Date: Saturday, November 29th
Time: 18.30 onwards
Place: KIT/Royal Tropical Institute, Mauritskade 63, 1092 AD Amsterdam

Dress Code: Black tie is preferred. 

The Venue : The KIT Royal Tropical Institute is an independent centre of expertise, education and hospitality dedicated to sustainable development. Guided by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), it helps governments, NGOs and private companies build inclusive and sustainable societies worldwide.

As every year, we welcome alumni and their guest(s) to join us for our traditional society dinner. The event will comprise pre-dinner drinks followed by a delicious three-course meal including a special wine arrangement within the splendour of KIT’s Marble Hall with 12 special types of Marble from Tuscany and a keynote speaker. 

This year we welcome Dutch diplomat, humanitarian and former politician Sigrid Kaag as speaker. This year’s format will allow for extended questions from alumni and guests after her introductory remarks.

Keynote Speaker – Sigrid Kaag

Sigrid Kaag is a Dutch diplomat, humanitarian and former politician whose academic and professional path bridges international relations, global development, and high-level diplomacy.

Her early career included work at Royal Dutch Shell and in the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs in its UN political affairs section. In 1994 she began her career with the United Nations, where she held multiple senior roles over the years, including with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). She also served as Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa at UNICEF in Jordan, Assistant Secretary-General at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and held roles as United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon, and as the Special Coordinator of the Joint Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and the United Nations Mission in Syria.

Kaag moved into Dutch politics in 2017 with Democrats 66 (D66), holding multiple ministerial posts as Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Minister of Finance and First Deputy Prime Minister. She left national politics in January 2024 to resume her career in multilateral diplomacy. Upon her return to the United Nations, she most recently held two senior UN positions as the Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza and the Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process ad interim, roles from which she stepped down in 2025.

Kaag studied Arabic at Utrecht University, earned a B.A. in Middle East Studies from the American University in Cairo, and went on to obtain an M.Phil in International Relations (University of Oxford) and an M.A. in Middle East Studies (University of Exeter). She is an alumna of St. Antony’s College, Oxford.

 

Agenda

18:30 – 19:30: Networking and Opening Drinks

19:30 – 22:30: Three-course meal including a special wine arrangement

Speaker remarks & extended Q&A

22:30: Carriages Await

Optional post-dinner drinks

Optional after party/post-dinner drinks. For those of you who would like to carry on the evening, we will lead a group to a venue to continue conversations and drinks. 

Important information: All attendees will be required to bring a valid I.D. with them, which will be checked against the guest list ahead of entry. Hence, please state your full name as on your I.D. document. 

Menu Choices & Tickets

Menu choices. This year there are two menu choices. Please indicate your choice, any dietary restrictions and allergies when you are at the check-out while buying tickets. 

• Menu A – Meat / Fish
  • House-smoked salmon – fennel | green apple cream | horseradish mayonnaise | herb oil
  • Beef from Lindenhoff – mashed potatoes | seasonal vegetables | veal gravy
  • Trifle – caramelized apple | almond crunch | caramel sauce
• Menu B – Vegan
  • Pumpkin Tartare – Mustard Caviar | Basil | Herb Mix | Pine Nuts
  • Roasted Celery Root Steak – Mashed Potatoes | Chimichurri | Seasonal Vegetables
  • Chocolate-coconut Tart – Coffee | Caramel | Fresh Fruit

Ticket prices & guest limit. There will be a price advantage for those booking your ticket(s) before October 20th. (More information below). So, do make sure to get your tickets early, if you wish to attend. Members may bring one guest. However, if additional guest tickets are required, please reach out to secretary.ocnl@gmail.com to inquire the possibilities (based on capacity). We will try to do our best to accommodate these requests. 

Early booking pricing (until October 19th)

Society Member – 89,50 EUR | Guest of Society Member – 99,50 EUR | First-time Attendee – 99,50 EUR | Student – 70 EUR  | Sister Society Member – 119,50 EUR

Regular pricing will apply for tickets booked after October 19th:

Society Member – 99,50 EUR | Guest of Society Member – 109,50 EUR | First-time Attendee – 109,50 EUR | Student – 70 EUR | Sister Society Member – 129,50 EUR

Ticket Categories. 

• Society Member. Requires current membership for 2025 (get membership here)
• Guest Ticket. Guest of current member who is attending. State the name upon check-out.
• Sister Society Ticket. If you are a member of a sister society (e.g. Oxford Belgium), please also use this category and clearly state your sister organisation.
• First-time Attendee . If this is your first time attending an OxBridge NL Event, use this category (NL-based alumni only).
• Student. Student members can choose this category. 

Transport. The KIT is easily accessible by public transport, only a 15 min tram ride away from Amsterdam Centraal. There are also parking garages in proximity. More information can be found by visiting https://www.kit.nl/contact/ and scrolling down to “How to Visit Us”.

Booking deadline & cancellation policy. The last day for obtaining tickets is November 10th 2025. Please note that ticket cancellation is also only possible until this date.* Tickets may well be cancelled after, however, there will be no refund. We will operate a waitlist, so these types of cancellations may be refunded if a suitable replacement is found.
*For tickets purchased before 10am on 4th October 2025, the November 15th 2025 cancellation deadline applies.