The Young Academy Groningen (YAG) enters the year of its ninth anniversary. Founded with the aim of being a voice for early-career researchers, it serves as a network for this diverse group within the academic community. It is also a breeding ground for interdisciplinary ideas for research and university policy. Together with similar organizations at other universities and the national Young Academy of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW), they give a voice to a large group of young researchers in these challenging times. Challenges in terms of career prospects, social safety, rights for university lecturers, and impending budget cuts call for attention.
Three YAG board members - Naomi de Ruiter, Lukas Linsi, and Marcos Guimaraes - explain why the YAG is important for the UG, and for the academic world as a whole. Lukas is the chair of the YAG, Naomi focuses on interdisciplinarity, and Marcos focuses on science communication, among other things.