Notes on the Contemporary • 27th May 2026

The digital (un)archived

During a recent visit to my grandma’s, we spent a couple of evenings flipping through old photo albums. One image stuck with me in particular: my mother holding me as a baby, making a mock surprised face at the camera and looking uncannily like my sister.

Notes on the Contemporary • 1st April 2026

The illusion of influence

I’ve spent a lot of time being influenced. Sometimes without even knowing it was the case. Let me explain.

Notes on the Contemporary • 18th February 2026

The mid-20s spiral

Last weekend, while strolling through the Dutch city I live in, I crossed paths with countless runners. It was one of those rare sunny days — an uncommon occurrence for winters in the Netherlands — but even so… there seemed to be more than usual. Or had I just never paid attention?

10th December 2025

Politics of fashion

When I was younger, Tumblr was my favorite chaotic wasteland to get my daily fix of internet culture. My feed was constantly filled with discussions around beauty ideals: some claimed women had to be thin and feminine, others celebrated the inclusivity of the body positivity movement.

Notes on the Contemporary • 5th November 2025

The modern hobby dilemma

“What do you like to do in your free time?”

It’s a question we’ve all been asked more times than we can count — a classic ice breaker for those looking to keep the conversation going. It sneaks its way into office lunchrooms, awkward first dates, job interviews, and parties where we barely know anyone.

Notes on the Contemporary • 25th June 2025

Where we match

I met my partner on Tinder, the dating app that gets the worst reputation of them all. After all, it’s mainly for hookups, people with commitment issues, and the occasional catfish, right?

14th May 2025

The communities we choose

Two lables particularly defined my American High School years: fangirl and band kid. Online, I spent hours on Twitter talking about 5SOS, an Australian, slightly punk boyband with my ‘oomfs’ ( 2010s Twitter slang for ‘one of my followers’). Offline, I hung out with my friends in band class, playing a clarinet that I rarely practiced outside of school. I wasn’t there for the music, but to chat to those around me as soon as the conductor lowered his baton.

Notes on the Contemporary • 2nd April 2025

Is artistic originality still possible?

As a creative person with many hypothetical ideas (and not always the best track record of actually following through with them), I often feel as if the originality dilemma is holding me back: Can we really create something entirely original or has everything already been done?

Notes on the Contemporary • 19th February 2025

The epidemic of scrolling

I’ve been there a lot lately: sitting down on the couch with the intention to scroll for “just a couple of minutes”. Suddenly, before I know it, 45 minutes go by and I’m grumpy because—come on—was that really necessary?

Gazeta Wyborcza • 20th December 2023

Record Number of Poles Register to Vote in the US

A record number of Poles abroad registered to vote in the parliamentary election over the weekend, and the large Polish community in the US is no exception. Over 48,000 people registered — compared to 32,000 in the 2019 parliamentary election — while 52 polling districts across 21 states were created to accommodate the high demand.

FOCUS online • 15th December 2023

CPK in Warschau: Europas neuer Riesen-Flughafen, der gut fürs Klima sein soll

Kann ein Flughafen wirklich klimaneutral sein? Warschaus neuer CPK-Airport möchte genau das mit einem großen Eisenbahnkreuz und grünem Strom schaffen - doch nicht alle sind überzeugt.

20th November 2023

Wie deutsch-polnische Europastädte zu dem Wahlergebnis stehen – „Wir haben uns immer verstanden“

Nach dem Ausgang der polnischen Parlamentswahl richten sich weltweit gespannte Blicke auf Warschau und Berlin. Die Beziehung zwischen Polen und seinem Nachbarland hat unter den antideutschen Tönen der bisherigen PiS-Partei deutlich gelitten.

Gazeta Wyborcza • 18th November 2023

Not all Polish Children Can Receive Psychiatric Care. Does the Situation Look Any Better in Germany?

When she was 18 years old, Cleo Ćwiek was hospitalized due to her problems with bipolar disorder. Despite the difficult situation, the now 29-year-old Polish model and mental health entrepreneur remembers feeling supported by her parents during every visit.

FOCUS online • 6th November 2023

Warum Polen in die Atomkraft einsteigt, während Deutschland aussteigt

Zwei Länder, zwei Strategien: Während Deutschland gerade aus der Atomkraft ausgestiegen ist, plant Polen den vollen Einstieg. Die Entscheidung ist in der Bevölkerung nicht unumstritten.

9to5 Groningen • 24th February 2022

Dutch General Practitioners Could Prescribe Abortion Pills In Future

February 23, 2022. Earlier this month, GroenLinks and PvdA proposed a bill that would grant General Practitioners the right to prescribe abortion pills to patients. Whether it will be passed by the Dutch cabinet remains unclear, but liberal coalition parties VVD and D66 have expressed their support.

9to5 Groningen • 18th February 2022

New Report on Dutch Colonial Violence in Indonesia Sparks Mixed Responses

A new report states that the Dutch government and military authorities tolerated widespread violent acts during the Indonesian War of Independence from 1945-1949. These findings have sparked varying reactions from Indonesians and individuals of Dutch-Indonesian descent living in the Netherlands.

9to5 Groningen • 11th February 2022

Plenty of (Cat)fish in the Sea

“Should we really do this?” we wondered, as we entered made up details about our lives on the dating app Hinge. Well, they weren’t quite about our lives. After all, neither of us were born in New York City or had ever received a wheel of cheese as a gift. Instead, these things apply to Maria, a 25-year-old student based in Amsterdam.

9to5 Groningen • 30th September 2021

Tik Tok Activists Ready For Continued Fight Against Anti-Abortion Website

Pro-choice activists on TikTok say they are on standby, preparing to once again flood a Texas-based anti-abortion website with false tips if it finds a new hosting service.

FashionUnited • 14th July 2020

Style challenges, OOTDs and influencers: How fashion jumped on the TikTok trend

As the pandemic-induced lockdown weighed on the world and in-person interaction became mostly impossible, many depended on social media to
connect with others.

FashionUnited • 10th July 2020

Anna Meyfarth: “TikTok isn’t like the picture perfect world of Instagram”

As younger generations spend increasingly more time online, one social media platform has been catching the attention of everyone: TikTok.

FashionUnited • 8th June 2020

Resale growth during Covid-19: sellers engage in ‘quarantine clean out frenzies’

It’s no mystery that the fashion industry has been hugely impacted by the Covid-19 crisis. Fashion companies saw their sales plummeting as stores closed, fashion events were cancelled or postponed and consumer shopping behavior changed drastically.

But there seems to be an exception to the current bleak reality of the fashion industry: resale platforms have been reporting an increase in sales and online traffic since the start of the virus. Whether this was due to consumers using the extra time