Who are the people who study and work at TU Delft? We meet them in Humans of TU Delft where they talk about their work or other activities. Studying, being the chairwoman of STIP and serving on the Delft city council keeps Michelle Corten very busy. But this biomechanical engineering master’s student is not slowing down, as she seeks re-election in March.
Michelle Corten van Stip: "We zijn iets progressiever dan de andere, oudere partijen." (Foto: Heather Montague)
“I have been involved with STIP for three and a half years. I started on the campaign committee during the last campaign and two years later they asked me if I wanted to be a city council member.
I really believe in what STIP is doing. I think it’s amazing that they find so many young people to do this because if you’re a student you risk living in a bubble. I think most people in Delft don’t know that what the city council does really affects them. Politics in The Hague are very visible, but here it’s about supermarkets staying open later, or where cafés are located. Within STIP the people are just really open-minded, they’re not stuck to a big party and are young and positive.
We want to work together more with research institutions such as TU Delft
Being on the council, I have learned a lot. Mostly that everyone works together very well. Even if your views are very different you need to find one answer in every situation. I really like that when we are sitting in the official city council role you can be very firm with each other, but afterwards you go get a drink and talk to each other and find out about each other.
One of the main topics for us right now is sustainability and making sure we do everything we can to be CO2 neutral in 2050. The plans we have now are not achieving that. We also want to work together more with research institutions such as TU Delft. We see that there are some issues around sustainability and health care that are not taking advantage of the knowledge there, so we’re working on that.
I’ve really been inspired by my experience with STIP and I think everyone should do it. You meet so many people. Yesterday I was with a group of entrepreneurs and the week before that I was with a group of homeless people and people with special needs. It’s so interesting to meet different people and think about how I can help them.”
This Humans is part of an election series on TU Delft students and employees who are active in local politics. Local elections are held on March 21st. Also read about student Timo Tӧns, who is also running for city council.
Do you want to be featured in Humans of TU Delft? Or do you know someone with a good story to tell? Send us an e-mail at humansoftudelft@gmail.com!
Heather Montague / Freelance writer
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