Over de Hobbel

Over de Hobbel is an agency for transition work that researches and guides sustainable transitions, using practice as a source for learning and advice. In addition, Over de Hobbel is also a place where transition work takes root: in the earth, with nature as a source of inspiration.

Transition work Food forest

Over de Hobbel moves in two places that are inextricably linked to each other.

On the one hand, my collaboration partners and I work on sustainability transitions: the social and societal aspects of system change. We guide and facilitate processes in which people, policy, systems, and nature come together, and where obstacles are not barriers, but invitations to do things more fairly, humanely, and sustainably.

On the other hand, I work with my hands in the soil, on my land at the Hobbel. There, I am building a food garden and a herb-rich food forest, and I invite people for team days and workshops – ranging from transition management to food forests and making herbal salves, tinctures, and natural care products.

Let me introduce myself

Ruth Mourik

For years, I've been working as a researcher and strategist on sustainability and systems change, realizing that people, nature, and the systems we live in are inextricably linked.

I don't do this alone, but with former colleagues from my former company, Duneworks (www.duneworks.nl), and other partners such as the Biomimicry Academy (biomimicry-academie.nl).
For me, a transition isn't just a technical or policy issue; it's about how we, as a society and as part of nature, interact with our living environment.
If we deplete nature, we undermine our own existence. If we treat people, systems, and nature separately, we lose sight of the bigger picture.

Ever since my PhD research on transitions and innovation, I have seen myself as a weaver.

Everything I do revolves around connection: between people and nature, between disciplines and perspectives, between theory and practice.

I believe that true change happens when we value differences. I listen to where people or companies get stuck, where (eco)systems falter, where processes and structures fall short. These moments—I call them “bumps”—are not mistakes, but signals. They show where we can learn, adapt, and create. Bumps are invitations to make systems more fair, sustainable, and inclusive.

My approach is inquisitive, interdisciplinary, and always focused on learning, connecting, and making an impact—with respect for the richness of the natural world and the complexity of human societies.