Zoöp Nieuwe Instituut

Nieuwe Instituut has been a Zoöp since the spring of 2022. An organisation that operates as a Zoöp also includes non-human voices and interests in its decision-making and working methods. Through small and large interventions, the Nieuwe Instituut Zoöp wants to contribute to a liveable world in which humans have an equal relationship with animals, plants, microbes and other life forms.

Speaker for the Living

Specifically, it means that a dedicated, independent advisor has been added to the organisation to actively represent the interests of the ecosystems in which the Zoöp participates and to ensure that they are involved in decision-making and organisational processes. The person with this role is called the Speaker for the Living.

With a signature and a symbolic thumbprint in the soil of the New Garden, landscape architect Maike van Stiphout took up her role as Speaker for the Living for the Nieuwe Instituut Zoöp on 22 April 2022. In this role, she regularly consults with the board of directors, management and a delegation from all the departments and teams in the organisation to ensure that the non-human interest is always taken into account in policy and operations.

Environmental impact

For the Nieuwe Instituut, this means, for example, that we are working to develop the ‘life-supporting capacity’ of our own building and grounds; that we are looking for renewable materials for the production of our exhibitions; that we are trying to limit the environmental impact of our technological choices; and that we are making agreements about the number of air miles that staff travel on behalf of the institute.