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Ghent University elects Anne De Paepe rector

The election marks the first woman rector of a university in Flanders

For the first time in its history, Ghent University has elected a woman as rector. Anne De Paepe, 57, was selected by the university board from the two candidates – herself and Thierry Mortier – who led in the elections.

De Paepe is a physician and heads the university’s centre for medical genetics. Her election comes as a surprise as her opponent, now vice-rector, was the favourite throughout the race.

Alan Hope
(May 22, 2013)

Nuclear plants can re-open, says FANC

Greenpeace threatens legal action, as the decision sits with the government

Environmental activist organisation Greenpeace has announced it will file a legal complaint against the federal government for negligence in connection with the re-opening of the nuclear reactors Doel 3 (pictured) and Tihange 2. Last week, the federal agency for nuclear safety (FANC) said the two generating plants, which were closed last year when hairline cracks appeared in the reactor casings, could safely re-open.

Greenpeace opposes the re-opening and has already filed suit against the government for not having a nuclear emergency plan. “That still hasn’t been produced,” the organisation’s energy manager Eloi Glorieux said. “On the contrary, the risk is now being increased by the re-opening of the reactors. The government is not taking its job – the protection of the population – at all seriously.”

Alan Hope
(May 22, 2013)

The labour imbalance

Graduates in Flanders are finding jobs fast, but the less educated are suffering for it

The news of late regarding youth on the job market can seem contradictory: Graduates seem to be finding jobs quickly, yet the unemployment rate among youth is rising. The problem, says the Flemish work ministry, is that employers are hesitant to take on less-educated workers when so many graduates are looking for jobs.

The Economist calls them “Generation Jobless”. They are young people aged 15 to 24 of whom 290 million worldwide are neither working nor studying. That’s almost a quarter of the planet’s youth who are considered “inactive”.

Across Europe, as in Flanders, the euro crisis has hit young job seekers exceptionally hard. The continent’s average youth unemployment rate sits at 23.5%. Not surprisingly, unemployment rates are highest in Greece (58.4%), Spain (55.7%), Portugal (38%) and Italy (38%).

Sabine Clappaert
(May 22, 2013)

The core of the matter

Scientists at KULeuven examine the inner workings of our food

CT scanners have long been helping doctors detect possible risks for our health, but scientists are now using them to screen our food as well. At the University of Leuven (KULeuven), the MeBioS research team are leading a European project that provides a unique 3D view of the interior of fruit and vegetables. The insights offer the possibility not only to check and improve the quality of our daily meals, but also to experiment with new food products made by 3D food printers.

The recent InsideFood symposium of the MeBioS (Mechatronics, Biostatistics and Sensors) group was the first international conference dedicated to research on the microstructure of food. It was the conclusion of a four-year collaboration between 12 European research institutes and companies, co-ordinated by MeBioS and funded by the European Commission.

Andy Furniere
(May 22, 2013)

Sweet bees are made of these

First album from Quasiland is filled with sparkling pop songs in Dutch

On their eponymously titled debut album, Quasiland alternate groovy, brisk pop songs with more subdued tunes. Most of the seven members play different instruments: guitar, bass, drums, keyboards and trumpet are prominent in the mix. The album just came out this spring, but Quasiland started in the summer of 2009 in the town of Tienen, Flemish Brabant.

“I had been asked to play a solo concert, but I wasn’t keen to perform alone,” explains lyricist and lead singer Wannes Deboes. “So I asked some extra musicians to join me. It wasn’t yet the line-up we have now, but I consider it the beginning of Quasiland.”

Christophe Verbiest
(May 22, 2013)

Train carriages hauled away from Wetteren

School reopens, and most residents have returned home in aftermath of crash

The town of Wetteren in East Flanders was gradually returning to normal this week, following the rail accident two weekends ago that led to a fire, toxic chemicals entering the sewer system and chaos for the rail network in the area. One elderly man died in his home from exposure to the fumes.

This Monday saw the start of the operation to remove the damaged tanks from the scene of the accident, 10 days after the derailment of the train carrying the chemical acrylonitrile. The six rearmost carriages, which were not derailed, were hosed down and attached to a locomotive to be towed to Dendermonde, about 15km away.

Alan Hope
(May 15, 2013)

Ahead of the curve

Flanders is bucking a European trend with lucrative returns from its biotech industry

Flanders has become a real hub for biotechnology, with half the biotech shares traded these days on the Euronext stock exchange belonging to companies based here. So what exactly is biotech, and what’s the secret of the region’s success?

Last month, more than 16,000 visitors from 65 countries gathered in Chicago for the annual Bio International Convention, the world’s largest event for the biotech industry. It’s a little like the World’s Fair, with a Belgian pavilion that gathers the country’s participating companies. There, visitors to the convention – not tourists, but businessmen representing other biotech firms – were introduced to, apart from waffles, fries and beer, another of our prestigious exports: biotechnology.

Senne Sterckx
(May 15, 2013)

Europe’s green heart

Ecological improvements and citizens’ ideas should make Brussels the Green Capital of Europe

Brussels is entering the last stretch of the race to become Green Capital of Europe in 2015. Analysis by the Economist Intelligence Unit international research bureau highlights the capital’s ecological improvements since 2009, but the study has also drawn criticism. During an event on the Kunstberg in the city centre, Brussels residents had the chance to present their vision of the future of the capital at the “ideas tree”. Brussels also had a visit from the airship Aéroflorale II (pictured), the symbol of Green Capital of Europe 2013 Nantes.

Brussels is already the political capital of Europe, but it’s also one of four finalists hoping to win the title of European Green Capital 2015, as awarded by the European Commission. The annual award promotes and rewards the efforts of city governments as they battle ecological challenges. At the end of May, the Brussels team will try to convince a jury of members from various European institutions that it should win, and on 14 June, Brussels will know whether it has prevailed over its rivals: Bristol (England), Glasgow (Scotland) and Ljubljana (Slovenia).

Andy Furniere
(May 15, 2013)

What’s up, docks?

Free bus tours of port of Antwerp have proved an unexpected hit

It sounds like the nerdiest day out you could imagine: four hours on a bus touring the container terminals and dry docks of the port of Antwerp. But that’s exactly the attraction the city is offering this year, three days a week from now until the end of September. Is it as dull as it sounds? Well, last year 3,500 people didn’t think so. I was one of them, and I’ll be signing up again for this year’s edition.

The city of Antwerp goes to great lengths to publicise its port, and with good reason: It’s Europe’s second-largest port, and one of the world’s most important for container traffic. It’s also a crucial factor in the economic life of Flanders; the region’s gateway to the whole wide world, and vice versa. And not just Flanders: Freight entering the port of Antwerp goes on to make its way to the whole of the continent.

Alan Hope
(May 15, 2013)

An open book

The Wonderkamer shows us what drives contemporary children’s authors and illustrators

The Literary Museum in Hasselt, which focuses mainly on children’s literature and illustration, has recently reinvented one of its permanent exhibitions, a room filled with little cabinets full of objects that selected authors hold dear. After some redesigning, and the addition of several new artefacts and authors, the entire room has been revamped and named the Wonderkamer (the Wonder Room).

The Wonderkamer contains 18 wooden cabinets in which children’s authors and illustrators such as René Swartenbroekx, Bettie Elias, Lieve Baeten and Kolet Janseen were able to show what inspires and motivates them, as well as some personal titbits that are essential to their way of writing.

Rebecca Benoot
(May 15, 2013)