ETEN ; who is who
As we all decided we want to collect/share portraits of ETEN members
Who
How
What
Why
Are some of the coming up questions
I’ll give it a try
My name is Astrid de Keizer,
At ETEN I am first of all an enthusiastic participant;
And a TIG (Theme Interest Group) leader of Identity and Diversity
And member of the ETEN board.
Beside of that I am lector life philosophy, peace education and partly co-coordinator of internationalization at the University of Applied Sciences, Faculty of Education, Leiden
I am also a wedding officiant; a very nice and interesting aspect during one of the high lights of peoples lives.
Aside from that all I am a volunteer at a nursing home where I lead a church service once a month.
To top it all off; I am married, mother of three children and a grandmother since a few months.
Things I like to do:
Gathering with friends
Traveling:
personally,
with ETEN colleagues, who I call my friends
with students,
and to universities all over the world to experience teaching and sharing my subjects of interest with colleagues abroad
Walking
Skiing
Hosting family and friends
Cooking and baking
Reading
That was a lot of who is Astrid
Before this ends up in an epistle that is far too long I’ll share some anecdotes as to how I became a part of the ETEN family
After working at our University of Leiden for a few years, I still had a big wish to initiate internationalization within the university.
I got in touch with my dear colleague Astrid van Schoonacker and I asked her all about it
One day I had an appointment with my manager and told him about my goals and wishes
To no avail, but as people know me…. if I really want something ..:-)
So, after a few months the question came up again and yes after a year I was allowed to join the annual ETEN conference
Yes, yes, yes
My first question was where will it be this year?
Lucky Lucky me…..it was in Holland and organized at our own university
The hotel was just a few hundred meters from my place…..
But ok nevertheless this was my chance
I dived into this wonderful special E4:55 PMEN family
Invited people from the UK and Denmark and Norway to my place
Presented and published my paper at the TIG Democracy and from that time on I felt a part of the ETEN family
A wonderful group of people who inspire each other, are enthusiastic and very active with their students and internationalization
I was convinced of the importance that students and teachers /lectors learn from traveling and sharing with different cultures
Give students and ourselves a wider perspective of education and life as well
During the years friendships arose and we would visit each other personally as well.
More and many more stories followed up my start at the annual conference in Leiden
Creating a new TIG, how and what
And all that came with it
People who gave me the trust and power that it was good what I was planning to do made sense.
Other members who got enthusiastic and informed colleagues at their institutes
Many interesting presentations and discussions about identity in diversity.
About the impact of world-wide cultures, religions and all that comes with it.
Participants of Scandinavian countries, Southern European countries, Japan, Israel, the United States etc. All gathering at our annual conferences
Talking, listening, sharing about how and what when it comes to these subjects and education
It made me learn, think, reflect and understand in so many ways.
All this I took with me to my work, students ,colleagues and private life as well
And yes there is the fun in between all the work, the dinners, the gatherings with small groups, the dancing on Saturday evening.
This all makes ETEN; this all creates perfect international places for our students to develop, improve and grow to become a good teacher .
Want to hear more anecdotes about many ETEN moments? I hope to meet you at our conference and find a moment to talk with a coffee or a drink, to share stories and experiences!
Astrid de Keizer
Proud to be a part of the ETEN family
ETEN Journal 
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