Inspiring people @WUR: Rob Manders

When Rob Manders joined WUR in 2019, it felt like a homecoming. He had attended secondary school and studied in Wageningen, and – after his military service – had also worked here, in the field of Agricultural Knowledge and Information Systems. “After that, I entered the corporate world as a knowledge expert, and stayed there for 30 years. But I wanted to once again engage with content more, and then this job came along. It was a great opportunity.” As a business analyst, Manders mainly supports researchers: what do they need to be able to perform their tasks well and what processes does this require?

Having experienced so many businesses and other organisations first-hand, Manders believes that WUR is doing quite well by comparison when it comes to diversity and inclusion. “If I look at other large organisations, WUR has a structure, there are programmes, there are protocols for all kinds of things, including social safety. The message is clearly there, but it is not perfect. Too little is being done to keep things going, and the group of people responsible for doing so is actually too small.”

How would you like to improve this?

“That is a difficult question. We are dealing with many different individuals. It is the people that make the organisation, and that is where it should stick. This applies to the whole of society, by the way. These days, with growing polarisation, these are difficult discussions to have. That is not something you can change as a university. To move forward with such a heavy and unwieldy ship – an oil tanker – as a university is extremely difficult.”

“But it's also about having the courage to take steps. I was involved in a project on how to make the systems within WUR more inclusive by managing gender better. Why don't we use gender-neutral correspondence in communication with students and employees? I made a list of all the things that could be adjusted. The impact of doing so is minimal; it is not that controversial. It would have allowed us to take a step, but then it doesn't happen. Supposedly because there are other priorities, but that is nonsense, because it can be done easily and in no time. It is unfortunate that this kind of decisiveness is lacking.”

You acted as social safety guide for a time. What does that mean?

“It was a project on diversity and inclusion within WUR. One of the elements was the social safety guide: the idea was to make it easier for colleagues to find their way around if they had a problem. You can go to the ombudsperson or a confidential counsellor, but they are often hard to find. A social safety guide is an accessible first point of contact, someone who can help you figure out where to go with your problem. But at some point, that project was terminated. As a social safety guide, I banged the drum quite a bit. At many big sessions within the organisation, I asked for five minutes to tell my story. And it worked. People still know where to find me, even if I no longer have that official role.”

Where does your engagement with this topic come from?

“Discrimination is often about people being different. I am non-binary, gender fluid, so I recognise the issues facing this group. In the course of my career, I spent a lot of time in the IT world. That is really a men's stronghold, with a very different atmosphere, for example in the kind of humour in the workplace. I always tried to speak up, and to explain things. Telling the story helps. For example, I wear nail polish. People have questions about it, and that gives me the opportunity to explain. We need more of that kind of dialogue, talking to each other about these things. Then you can see that different is not scary. Because fear plays an important role.”

Do you feel like a kind of ambassador or advocate?

“I do try to be one. I think it's important to keep telling the story. It is not a choice; you are who you are and you want to belong. You try to express that, and then hope for some empathy and tolerance. It's fine to say you don't get it, but don't start nagging about how it should not be allowed.”

Did you get that kind of reaction at WUR?

“Not often, but that might also have to do with my age. I hear from students I know via Shout, the queer community association, that such things are being said, even by students among themselves. I once did a poll on this topic among first-year students during some lectures. You get responses like ‘stop talking nonsense; there are only two genders and I come here to study’. So there are still groups that are not open to tolerance or empathy for another group.”

You mentioned Shout briefly. That is a platform in which you feel personally involved. What does Shout do?

“Shout is an association for the entire queer community of Wageningen and its surroundings, with many student members. It was started by the gay group in Wageningen, back when I was a student here. We have parties that are open to all, that are attracting more and more non-queer people. That's fine, because they do get the message.”

You are also involved in the Freedom Tours.

“I'm giving another tour tomorrow morning. I was involved in the co-creation process to set up the Freedom Tours. It is an initiative of a department of the University. Wageningen is, of course, the city of liberation, which is why we adopted the theme of freedom. What we do is we map all the freedoms you have. And we do so at a particular location. Freedom of speech we map at the market, for example. We have a story about it, which we tell through the lens of gender and sexuality.”

In this way, you are very active around the theme of diversity and inclusion. Not only in your immediate working environment, but also more broadly.

“By telling your own story you invite people to share theirs. That way a dialogue emerges, and you become more understanding of each other. It works. That is why I think it is important to engage in this kind of dialogue much more often, because when you talk about it openly, you can achieve much more. That is why I am active at Shout and with the Freedom Tours.”

It is WUR's vision that it does not matter who you love or what language you speak. What's your perspective on this official view?

“I subscribe to it, of course. But that is not the case for everyone who walks around at WUR. As Executive Board, you can say that this is important and that it is our standard. That does not mean that someone who comes here to study believes it too. Which is fine, but it is all about how you behave once you're here. You should not make it difficult for others. But you always have individuals who disregard that, who refuse to follow the rules and want to make a statement. I have to be honest: it also happens within the queer community. There too, there are individuals who insist on making a statement and do so in excessive ways that in turn disturb other people. It's about being respectful and accepting each other as we are.”