My Perspectivity journey started during my first and only philosophical crisis to date. In 2006, I signed up for a Master in International Relations & Diplomacy after completing five years of engineering. I arrived in my new town Leiden confident that I, as a solid engineer, would teach “those alphas” about true science. I had learnt in Delft about the unquestionable laws of nature. Something is true, or it is not. In Leiden, on the contrary, I soon discovered that my engineering toolbox was insufficient to understand political and social systems. The laws of nature do not hold: all actors view the system differently, their views drive their behavior, and their behavior defines the system.
It was unsettling for a while to realize that there was ‘no single answer’. It gradually made me realize the importance of being able to see the world through someone else’s eyes: the activity of seeking perspective.
Through my friend and former colleague Hein Oomen, I met Hans Keijzer who founded Perspectivity. At the time, he had little more than a vague plan: to do something with dialogue and scenario-thinking and improve the world. I got intrigued because of his unconditional commitment behind that vague plan.
Today, I am chairman of the board of the Perspectivity foundation and have been part of an amazing growth journey: growth for Perspectivity as an organization, and in parallel lots of personal growth for myself.
It is great to be part of a group of people showing great commitment, who are open in their interactions and have a common goal: how do we improve our collective navigation of the complexity of modern life? I am learning every day.