In the previous newsletter we shared an interview with Denise Harkema, the programme manager of the Knowledge Centre. Now, just before the summer, we are sharing a final interview with Els Rutten, our policy officer from the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management.
Good afternoon Els, thank you for introducing yourself today. Could you tell us a little bit about yourself?
Yes, definitely! I am Els, 28 years old and live in Amsterdam. I have a study background in Political Science and Public Administration (governing safety) and have been working at the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management since 2018. I work for the Directorate for Environmental Safety and Environmental Risks (OenM), and there I work within the task area Companies, where I and my colleagues deal with the safety of (petro)chemical companies. In my spare time, I cook (vegetarian) and I love walking and sports.
As a policy officer at IenW, you have a diverse range of tasks. Could you tell us more about that? How does the SDN fit in?
As mentioned earlier, I work in the Businesses division of the OenM Directorate. There I work, of course, on the Safety Delta Netherlands and also on the External Safety Register, a system that ensures that information on external safety risks is stored centrally and made available. In addition to my policy dossiers, I have also been a member of the Works Council of the IenW Core Department since April 2021. I represent the young employees of IenW in the Works Council and work on issues relating to personnel and organisation.
Safety Delta Nederland was created as part of the Sustainable Safety 2030 Programme. You were also involved in this. How did you experience the process from DV2030 to SDN?
I am glad that I have been involved in DV2030 since 2019, because of this I know the history that preceded the SDN very well. Of course, it is great if such a temporary programme leads to the establishment of an organisation in which there is a structural desire to continue cooperation in the field of safety in the (petro)chemical sector.
What gives you energy to work with Safety Delta Netherlands?
What gives me energy is the conviction that the SDN can really make a difference when it comes to safety in the (petro)chemical industry. A great deal is happening in the Netherlands in the area of safety and the SDN can facilitate the bringing together of all the various initiatives and efforts. I believe that if we succeed in this, we can really mean something for all parties in the SDN, so not only industry, but also the government and science. The cooperation between these three parties can strengthen all parties, I think.
What are the biggest opportunities and challenges in the coming period?
I see the greatest opportunities in the area of marketing and general awareness of the SDN. I hope that more and more people will be able to find us and that we will be able to offer them something that really benefits them. I think that is also the challenge, especially in these times when a lot of things are done from home, it is difficult to involve new people in our initiative. Hopefully, this will change after the summer and we will be able to go into action!
And if we look briefly ahead, what would you like to achieve with the SDN after the summer?
After the summer I want to have a well-functioning online environment. That means a website, a technology catalogue and an SDN Academy. If this is successful, we will really have something to offer people, namely a place where all the knowledge in the field of safety in the (petro)chemical industry comes together. I am confident that this can be achieved, because the entire SDN team is working with great enthusiasm on the further development of the SDN.
17 June 2021
