"Neighbourhood regeneration is a job that cannot begin too soon. But on the other hand it is also a job that is never over and done with, and never will be, in any given place.'
Jane Jacobs
Activities
You can find more information in my bio.
Columns
Wetgeving,digitalisering en drang naar efficiency enerzijds en bouwen, onderhouden en verduurzamen anderzijds zijn de aanjagers voor de transitie in de corporatiesector. CorporatieGids Magazine volgt deze transitie op de voet. Bestpractises met een vleugje human interest geven de lezers een inkijk in de wijze waarop corporaties hun strategie ten uitvoer brengen met innovatieve bedrijfsvoering en ICT. In klare taal, zodat iedereen
kan leren van de ervaringen van collega-corporaties.
Publications
Below you will find a selection of recent academic publications.
More publications can be found here (TU Delft Pure).
Bas Jansen, Anne van Stijn, Vincent Gruis en Gerard van Bortel
This article discusses innovative hybrid arrangements from Austria, England and Italy, in which governments, private and non-profit actors collaborate to increase the supply of affordable housing.
Gerard van Bortel and Vincent Gruis
This article discusses innovative hybrid arrangements from Austria, England and Italy, in which governments, private and non-profit actors collaborate to increase the supply of affordable housing.
Affordable housing governance and Finance: Innovations, Partnerships and Comparative Perspectives.
This book explores innovations in affordable housing governance and finance, with a focus on developments across Europe, and comparative chapters from the USA and Australia. The book presents new thinking in collaborative housing, co-production and accompanying finance mechanisms in order to support the quantity and the quality of affordable rental housing.
An exploration of concepts and polices on ‘affordable housing’ in England, Italy, Poland and The Netherlands
2018
Darinka Czischke and Gerard van Bortel
This paper focuses on affordable housing developement in England, Italy, Poland and The Netherlands. Findings show that affordable housing in all four countries is becoming a more distinct field, in parallel to developments in social housing. In addition, the paper describes some innovative policies undertaken to develop affordable housing solutions.
Gerard van Bortel
Mijn hoofdstuk verkent de invloed van Europese staatssteunregels op de sociale huisvesting in Vlaanderen en maakt daarbij een vergelijking met ontwikkelingen in Frankrijk, Nederland en Zweden.
Het hoofdstuk maakt deel uit van de publicatie Twintig jaar Vlaamse Wooncode: Hoe sterk is porcelein. Het boek is samengesteld door Bernard Hubeau en Tom Vandromme van de Universiteit Antwerpen
Het boek is gepubliseerd bij de Vlaamse uitgever Die Keure. Een digitale versie kun je vinden op Jurisquare (abonnement noodzakelijk).
Sien Winters, Gerard van Bortel, en Annelies De Coninck
Dit onderzoek heeft tot doel een gebruiksvriendelijk en flexibel instrument te ontwikkelen dat Vlaamse sociale huisvestingsmaatschappijen moet toelaten de tevredenheid van hun klanten met hun dienstverlening te meten.
Gerard van Bortel and Vincent Gruis
Using empirical case study data from the Netherlands and the UK, this paper demonstrates that there should be more attention for the role of individual urban practitioners.
This paper explores the characteristics of these practitioners by analysing empirical data from neighbourhood renewal case studies using Habermas system/lifeworld
concept.
Bas Jansen, Anne van Stijn, Vincent Gruis en Gerard van Bortel
Nieuws
Interview voor Jaarbericht 2017 De Vernieuwde Stad
Over de rol van woningcorporaties in kwestbare wijken
Visitaties woningcorporaties (NL) en sociale huisvestingsmaatschappijen (VL)
Sinds 2006 ben ik actief als visitator voor Nederlandse woningcorporaties. In de afgelopen jaren heb ik de maatschappelijke prestaties van enkele tientallen woningcorporaties beoordeeld. Mijn doel is corporaties te ondersteunen bij het leren en verbeteren. Nederlandse visitaties voer ik uit via Raeflex en zijn gebaseerd om de visitatiemethodiek die wordt beheerd door de Stichting Visitaties Woningcorporaties Nederland.
Van 2012 tot en met 2020 visiteerde ik ook Vlaamse sociale huisvestingsmaatschappijen. Als voorzitter van de Visitatieraad Sociale Huisvestingsmaatschappijen coördineerde ik in opdracht van de Vlaamse overheid de activiteiten van een team van 15 visitatoren in de periode 2012-2016. In mei 2017 ben ik opnieuw benoemd tot lid van de Visitatieraad. Die Visitatieraad is nu bezig met de tweede visitatieronde die is gestart in het najaar van 2017. In 2020 ben ik gestopt met mijn werkzaamheden als visitator in Vlaanderen.
