Making TU Delft internationals feel at home is at the heart of the community organization Delft Project. Founded by the Immanuelkerk Delft (Reformed Church), the group strives to serve the international student community by creating connections with the local community.
Delft Project started in 2012, several years after the church bought the facility on Schoemakerstraat in Delft. “We realized being on the edge of the campus put us in a unique position,” said Senior Pastor Simon van der Lugt. “We started thinking, is there anything we can do to welcome internationals and how can we show hospitality?” So the project began by offering programmes aimed at English speakers from abroad.
One of their main initiatives has been a programme they call Feel at Home. It is like a buddy programme, where international students are paired up with Dutch families. Van der Lugt said the families open their homes, invite students for dinner and even take them places to help acquaint them with local culture. “It helps them to build a connection, and experience how Dutch people, as Christians, behave in our society,” he said. They currently have about 25 students involved in this programme, which can result in either short-term or long-term relationships with the host families.
From September to June, Delft Project also hosts a series of intercultural evenings. These events include dinner and usually focus on a different theme each time. Topics can range from Dutch holiday celebrations to cultural events. They recently hosted an evening focused on the refugee crisis where some local residents from Sudan prepared the meal and attendees discussed the current events. This event was a joint effort with the International Office of TU Delft.
Rahul Thorat, a civil engineering PhD candidate from India, is one of the coordinators/volunteers for Delft Project. He said he feels more integrated with Dutch society as a result of participating in the international cultural evenings and other events. “The PhD at TU Delft is enriching but demanding work. Similarly, staying in the Netherlands is wonderful, however, I do miss my family,” he said. “For the international students and researchers like me, the Delft Project provides the home away from home experience.”
Van der Lugt said that they currently have about 40-50 international students actively involved with the Delft Project, including people from China, India and different parts of Africa. For more information on upcoming events visit www.delftproject.nl.
This is part of our ongoing series Meet The Society which highlights different student groups and societies at TU Delft. If you’d like to suggest an organisation for us to cover, please email us at deltainternational@tudelft.nl.
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