Dr. Anouk de Koning awarded with Urban Citizen Fellowship
Cultural Anthropologist dr. Anouk de Koning has been awarded the Urban Citizen Fellowship to carry out research about democratisation of local democracy in Amsterdam, together with dr. Nanke Verloo (Assistant Professor in Urban Planning and Conflict at the University of Amsterdam and dr. Markha Valenta (Assistant Professor in Political Science at Utrecht University). The UCF is a new initiative set up by the Municipality of Amsterdam and the Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study to stimulate the use of advanced research for political deliberation and public policy making.
The three social scientists receive a fellowship to carry out research relevant to the city of Amsterdam. In 2020 the central topic is the democratization of local democracy, which focuses on how citizens can increase their say in the city’s development. Anouk de Koning will focus on the ways in which local welfare policymakers and street-level professionals shape the relation between citizens and state. This research shows that welfare institutions and professionals need to be considered in processes of democratization.
Shaping relationships between state and citizens
De Koning will do so based on her earlier ethnographic research into youth and community work in Amsterdam South (2011-12) and the Parent and Child team in Amsterdam North (2017-18). She is particularly interested in how welfare professionals and institutions shape relationships between the state and citizens in the provision of services and services, and in tackling social problems. De Koning: "This is of particular interest in the light of the reforms of the welfare state, in which the government emphasises citizens' own responsibility, in an attempt to review the expectations of the state, and the relationship between state and citizens. This changing citizen-citizen relationship is reflected in community and youth work, and in the new youth system of which the Parent-Child team is a part, but not in the way it is set out in policy papers". This research shows that democratisation should also include welfare institutions and professionals.
Other research
From September, Dr. Nanke Verloo will take over as Urban Citizen Fellow, carrying out research on dissent, disagreement and protest. In February Dr. Markha Valenta will start her Urban Citizen Fellowship. She will examine how citizenship of undocumented migrants takes shape in the city of Amsterdam, and how they are approached as inhabitants of the city
Urban Citizen Fellows and NIAS-KNAW
The Urban Citizen Fellows will become member of the international and interdisciplinary community of NIAS, the oldest independent Institute for Advanced Study in Europe. The Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities and Social Sciences (NIAS-KNAW) stimulates interdisciplinary and curiosity-driven research. NIAS-KNAW offers temporary fellowships to renowned academics, journalists, artists and writers, who congregate in an environment where knowledge sharing is the main focus.