Brown eyes, or Blue?An Antwerp teacher revived a 1960s experiment to show how easily children learn to discriminate against each other

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A Flemish health institute has developed a 21st-century solution to the epidemic in our midst – a free online coaching programme and app aimed at helping Flemings better cope with the ups and down of this thing we call life

With a revamped website and a new mobile app, Flemish welfare minister Jo Vandeurzen wants to help us to feel better. The FitinjeHoofd.be

portal offers 10 steps to better mental health, a coaching platform and lots of information on how to increase resilience and better cope with stress and adversity.“We’ve all had bad and stressful days, but it’s how we deal

with them that makes the difference,” says Fanya Verhenne from the Vlaams Instituut voor Gezondheidspromo-tie (Flemish Institute for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention), which develops programmes to encourage healthy behaviour and which realised this campaign. Fit in je hoofd (Fit in your Head) isn’t a new idea; it was first launched in 2006 as part of the government of Flan-ders’ action plan to prevent suicide and was based on the Ten Steps to Happiness campaign, originally developed in Iceland. “Together with therapists and professors, we translated those steps to match a Flemish audience,” Verhenne

explains. “As e-health was gaining popularity, we added a self-help test to the website in 2009.” Last month, the website was given a makeover and relaunched with new tests and an online coaching plat-form that offers tools to improve mental resilience. “An evaluation in 2008 by Trimbos Institute, a mental health expertise centre, showed that our tests were too long, that the exercises needed to be more on-point and that a call to action was missing,” Verhenne explains. “The new site encourages people to get active. One visit isn’t going to change much in the long run. That’s why we created a plat-form where they can work on their goals, motivation and

continued on page 5

red nose dayFlanders is launching its own Red Nose Day in support of young people in psychiatric care

everyBody dIyA densely populated Ghent neighbourhood has launched a remarkably successful community space

On the bright sidestressed out? flanders' new fit in je hoofd campaign has the help you need

Katrien lindemansFollow katrien \ @kCRlindemans

Flemish celebrities were encouraged to tweet photos of what made them feel good as part of the Fit in je hoofd campaign

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\ CURRENT AFFAIRs

Last week’s episode of VRT’s news magazine Koppen revealed the results of a classroom experiment carried out in an Antwerp primary school showing how easily

children can be convinced to discriminate against each other. The point of the exercise was to reveal how susceptible children are to reinforcing prejudices.The teacher, Jan Bergs, separated his class of fifth-year primary students into two groups: those with blue eyes and those with brown eyes, denoting one group as superior and with greater access to school equipment and materials. It was based on the same exercise undertaken by an American teacher, Jane Elli-ott, in 1968. Elliot put her experiment into action the day after the murder of civil rights activist Martin Luther King to show her pupils how discrimination feels. She has gone on to be an interna-tionally recognised expert and speaker on racism issues.The Antwerp exercise showed similar results, nearly 50 years later. In one day’s time, the children, aged between 10 and 12,

started to discriminate against other children on the basis of their assigned eye colour. During discussions, children stated, for example, that rubbish collectors normally have brown eyes, while surgeons and professional footballers have blue eyes. Koppen showed the news item to Elliott herself, and she reacted with shock. “Has nothing changed between 1968 and now?” she asked. “If this is indicative of the entire country, you’re in trouble. You need to do something.”According to Wouter Van Bellingen, director of the Minder-hedenforum (Minority Forum), inequality is strengthened by infrastructures in place in Flanders. “The conditions for discrimination are strongly present, which explains why large ethnic gaps exist here,” he said. The diversity of society, he said, is not reflected in classrooms. He also noted, however, that if discrimination can be so quickly taught, it can be as quickly discouraged.Bergs, meanwhile, said that changes should be implemented in Flanders’ education system, including broader study

choices in the first year of secondary education and adding racism issues to teaching studies at universities and colleges. He also said that teachers should make clear to children what they expect from them.

