In early November 2022 a delegation of Utrecht University, including the Rector Magnificus Prof Dr Henk Kummeling and Margot van Sluis-Barten, director External Relations, visited the University of Sydney to discuss cooperation and a student exchange programme. It was agreed that there will be a large number of student exchanges every year between the two universities.
In the late afternoon the delegations of Utrecht University and the University of Sydney, including the Dean, invited alumni of Utrecht University living in Sydney, including the Netherlands Consul-General Hugo Klijn, to join them for an informal gathering on board the replica of the 16th century VoC ship, the Duyfken at the Australian National Maritime Museum, while sailing the harbour of Sydney.
Speeches were delivered by the Rector Magnificus, who emphasised the importance of cooperation post-Covid and by Roland Spuij, president of the Dutch Australian Cultural Centre and now also Utrecht University alumni ambassador, who explained the historical significance of the Duyfken in the early 17th century when she was the first European ship to see the Australia coast and make contact with the Aboriginal population in 1606.
