DPWE programme evaluation

Collective research programme of the dune water companies

The DPWE programme is the collective research programme of the four dune water companies: Dunea, PWN, Waternet and Evides. KWR coordinates the programme and conducts the research together with Het Waterlaboratorium (HWL). The aim of this evaluation is to signal areas of improvement, and thereby provide the elements needed for the further substantive and organisational development of the programme.

Interviews and workshop

The evaluation involved the conduct of 16 structured interviews with members of the steering group, supervisory groups and project groups. To further deepen the analysis, on 20 March 2017, a workshop was organised in Amsterdam for members of these groups. The results of the interviews were discussed in the workshop, and the implications for the DPWE programme of two influential trends raised in the interviews – climate change and the circular economy – were explored.

Recommendations for the programme’s further development

Taken together, the interview results present a picture of a programme that functions flexibly and effectively. The satisfactory agenda process, the programme’s applied character and the relatively intensive contacts between researchers and water professionals ensure that the programme makes a significant contribution to meeting the formulated DPWE ambitions. However, the report also highlights a number of points calling for attention, and for which the authors make recommendations with a view to the programme’s further development.