Northern Learning Community Participation and Collaborative Play launched

The kick-off of the Northern Learning Community on Participation took place on April 8, 2026. The learning community will be named '&SamenSpel' and is a multi-year, regional partnership focused on improving citizen participation in major societal challenges, such as the energy transition. This initiative is made possible by a multi-million investment from the Just Transition Fund Groningen-Emmen and aligns with the ambitions of the Northern Netherlands Cooperation Association (SNN) to strengthen the Northern Netherlands as a learning region.

The learning community was specifically established to bridge the gap between citizens, government, and professionals from education and business. By sharing practical experiences and developing effective participation processes, the &SamenSpel Learning Community strives for a region where government, education, business, and residents work together on societal challenges. Additionally, knowledge is directly applied in local projects, such as in the Groningen districts of Selwerd and Vinkhuizen, and around community tables in surrounding municipalities. In this way, participation becomes part of the DNA of society in the Northern Netherlands, in line with the ambitions of the participation policies of the participating municipalities and provinces.

Involved parties

The &SamenSpel Learning Community is a collaboration between a large number of parties. The knowledge institutions University of Groningen, Hanze, NHL Stenden, and DC-Terra, the municipalities of Westerkwartier, Groningen, and Emmen, and the provinces of Groningen and Drenthe are involved. Gasunie and Bureau EMMA also participate, alongside local projects and innovation trajectories in the region.

Projects and focus areas

The &SamenSpel learning community focuses on:

• Practice-oriented knowledge development: research into effective methods for citizen participation, in collaboration with the Wubbo Ockels School and Hanze Research.
• Local application: direct implementation of acquired knowledge in projects, such as participation processes and community consultation tables in municipalities in the Northern Netherlands.
• Development of modular education from secondary vocational education to university education and retraining, upskilling, and continuing education for future professionals, together with monitoring programs.
• Symposia and knowledge sharing: organization of meetings and an online portal to share experiences.

Furthermore, a knowledge base and an (online) participation platform will be established, where everyone (citizens, governments, knowledge institutions, and businesses) can find the methodologies, processes, etc. From the very start of the project, the possibility of eventually applying the knowledge and experience gained in the Northern Netherlands to other regions was anticipated; therefore, connections with a national knowledge platform for participation, the Kennisknooppunt Participatie, are being actively sought from the outset.

Financing

The learning community receives support from the Just Transition Fund (JTF). JTF is a European grant program that helps regions transition to a climate-neutral (green) economy.