Boots on campus? Perspectives on the militarization of the university

Thursday 12 November 2026, 12:45–14:45 | AZ8

From defense consortia to campus labs, military money is increasingly shaping research agendas — at Tilburg University, across the Netherlands, and throughout the European Union. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and the EU’s push to rearm, the relationship between national militaries and universities has grown closer, raising urgent questions about accountability, ethics, and responsibility. Who decides what universities study, and who answers when war enters the lecture hall?

We invite all members of Tilburg University and the broader non-academic community to join the discussion and ask questions.

Three invited speakers will share their viewpoints and respond to questions from the moderator and the audience:

• Dr. Ann-Katrien Oimann, Assistant Professor at the Tilburg Institute for Law, Technology, and Society (TILT)
• Dagmar Punter, PhD candidate in the TSHD Department of Communication and Cognition
• Juliana Könning, Vice President of the Landelijke Studentenvakbond (LSVb) Dutch Student Union

The roundtable will be moderated by Dr. Sean Smith, Assistant Professor in the Department of Culture Studies.

Hosted by the TSHD PhD Union and the Progressive Staff Alliance