Kids “quick to discriminate”antwerp classroom experiment shows that children are highly susceptible to racism

bankruptcies declared in May in Flanders, 16% fewer than the same month in 2014 and the lowest for the month since 2008. Nationwide, the total was down 5.4% on last May

spent on average in a year by Flem-ish people in a café, according to a poll by iVox. 70% go out regularly, and the most regular of the regu-lars spends up to €27.40 a week, or €1,424.80 a year

new books published in Flanders in 2014 – some 4% more than the year before. The largest sector with 16.3% was school textbooks. Management and business come second at 15%

of young people in Flanders help with housework every day, accord-ing to a survey by the Youth Research Platform. More than half help out several times a week

place for Antwerp in a list of the world’s 20 best cities in the world to be a cyclist, according to Copenha-genize Design Company. Antwerp dropped two places since the last ranking in 2013

377 9th11,013

Consumers seeking help with a problem with a company now have one central place to turn: a new consumer ombudsman service introduced by Kris Peeters, federal minister for consumer affairs. The service is a “one-stop shop” for anyone with a complaint against a company. “Any time a consumer has a complaint about an energy bill or doesn’t get the guarantee they are entitled to or wants a wrongly-paid invoice reimbursed, now has one physical and online address,” Peeters said. “No need any longer to wonder which is the right insti-tution to turn to.”The ombudsman can be consulted via internet, fax or the post. Consumers are also welcome to come to the office in Brussels. “The service will see to it

that the consumer’s question reaches the proper service or they will handle it themselves,” said Peeters. “The procedure is simple, and treatment will be speedy.”The new service will not replace existing services for telecommunications, post, energy, railways, financial services and insurance, but it will in future form the principal portal for consumers whose complaint concerns any of those bodies. “The consumer ombudsman will become the single point of entry for the consumer,” Peeters said. The service can be contacted online at http://consumentenombudsdienst.be, or by telephone at 02 702 52 00. The office is located at North Gate II, Koning Albert II-laan 8, 1000 Brussels. \ Alan Hope

Consumer protection gets its own ombudsman

The federal finance ministry is repeating last year’s experiment in which members of the public can show up in person to get help filling in tax forms during the month of June. Last year’s pilot project saw about one million taxpayers using the serviceThe help sessions are open at tax offices every workday between 9.00 and 15.00 until 30 June – the deadline for the submission of paper declarations. The minis-try’s experts will also be on hand at other locations in local municipalities and in help sessions organised in shopping centres. The ministry is employing no extra staff for the help sessions. “This requires an extra effort from civil servants, but it’s a service for the citizens, especially helpful since this year’s declaration is slightly more complicated than before,” a spokesperson said. Information on locations to get help is available on the finance ministry’s website. \ AH

Finance ministry offers help with tax declaration

andy furniereMore articles by Andy \ flanderstoday.eu

© Courtesy VRT

jan Bergs leads his fifth-year primary school students through an exercise about difference and discrimination

Alison Van Uytvanck’s brave surge in the French Open finally ended last week when she lost 6-4 7-5 to Switzerland’s Timea Bacsinszky in the quarter-finals at Roland Garros. Neither woman had ever been beyond the second round at Roland Garros, but it was 23 seeded Bacsinszky rather than 93-ranked Van Uytvanck (pictured) who progressed to a semi-final against world number one Serena Williams. Van Uytvanck, 21, from Grimbergen, was the lowest-ranked woman to reach the quarter-finals of the clay court major. Considering she had played in only one Grand Slam match prior to her arrival in Paris, it was perhaps unsurprising that the stress of playing on the 10,000-seater Suzanne Lenglen Court finally took its toll. Cheered on from the stands by her idol, retired Flemish tennis star Kim Clijsters, Van Uytvanck unleashed a string of

gutsy shots to recover from 3-1 down to level at 3-3 in the second set. But she failed to get a break and, despite saving four break points in game seven, her respite was short-lived. “I’m a bit disappointed,” said Van Uytvanck after the match. “I know there were chances in the match that I couldn’t quite grasp. But I’m really proud of what I’ve accomplished here.”Van Uytvanck left Paris as Belgium’s new No 1, leapfrogging over both Kirsten Flipkens and Yanina Wickmayer, who both failed to get past the first round.In related news, Kim Clijsters won the Legends Ladies’ Doubles competition at the French Open on Saturday with fellow former number one, Martina Navratilova. Despite losing the first set, they recovered to beat the US duo of Lindsay Davenport and Mary Joe Fernandez 2-6, 6-2, 11-9. \ Leo Cendrowicz

