Mirjam, to start at the beginning: what kind of work do you do exactly? 
As program manager at MindLabs, I am the connecting link between Tilburg University and the MindLabs ecosystem. The province of North Brabant and all 3 affiliated knowledge institutions - Fontys, Tilburg University and ROC Tilburg employ such a program manager. Every day on campus, I am looking for relevant researchers, students and teachers, enthusing them for MindLabs. I then help them set up research projects and apply for grants. Vice versa, of course, I also mediate; when there are questions to Tilburg University from MindLabs, I am the intermediary. 

Tilburg University currently still operates partly from the Deprez building. Why the decision to pack up your things soon and move into the MindLabs building? 
Just like all the other organizations moving into the new building, we want to become even more part of the ecosystem. Now we do that from the current MindLabs location across the street; the Deprez building. Tilburg University, specifically the Department of Cognitive Science and Artificial Intelligence, has been using this location since 2019. But there are more than 50 researchers attached to that department. Then the Deprez building is quite limited in terms of space. In the MindLabs new building, there is plenty of room to grow! The Deprez building does continue to be used by Tilburg University. But in the future, you will mainly encounter students from the Entrepreneurship & Business Innovation program. That way, it will still be an important place for MindLabs; entrepreneurs and start-ups are important pivots in our ecosystem. 

Are you moving alone? Or with colleagues? 
Everyone from Tilburg University may use our spaces in the MindLabs building, so we're moving with colleagues and students. Besides from the 30 new workstations, there will also be lecture halls and labs. So I definitely expect that we will see many Tilburg University students and employees there. 

Has Tilburg University collaborated with other MindLabs partners in the past? Or have you pinned your hopes on the new building? 
Obviously! Because the university is 1 of the 4 affiliated knowledge institutions, you can speak of a true partnership. Many MindLabs projects are run by Tilburg University researchers. And there are also examples of projects in which multiple partners work together. Spacebuzz, for example, of which publishing house Zwijsen is part. Or VIBE, in which we collaborate with Fontys Hogescholen. 

What is pre-eminently something that Tilburg University will add to the whole? 
Our labs. We are growing from 1 lab in the Deprez building to no less than 4 rooms in the new building. Because of that extra space, more researchers can use the lab. The equipment we have - including measuring instruments in the field of voice volume, voice use, heart rate and skin conductance and scanners concerning EEG - can rightly be called state-of-the-art. An addition for our region.

How does it feel when you walk past the construction site now?
To my great regret, I have not yet been able to make a tour of the scaffolding. But I have seen a lot of videos and photos. It is going to be so beautiful. I know this because of the sounding board group I was part of, in which we designed the new workplaces together with an interior designer and a number of future users from Tilburg University. We thought about the furniture and the color on the walls, among other things. In this way we tried to match the new workplace to the users as closely as possible. 

Where will you sit? What will your view be?  
You'll find the labs on the first floor, on either side of MindLabs building. The rest of our spaces are on the second floor. We're talking about about 30 workstations and also lecture rooms for about 200 students. Our view? Just about every part of the beautiful Spoorzone: from the roof garden of the new building to Stadstheater De Boemel. 

Have you met your new neighbors yet? Or have you yet to have your first cup of coffee? 
Actually, we are already neighbors. And those cups of coffee happen regularly. For example in the LocHal or with the entrepreneurs in Gebouw88! 

What plans do you hope to realize from your new accommodation? 
Teaching and research from a new, vibrant location. Teaching will not be able to move into the new MindLabs until early 2023 at the earliest, because the secretariat has to make the timetable for that period now, but the completion date of the new building has not yet been finalized. And so instead of aiming for the start of the new school year (September), we are aiming for the second part of the cohort. We will probably be able to move into our new labs before then, though.

Are the first boxes already packed? 
Not yet. Fortunately, the university does remain attached to the Deprez building, so we can move quietly when the new building is ready. 

It's time to wrap up. What's in store for you today? A little daydreaming about your upcoming workplace in the new building? Or are you too busy for that? 
On Wednesdays, I combine my work with motherhood. This morning I have another meeting with Ilse Souhail, the project manager of MasterMinds. MasterMinds is the collective name for 5 MindLabs projects funded from the RegioDeal; a pot of money for regional innovation. This afternoon the program includes piano lessons and a brisk walk. A bit of fitting and measuring, but it will be fine.