Willem Sjoerd van Vliet

Public Rietveld - Internal Communication / Writer, podcast maker, oliemannetje

1. What are you currently working on?

"Together with the IT department, I’ve been developing the Intranet and the use of the Rietveld accounts. I know it’s not a very sexy subject among students and teachers, but a lot of the platform’s features now prove to be very useful. So, if you are a Rietvelder who is getting his/her Rietveld news via social media, it’s time for a switch!"

2. What has changed for you now that the Rietveld buildings are closed for classes and meetings?

"It’s all hands on deck with this sudden change to a digital environment. I really want to help Rietvelders to do their normal stuff from home, so I've made a bunch of tutorials with red arrows pointing at useful stuff. Also, we’ve set up a daily consultation hour to get you started with all those online work-from-home-tools. It’s actually pretty nice to videocall with people from all ranks of the Rietveld, seeing them in their home environment and learning how they are coping with this situation makes me connect with them even more."

3. And what is staying the same?

"Very little. My mood alternates between great fascination for these new times and great concern. From my window, I just saw two guys give each other a brotherly embrace. I felt jealous seeing that. I guess I miss my friends."

4. Do you have a tip to make these isolating times a little but more joyful?

"I feel that music is a life raft for me these days, so tune in at Tijden van nood, an ‘emergency’ radio station set up by @thomas_plas, a Rietveld alumnus. There’s lots of nice and freaky stuff going on, such as the show ‘Roos Rebergen belt met een echt kind’ made by the musician Roosbeef. Me and a friend who lives at the other side of the country, also make the weekly show Radio Siberië which is a disguised way to keep us from losing our minds."

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