Van Uytvanck’s spectacular French Open run ends in quarter-finals

© Gonzalo Fuentes/Reuters

jUNE 10, 2015

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face of flanders

When VTM launched the competition Mijn Restaurant in 2008, the winners were all hailed as the next big thing in culinary perfection. Unfor-tunately, the restaurant busi-ness being what it is, none of the winning teams saw much success in the years that followed.So the format was changed. For the last two years it’s been called Mijn Pop-uprestaurant, and the competition now gives away €100,000, and no hostages to fortune.This year’s contest saw six duos competing, one of whom was rather cruelly tossed out on the first show. The other five were as diverse as a Star Trek landing party: sisters in Antwerp, male buddies in Hasselt, couples in Aalst and Ostend and even an ex-couple in Brussels. Each had to set up and run a restaurant according to a pop-up concept: soul food in Antwerp, asparagus in Hasselt, paleo diet in Aalst, street food in Brussels and nose-to-tail meat in Ostend. Two front-runners emerged immedi-ately: Fee and Jonas in Aalst were authoritative and competent and had a solid concept. They also had a sky-high “aww” factor. Hasselt, meanwhile, had a skilled chef in Guus and an affable host in Dries. The two were best

friends but had hugely different characters: Guus driven, passion-ate, even cerebral about food; Dries cheeky, flirtatious, his West Flanders accent a cudgel about the ears of his Limburg public. Guus (pictured left) was lost in his own culinary world but seemed constantly on the verge of tears from the stress he placed himself under. Dries was always there, every man’s dream bro, with a supportive word or a muscular hug.In the end, Aalst were dropped in favour of Brussels, where non-chef Miguel had made progress, and the waspishly comical Liselotte had established herself as a force to be reckoned with. That meant only one thing: The prize was assuredly in Hasselt’s pocket. And so it was. “It was enormously hard, but if it’s something you love to do, the adrenalin keeps you going,” Dries said after winning. The guys intend to use the prize money as start-up capital. “We’re staying together in the restaurant busi-ness,” they assured fans.Incidentally, their pop-up Aspar-aguus, specialising in asparagus dishes (including dessert), went through 1,800 kilos of the white gold while it was open for busi-ness. \ Alan Hope

guus and dries

The Koksijde district of Sint-Ides-bald was once famous as an artists’ village and is still the home of the Paul Delvaux museum. The town is named after the 12th-century third abbot of the abbey of Our Lady of the Dunes. When he died in 1167, he was buried under the abbey. There his lead coffin was discov-ered in 1623, the abbey itself in ruins. His remains were eventually brought to Bruges and reburied. A woman from Veurne, near Koksi-jde, visited the relics and was cured of possession by demons. A Cister-cian nun was later cured of her less flamboyant but no less troublesome migraines.

Idesbald was beatified by Pope Leo XIII in 1894. Although he has never been canonised, the good people of West Flanders added “saint” to his name anyway when they founded the coastal village. There’s just one problem with the whole story: It’s not true. The remains in the lead coffin are not those of Idesbald. That became clear when the coffin was opened to researchers last week interested in looking into eating patterns and illnesses of the past. The bones in the coffin attributed with miracles date from sometime between 1470 and their exhumation in 1623, at least 300 years later than Idesbald

would have died. The question remains: where is the real Idesbald? According to the director of the abbey museum, the aptly named Dirk Vanclooster, the solution could be right under our noses: Idesbald probably stayed buried where he had been laid in 1167, and remains there even now, as intended. \ AH

not who he appears to be offsIde

weeK In BrIefBelgium’s horse-jumping team won their first Nations Cup victory since 1934 to claim a surprise trophy at St Gallen in Switzerland at the weekend. Coached by Dirk Demeersman, Belgium leapt into second spot in the overall rankings with a perfor-mance that means they now have 250 points and head the Europe Division 1 leaderboard. There is just one more points-gaining outing remaining, at Hickstead in the UK at the end of July.

