The INITIATE Consortium Welcomes its First MSc Intern To the TNO Premises in Den Haag

At the beginning of February, our project partner TNO has welcomed Jesse Claessen to its premises in Den Haag (NL). Jesse is the first MSc intern within the framework of the INITIATE project.

The internship, which will last 5 months, is focusing on strategic business challenges in scaling up industrial symbiosis and it will be carried out at the TNO Strategic Business Analysis Department under the supervision of Andrea Kerstens. The internship’s goal is to identify the strategic challenges companies must face when considering industrial symbiosis options developed within INITIATE and INITIATE-related projects.

Jesse is currently finishing his studies in Science, Management and Innovation at the Radboud University in Nijmegen (NL), a special MSc dedicated to gaining a deeper insight into natural sciences (Physical Chemistry) while acquiring new skills in sustainability, economics and social research tools to be applied in the sustainable business world. When choosing his MSc, Jesse said he was “driven by the desire to deepen his knowledge on the societal, environmental and managerial components within social questions”.

“There are different reasons why I applied for this internship. First, I have a strong interest in sustainability and solutions to make the world a better place for future generations. Thanks to the INITIATE project, we can develop a more efficient, with lower emissions, process to produce urea, contributing to reducing our impact on the environment. Secondly, the innovative solution used by the INITIATE technology is based on chemical processes. Therefore, I can still use the chemical knowledge I have gained during my academic career. Last but not least, the project is multi-disciplinary, which fits perfectly with my master’s program”, said Jesse.

Each INITIATE R&D partner has committed to offering MSc students a series of internships within the framework of our project. These internship opportunities are aimed at giving MSc students the chance to explore an industry developing industrial symbiosis process and get acquainted with our project, thereby broadening their academic horizons. The internships will have different durations and will be divided up into 2 phases: the field phase and the writing phase. During the field phase, the interns will be given the chance to explore the work field of our R&D partners and apply the knowledge acquired during their study in practice. During the writing phase, the interns will be writing a final report in close cooperation with their supervisors, which will be presented to other students or external stakeholders during tailored-made events.

Welcome to the INITIATE consortium, Jesse! We very much look forward to seeing the outcome of your internship experience with us.