Today marks the beginning of a journey, as I launch my blog Tales from the Polder. For years I have been wanting to have an own platform where I can share insights on Dutch politics, society and my own experiences. Yet, a simple personal blog using my name only was not the right choice. I wanted it to be more than about me, and more than just an extension of my CV. Rather, the tales have one goal: To bring attention to things that lack it, to bring about what little social change a website can achieve, and to learn from and with each other.
What are tales?
The name Tales from the Polder include two things, starting with tales. Most of you will know tales as fairy tales, legends or myths. And in a sense, you are not wrong. This website does not share blogs, but tales for a simple reason: There is not just one truth. Everything I can write about will never be fully the truth, simply because there are millions of truths. What I write here is close to mine, yet might be far away from what others would consider the truth. Tales are not about facts, are not objective. I dare say: Nothing is.
Posts on this website will be highly influenced by my positionality as a white, genderqueer person from Europe. “Tales” captures this irrationality and subjectivity beautifully. But that does not mean they hold no truth at all. Tales may be subjective, shaped by perspective and experience, yet they can still reveal something real—about the world, about others, about ourselves.
Why from the Polder?
Polders are low-lying tracts of land reclaimed from water, enclosed by dikes, and actively drained to prevent flooding. But they are more than just reclaimed land. Polders are much more a metaphor of how humans shape nature to their command, both physically and socially. And, of course, polders represent the country that both shaped me and that I hope to shape by sharing my own experiences in it: The Netherlands.
Yet, just as polders exist only through constant human effort—maintaining dikes, managing water levels, and reinforcing the land—we, too, construct and uphold the social worlds we live in. Identity, politics, and society are not naturally given; they are shaped, maintained, and sometimes contested, much like the polder itself.
What are the goals of my tales?
At their core, the tales I share here aim to challenge, reflect, and connect.
First, they seek to challenge dominant narratives—those ideas that shape policies, social structures, and public debates without question. Many things in politics and society appear inevitable, yet they are built on choices, histories, and power structures that deserve scrutiny. By sharing different perspectives, I hope to shed light on what often remains in the background
Second, these tales invite reflection. Politics is not something distant, reserved for politicians and experts; it is embedded in everyday life, in how we interact, in the opportunities we have or lack. By writing, I reflect on how systems shape us and how we, in turn, shape them—whether consciously or not.
Do you have any ideas or topics you would like to see here? Send me an email via info@talesfromthepolder.nl