Only large supermarkets will be required to accept returned drinks cans and plastic bottles once they are subject to a deposit, Flemish environment minis-ter Joke Schauvliege said. The deposit is intended to encour-age customers to return drinks packaging rather than send it to landfill, but small retailers complained they do not have the space to stock the returns. Schau-vliege hopes to see the new meas-ure introduced in September.

The demolition of the Reyers viaduct in the Brussels commune of Schaarbeek will begin on 12 July with a street party, public works minister Pascal Smet has announced. The viaduct was slated for demolition after reno-vation works revealed serious problems with the structure. The area currently covered by the viaduct will be transformed into an open boulevard.

The Belgian Travel Organisa-tion, representing tour opera-tors, is demanding damages from Belgocontrol for the elec-tricity blackout that grounded all aircraft in Belgian air space for four hours on 27 May. Flights were cancelled and others severely delayed, and passengers were stranded at Brussels Airport and abroad.

Jo Libeer, managing direc-tor of the Flemish chamber of

commerce, Voka, until the end of the month, is set to become CEO of Kortrijk’s Interior Biennale, which next year celebrates its silver jubilee. Libeer, who leaves Voka after 32 years, had said he was looking for an opportunity at the crossroads of culture and economy.

The best milk in Flanders comes from the Adams-Leenaerts farm in Hoogstraten, Antwerp prov-ince, according to a survey carried out by the Flemish milk inspec-tion centre MCC. The centre inspects 15 million milk samples from 4,950 producers every year. The Hoogstraten milk scored highly for cell quality and low for bacteria content, water content and infections among the cows.

Red Devil captain Vincent Kompany has been named New European of the Year at a ceremony in the European Parliament. The award is given to a notable European of migrant origin. Kompany was elected unanimously by a jury of politi-cians, business leaders and NGO representatives, who said he “stands out across all borders, not only for his footballing talent but also for his spirit, his entre-preneurial talent, social commit-ment and volunteer work”.

Management at the famous Flemish biscuit-makers Lotus has assured all staff that no-one will be laid off as a result of the fire that seriously damaged the company’s bakery in Meise, Flemish Brabant, last week. The company is not certain the factory will be rebuilt, but work-ers were told jobs would be found for them in other parts of the company. The company also has production facilities in Eeklo, Kaprijke and Ghent, as well as in Courcelles in Wallonia.

The city and province of Antwerp will work together to create a

new diamonds and silver expe-rience centre. The province will contribute its own collection of diamonds and silver, as well as €6.75 million for the cost of the museum and €1.5 for annual upkeep. Antwerp city will contribute €3 million and pay the communications budget of €210,000. The Diamond Museum on Koningin Astridplein closed its doors in 2012.

Six companies have been nomi-nated for the Export Lion prize, awarded annually by Flanders Investment & Trade for export performance. In the category of companies with fewer than 50 employees: Aluvision, which makes installations for exhi-bitions and events; Basalte, specialists in interior design; Zappware, developer of digi-tal TV applications. Compa-nies with more than 50 workers: textile company Libeco-Lagae; Pattyn Packaging Lines, which makes bulk packaging; and Sofico, specialising in soft-ware for auto dealerships. The names of the two winners will be announced in December.

The average member of the Belgian armed forces has a body mass index (BMI) of 26.3 and is therefore technically over-weight, defence minister Steven Vandeput said. BMI is a stand-ard measure used to determine if an individual is underweight, normal weight (BMI up to 25), overweight (25-30) or obese. The military’s BMI varies according to age: all under-30s are lower than 25, while male NCOs over 50 average 27.6.

