades, policy measures related to rapid socio-economic and ecological changes in the Arctic, in terms of their desirability and sustainable nature, will probably need to be amended quickly. This study will provide climatological boundary conditions to forthcoming Arctic activities and influences by using a variety of existing high-quality climate model output, state-of-the-art climate models and novel modeling techniques, to accurately quantify Arctic climate change and its impacts on WE/NL climate relevant to Arctic policy measures.

Water management in a densely populated area with a strong interplay between meteorological, hydrological and socio-economic drivers is a complex topic. In order to guarantee the supply of water, and to avoid drought and flood damage an efficient system of weather forecasting, impact assessment and hydrological engineering is required. Even in a well-developed country as The Netherlands the current operational systems still lack skill and appropriate interconnectivity to ensure efficient water management at various time and spatial scales. Apart from precipitation, uncertainty in surface evaporation forms a strong bottleneck for water management at local, regional and national scale. The proposed research focuses on enhancing the added value of available observations and medium- to seasonal range weather forecasts of particularly evaporation and related quantities (soil moisture, ground water, streamflow, lake levels). It will develop an upgraded monitoring and forecasting system for surface evaporation, using a scientific methodology to reduce existing gaps between different modelling and observational approaches. The system will be demonstrated in a case study area that is governed by the complex interactions determining water supply and demand.