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
In de periode 2007 - 2012 heb ik visitaties uitgevoerd via KWH, het Kwaliteitscentrum Woningcorporaties Huursector.
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
Pilot visitaties in 2009:
Interview in WoonWoord (VMSW) over de Visitatieraad Sociale Huisvestings-maatschappijen als kritische vriend (April 2016)
Klik hier voor PDF van het volledige rapport.
Vijf jaar corporatie visitaties: Balanceren tussen verantwoorden en leren (2012)
Onderzoek uitgevoerd door het TU Delft Onderzoeksinstituut OTB in opdracht van
Stichting Visitatie Woningcorporaties Nederland
Klik hier voor PDF van het volledige rapport.
'Is dit beleid, of is er over nagedacht?'
Jan Schaefer, PvdA politicus
Networks and Fault Lines
PhD Thesis on the role of housing associations in neighbourhood regeneration:
a network governance perspective
Verdediging Proefschrift
PhD Defence
Op vrijdag 4 maart 2016 heb ik succesvol mijn proefschrift verdedigd aan de TU Delft
On Friday March 4th 2016 I succesfully defended my doctoral thesis at Delft University of Technology
After the PhD Defence
Top row (left to right): opponents Prof. Bo Bengtsson, Prof. Michael Oxley, Prof Erik-Hans Klijn, Prof. Ellen van Bueren.
Bottom row (left to right): chairman representing the Rector Magnificus, promotor Prof. Peter Boelhouwer, paranimph Darinka Czischke, myself, paranimph Ada Jongkamp, promotors Prof. Marja Elsinga and Prof. David Mullins and the Beadle.
'Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.'
Mahatma Gandhi
Bio
Gerard van Bortel
A long but 'scenic' educational route
Gerard van Bortel was born on November 8 1963 in Breda. He followed a rather long but ‘scenic’ educational route. After finishing his general secondary education (MAVO) in Breda, he followed a vocational technical study Architecture in the same city. During that study, he became inspired by affordable housing and urban regeneration, and followed the specialized Social Housing track at the Tilburg Polytechnic Architecture department (HTS). He attained his title as Architectural Engineer (Ing.) in 1989 with a study on the regeneration of a deprived housing estate in the city of Groningen.
Parallel to his career in housing, Gerard continued studying in part-time. After attaining his propedeuse in Economics at the University of Amsterdam, he studied Organisational Sciences (‘Bedrijfswetenschappen’) at the Open University. In 2003 he attained his Masters title with a thesis exploring the link between the organisational strategies and performance of Dutch housing associations.
Working as a housing professional
After completing his alternative military service, he started
working for housing associations in Zwolle (SAVO, later DeltaWonen, from 1989 - 1997) and Groningen (De Huismeesters, from 1997 - 2004) in various functions: housing officer, ICT-officer, quality manager, manager of a Research and Development department and, finally, senior strategy consultant.
The move from practise to research
In 2004, Gerard quit his job at housing association De Huismeesters in Groningen, and moved with his wife (Neeltje Reijnders) and two young children to Belgium were Neeltje became a Minister in Brussels for the United Protestant Church of Belgium. It proved to be a pivotal year. Without employment, Gerard started to look for new opportunities in the domain of social housing. This exploration led to a career shift with to a stronger focus on consultancy, research, training and education. He became a social housing strategy consultant working for the Amsterdam-based firm RIGO Research en Advies. Parallel to his work for RIGO, Gerard conducted a study on governance networks in neighbourhood regeneration in The Hague working as an independent researcher for the OTB Research Institute for the Built Environment, part of the Delft University of Technology.
A PhD was born
Working for OTB Gerard’s ideas to do a PhD matured. He started his PhD in 2005 under supervision of Prof. Dr. Ir. Marja Elsinga, Prof. Dr. Peter Boelhouwer (both TU Delft) and Prof. David Mullins. In 2007 Gerard left RIGO and started working at OTB, where he specialised in studies on social housing management, finance, governance and institutions. In 2013 Gerard moved to the TU Delft Management in the Built Environment department, part of the Architecture faculty, to strengthen the balance between governance & management and research & education in his work.
Family
Gerard is a proud father of a son (Gideon, 25) and
daughter (Emma, 22) and lives near Delft in the beautiful village of Naaldwijk.
Contact me
I would be delighted to share thoughts, answer questions, discuss ideas and work on housing initiatives; do not hesitate to get in touch. Drop me an email or connect through one of the links below.
g.a.vanbortel@tudelft.nl (work) or gerard.van.bortel@xs4all.nl (private).
© 2023 Gerard van Bortel / gerard.van.bortel@xs4all.nl