On the 29st of May to 1st of June 2018, 30 PhD candidates from CSPS and the WCSG (Wageningen Centre of Sustainability Governance) participated in a “Writing Retreat” at the Monastery of Huissen. The retreat offered a great opportunity to make progress with individual writing as well as to share and discuss work and get to know fellow PhD candidates.
The theme of the writing retreat was well-being during the PhD. Dr. Rob Fletcher (SDC) shared his insights on maintaining a healthy and productive writing process. Dr. Joke de Vries held a workshop on ‘How to stay healthy while working in a stressful environment’. The sessions were very interactive and offered a lot of great insights and exchange between the clusters.
Many of the PhDs achieved the writing goals they had set for themselves. Teaming up with someone who is in the same writing phase helped us to reflect on our process and to reach our goal. Aside from writing, the PhDs also went on a guided silent walk, swam in the nearby lake, and ate, exercised and relaxed together. In other words, the retreat was both productive and enjoyable. Some responses of participants:
The location and the food were excellent. It genuinely felt like a retreat. It was nice to hear each other’s trouble.
I liked all the group and workout exercises, and also the silent walk.
I was able to achieve more in the last 3 days than in the last month!
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