Diversity and Unity – Politics and Migration in the Netherlands

Information Sessions for Summer II 2024:

Monday, Nov. 20, 8 pm, Virtual via Zoom

Wednesday, Nov. 29, 4 pm, RP 909

This program provides students with an in-depth, experiential introduction to comparative local and national politics, focusing on the development of politics in the Netherlands and in the city of Rotterdam in an increasingly globalized era. While the program will take short trips around the region, this dialogue is focused on giving students a strong sense of place and an understanding of how politics play out on the local level, in the unique, diverse city of Rotterdam. One course examines the political institutions and developments that have led to the current Dutch model of democracy and the rise of Rotterdam as a global city. The other course focuses on immigration, looking at how recent waves of migration came about and examining the political and social questions raised by significant demographic change, in the context of a relatively wealthy and open society.

The dialogue emphasizes interacting directly with politicians and leaders in civil society engaged in everyday politics as well as with the integration of the Netherlands’ large immigrant-origin population, at all levels of government from Rotterdam’s neighborhoods to the national and EU level. Students will also have a chance to experience some of the highlights of the Netherlands’ public cultural heritage, with a particular focus on how museums create, sustain, and allow for changes in national identity (especially but not only the Rijksmuseum, the Tropenmusem, and Belgium’s Royal Museum for Central Africa). The program will give students an in-depth, experiential introduction to how policy and politics are conducted in the Netherlands, focused on one of the most salient issues facing the Netherlands (and many other countries) today.