What happens when doing business in Russia overnight becomes both a moral and a commercial problem? In the first episode of ‘NOOD: In Action!’ entrepreneur Jeroen Ketting is our guest. Over almost thirty years he built three successful companies in Russia. But after Russia’s large‑scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, he immediately decided to cease his activities and return to the Netherlands. In this episode Jeroen describes how he spent years doing business in a country marked by economic crises, sanctions and political uncertainty, and the lessons this taught him about resilience, crisis management and entrepreneurship. What can we in the Netherlands learn from his experience?

Why do we need to prepare for a crisis now? The threat from Russia, an unstable energy supply, and disinformation are increasing. According to Sjoerd van der Smissen, Industry Lead Public Sector at Deloitte, this is precisely why it is important that we prepare well together.

A global satellite outage disables the GPS system, causing planes to be grounded, ATMs to stop working, and traffic to come to a standstill in the Netherlands. Patrick Bolder, defence analyst at HCSS, explains how such an outage can occur and why countries like Russia and China increasingly seek to manipulate or destroy their opponents’ satellites.

In addition to the offensive in Ukraine, Russia also decides to open an attack on Lithuania. As a result, NATO’s Article 5 is invoked: ‘an attack on one is an attack on all’. From one day to the next we find ourselves in a ground war on the European continent. How plausible is this scenario? Who would be called up to fight at the front in that case? And how would we in the Netherlands deal with the gap left by serving military personnel and reservists?

Niko Wanders, hydrologist at Utrecht University, guides you through a water crisis in this episode: when does a shortage become dangerous? How is it then decided who receives water and who does not? And is Annefleur well prepared with her waterriet for use in the Amstel, or is it better to secure your own water supply in another way?

No internet, no mobile coverage and no electricity at home. In an instant, more than eight million people in the Netherlands are without power. Emergency services on 112 are hard to reach and television goes off air. After a few hours it becomes clear that the Netherlands has been the target of a coordinated cyber attack. Hospitals are running on emergency generators, supermarkets close their doors and neighbours try to help one another with candles and emergency supplies.

How well equipped are we against online fake news? And can you train yourself to recognise disinformation more quickly? Former lieutenant‑colonel Gwenda Nielen researches online manipulation both in the Netherlands and abroad. In this episode she demonstrates the power of disinformation and how it creates fertile ground for polarisation, leaving us more vulnerable to other emergency situations.

We appear to have learned a lesson from the coronavirus, but have we really learned it? That question is answered by epidemiologist Jan Kluytmans, who works at UMC Utrecht and was a member of the Outbreak Management Team during the coronavirus pandemic.

After days of heavy rainfall in the Netherlands and Germany, our river dikes are fully saturated and are breaching in multiple places in the Meuse–Rhine delta. The area around Rotterdam is submerged to depths of several metres, resulting in the evacuation of around 180,000 households.

What happens in the Netherlands if hundreds of container ships can no longer berth and cannot unload their bananas, petrol and building components? How long will it take before fuel is rationed and supermarket shelves start to run empty? Die vragen beantwoordt cyberexpert Marijn van Schooten. Als directeur van samenwerkingsverband FERM maakt hij zich hard voor de digitale veiligheid van verschillende havens van nationaal belang.

In this episode, Daan and Annefleur delve into the world of nuclear power stations and nuclear weapons. How likely is it that radioactive substances will be released in the Netherlands, and what could cause this?

During disasters most people are not rescued by emergency services but by a neighbour or a family member. That is why it is important to invest in social cohesion. In Rotterdam, Corine Duitman, Director of Safety at the Municipality of Rotterdam, is working on initiatives to improve the city’s community self‑reliance, such as neighbourhood pilots and emergency support points.