Welcome to the DAD experience! To help you expand both your expertise and professional network, we offer a wide range of complimentary* supplemental programming alongside our outstanding courses at the Developing Across Differences Learning Lab & Community Week.
Once enrolled, you’ll have full access to the lineup of additional activities outlined below—all carefully curated to enhance the DAD experience.
Whether you’re looking to consolidate insights gained in the workshops, connect with individuals who share your interests, explore new topics, or simply have fun discovering this part of The Netherlands, we have options for you.

Mark your calendar with these activities to make the most of your time together with us.
Supplemental Programme:
- SUNDAY, 9 July (4:00-6:00 PM) Welcome & Networking Session
Join us to connect with your peers and begin the 2023 Learning Lab & Community Week - MONDAY, 10 July (6:00-7:15 PM) Experiential perspective-taking tour of Groningen
The University of Groningen’s Professor Anjana Singh and the IDD’s Nadine Binder lead this interactive walking tour through the city - TUESDAY, 11 July (7:00-9:30 PM) IDD Laboratory –BACKLASH: Working in a time of Anti-globalisation, Anti-Wokism, Anti-Immigration, Anti-Internationisation, and other “Anti” sentiments
Held in the University’s Aula (Grand Auditorium), all participating IDD faculty, participants, and invited guests are invited to take part in an interactive session in which a relevant real-life social challenge is examined from multiple Differences perspectives and interdisciplinary solutions are sought. LEARN MORE - WEDNESDAY, 12 July (6:00 PM) Dinner with the IDD Faculty
Your chance to break bread with faculty members whom you might not yet have had a chance to meet (‘Pay your own’ dinner at an affordable local restaurant) - THURSDAY, 13 July (6:00-7:15 PM) Timely Topics: Artificial Intelligence: Challenges and opportunities for us and our work
Guest expert(s) to be announced - FRIDAY, 14 July (4:30-6:00 PM) Closing & Networking Session
Mark the closing of 2023 Learning Lab & Community Week and connect with your peers - SATURDAY, 14 July (4:30-6:00 PM) Optional Black history tour of Amsterdam using the Anne Frank House Memory Walk methodology
(TBD, if 5 or more people sign up – Additional fee applies) - THROUGHOUT THE WEEK (times to be announced) Individual coaching sessions
IDD Coaches Dr. Nagesh Rao and Dr. Nadine Binder will once again offer 25-minute sessions in which you can reflect upon a question or topic of your choice. Sign up will be available on a first-come, first-served basis
Not yet enrolled? Register now and join us for a week of extraordinary skill-building, workshops and networking events this 10-15 July at the IDD’s 2023 European edition of the Developing Across Differences Learning Lab & Community Week in The Netherlands.
*Extended registration is open through 23 June.*
ABOUT GRONINGEN
DISCOVER INSIDER INFO ABOUT GRONINGEN

IDD INSIDER INTELL + LOCAL INFO
Mike Nike Windmüller was last year’s DAD coordinator and she recently completed her Master’s degree at the University of Groningen.
Although she’s now traveling the world, having been a full-time “Groninger” during her studies, she’s shared her comprehensive list of recommendations—best lunch spots, parks and outdoor activities, cultural opportunities, hidden gems, and more. Mike Nike’s insights will help you enjoy the city like a local during your free time.
With so much to see and do in this vibrant city, we highly recommend planning to arrive early or stay longer in the area.
We look forward to seeing you soon.
Mike Nike's tips and our local team will help you feel at home.
ART, MUSIC & CULTURAL INSTITUTIONS
- Known both for its colorful architecture and its local and international modern and contemporary art collections, the Groninger Museum is a summertime favorite.
- I’ve lived right on the water and suggest that you take a boat tour around the canal to peak into all my houseboat friends’ living rooms.
- Just like we did at last year’s Developing Across Differences Learning Lab & Community Week, we plan to have an experiential perspective-taking tour Groningen with the University of Groningen’s Anjana Singh and the IDD’s Nadine Binder to explore what the symbols all around us say about the city’s past, present and future.
- Last but not least, the Groninger Forum, a beautiful new “Library+,” is A MUST NOT A JUST! You can make a quick visit…or spend a whole day in there, work, eat, drink, read in the library, visit an exhibition or catch a film in the cinema. And don’t forget to enjoy the view of Groningen (including the famous Martini Tower) from the beautiful rooftop.

RESTAURANTS & CAFÉS
- Make sure to visit the Vismarkt on a Saturday to get THE BEST cake at the Taarterie de Dis stall in front of Claudia Sträter store- everyone who knows me, knows this is my absolute favourite and I might bump into you while you’re there.
- Folkingestraat for North African and Mediterranean yum go to the most beautiful shop Le souk.
- Folkingestraat for North African and Mediterranean yum go to the most beautiful shop Le souk.
- Or feel like at your Dutch parent’s kitchen when having cake at Toet (TOET het TOETjesparadijs)– sweet spot for people watching or a domino match upstairs?
- Dutch Sweets at Droppie (usually all families’ most appreciated (though sometimes scary when liquorice) souvenirs).
- Cheese, please! Plenty of vegan treats, too, at De Kaasboetiek Cheese Shop.

OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES & PARKS
- Hidden Theology Faculty Garden – Hidden behind an austere exterior are the beautiful inner gardens at the University – we held Dr Mai Nguyen’s Neuroscience class here last year and it’s a great place for a quiet lunch break.
- University Library terrace – There are lots of cafes for a coffee, tea or something stronger and you’re right next to the school where students come and go on their bikes.
- City Beach at the DoT Groningen – Yes! you can actually swim…plus grab a bite to eat, catch a film, or dance with DJs and live music.
- The canal around A-brug – This is a great place to start with a bike ride along the canal to circle the heart of Groningen.
- Noorderplantoen Park – Located where the ancient city walls are, you can chill out here in the sun to people watch or take a jog around the pond.

EVENING & NIGHTLIFE HOTSPOTS
- The rooftop of the Groninger Forum gives you a view of the city and beyond. Enjoy a nightcap or your evening coffee + free views…or even catch a film at the Rooftop Patio Cinema.
- For drinks, get lost in the biggest but coolest bar(s) – there are actually three of them – in the famous Drie Gezusters just off the Grote Markt marketplace.
- If performing arts are your thing, you have LOTS to choose from: Rock out at Stadspark concert venue (metal band Rammstein will be in town) or check out the Noord Nederlands Orkest orchestra for chamber music or contemporary dance at the heritage Stadsschouwburg or “Grande Dame” theatre
- Staying on in NL after the Learning Lab? You might want to check out the Hungry Wolf (Hongerige Wolf) Festival happening immediately afterward. Set in a, yep, sheep field!, you can see emerging talent in music, dance, theatre, film, visual art and literature.

SHOPPING & LOCAL TREATS
- Grote Markt (Great Market) and Vismarkt are the centre of town and generally the spot where you get all you need to live like a local.
- Vismarkt (Fish Market) runs three times a week and offers crazy cheap veggies, fruits, plants, etc. and, of course, fish!
- Souvenir shopping is done at Folkingestraat –don’t miss the hidden door opposite the Synagoge Groningen and ask synagogue staff to reveal its special story.
- If you like vintage and all things second-hand, go to Oosterstraat. Mamamini is the most famous “kringloop” (thriftshop) and is a general life saver for students or those new to the city. You can get everything for your home, garden, wardrobe, etc. here very affordably AND you support a good cause with your donation or purchase.
