Bram de Vos has decided to step down as director of the Environmental Sciences Group (ESG) at Wageningen University & Research (WUR) from 1 April 2025. He is taking a sabbatical and will not return to Wageningen after that. After more than nine years as director, he wants to hand over the baton and feels that now is a natural time to stop.
Bram de Vos: 'I will turn 65 in December. I had always planned to retire a bit earlier. This decision, though, is personal. I am still in good health now, so I can still do many active things. This is a good time for me to hand over the baton.
I look back on a good and challenging period at ESG. We enjoy working on important themes, including biodiversity and scenario development about climate towards the future. Think for instance of the project 'the Netherlands in 2120', which also received, and is still receiving, a lot of attention in society.'
Impactful science
Sjoukje Heimovaara is chair of WUR's Executive Board and understands De Vos' decision: 'We thank Bram for his important contribution to ESG and WUR. During a turbulent time, Bram steered ESG into a stable and prosperous future. Under his leadership, ESG made impactful scientific contributions to increasingly pressing issues around climate change and biodiversity loss. It is sad for us, as colleagues, to have to say goodbye to Bram. He is very knowledgeable and pleasant to work with. We wish him and his loved ones all the best during his sabbatical and retirement.'
Bram de Vos will continue to lead ESG in the coming months. Meanwhile, the search for a new managing director has started in order to ensure a smooth transition from Bram to his successor.
