Built Environment alumni scoop prizes at thesis awards
In a remarkable achievement for Breda University of Applied Sciences (BUas), two Built Environment alumni were honoured at prominent thesis awards. Lopke van Vliet, who studied Mobility, won the 2025 HBO Mobility Thesis Award, while Ana Petre, an Urban Design graduate, received an honourable mention at the KuiperCompagnons Graduation Awards.
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Mobility Thesis Award
The award, an initiative of professional journal Verkeerskunde and conference partner CROW, is presented biennially to recognise the best university of applied sciences thesis in traffic, transport and mobility. From three finalists, the professional jury selected Lopke van Vliet as the winner. Graduation supervisor Lizanne Hessels accepted the award on Lopke's behalf during the pre-conference of the National Traffic Science Congress.
Lopke's winning thesis, Steps in the Right Direction – Is Walking the New Cycling?, explored how walking and cycling can complement each other in urban mobility. Based on research in two Utrecht neighbourhoods, she developed behavioural interventions and formulated concrete recommendations to better facilitate walking. The jury described her work as creative, relevant and innovative.
KuiperCompagnons Graduation Awards
At a ceremony at Wageningen University, jury chair Gijs van den Boomen presented the KuiperCompagnons awards.
An honourable mention went to graduate Ana Petre (Urban Design). Petre's study on the reconstruction of Gaza was deemed remarkably courageous, with the jury acknowledging the boldness required to tackle such a sensitive and polarised subject.
The KuiperCompagnons Graduation Awards were presented for the seventh time this year, recognising the best graduation plans in urban design and landscape architecture.
*Photos: Nadine van den Berg