The government of Flanders has approved €20.3 million in subsidies for school-building projects. The total includes €9.6 million for urgent repairs, €7.1 million for small-scale build-ing works and €3.5 million for new buildings and major reno-vations.

© VTM

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\ POlITICs

City by the leieGhent is the city of cool in Flanders. Often overshad-owed by Antwerp – econom-ically, culturally and polit-ically – it has found a new confidence, embracing its quirkiness and its alternative scene. This it celebrates every summer during the 10-day Gentse Feesten, with outdoor concerts, street theatre, dance parties and copious amounts of alcohol. The festival attracts hundreds of thousands of people to the streets of Ghent, partying until the morning light, caus-ing few problems – except for mountains of rubbish, duti-fully swept away every morn-ing by the city’s proud garbage collectors. In politics, too, Ghent is very much its own city. When all of Flanders fell for the nation-alist N-VA, Ghent remained a progressive enclave, prefer-ring socialists and greens. In the 2012 elections, SP.A and Groen joined forces and gained an unprecedented absolute majority. At the head of this is socialist mayor Daniël Termont. From a modest background, Termont sports a sometimes mislead-ing folksy image. Unlike his Antwerp colleague, Bart De Wever (N-VA), Termont has chosen to keep out of national politics and be a full time mayor. But he nonetheless greatly influences his own party. In Ghent, Termont is cher-ished as a man of the people. When the organisation World Mayors elected him “second best mayor in the world”, the Gentenaars found that only logical. (To be the world’s best would conflict with their nonconformist nature). And when football club AA Gent unexpectedly became Belgian champions last month, Termont was celebrated as one of the men behind the success, as he pushed for their new stadium. So all is well in the city by the Leie? Not always. A recent strike by Ivago – those self-same garbage collectors – demonstrated how quickly even quinoa-eating, tree-hugging Ghent can dete-riorate in a smelly state of disgruntlement. As garbage piled up along the streets, even the mayor seemed at his wit’s end. “So where is Termont now? Abroad again, is he?” one striker sneered. Pretty soon, these words became rather embarrassing, as the mayor’s absence turned out to be due to surgery for bowel cancer. After that news broke, the nine-day strike was quickly resolved. As if the strik-ers somehow owed it to the mayor. \ Anja Otte

5TH coluMn Inquiry into German spyingfederal prosecutor opens investigation into Bnd wire-tapping

The federal prosecutor’s office is starting an investigation into allegations that the German intelligence agency

Bundesnachrichtendienst (BND) spied on Belgium for decades. The allegations came to light last week from documents leaked from a closed hearing in the German parliament.BND is accused of intercepting telecommunica-tion contacts into and out of Belgium on behalf of the American National Security Agency (NSA). Ten of the 15 lines involved belonged to Belga-com, now called Proximus. The Belgacom lines connected with Russia, France and Denmark, among other countries.

The espionage lasted from 2005 to 2008 and is alleged to have been gathering industrial and commercial information. BND works closely with Belgian intelligence services on security issues, but the Belgian service had no idea that the spying was being carried out. The NSA has denied industrial espionage, Home-land Security minister Alejandro Mayorkas told the German newspaper Tagesspiegel am Sonn-tag. “We never carried out economic espionage that would have given any economic advantage to American companies,” he said. “That’s not how we do things.” The co-operation with the BND covered only matters of national security, he said.

Flanders’ minister-president Geert Bourgeois has signed a memorandum of understand-ing with his counterpart from the Basque region of Spain, Iñigo Urkullu, who described the agreement as a model of its type. The co-operation covers areas like professional training, the workforce and the environ-ment. It also opens the way for political collaboration in areas such as co-existence and human rights, as well as a commitment to argue the case of autono-mous regions in Europe.VRT reported a massive pres-ence of the Spanish and Basque press at the signing. Basque politicians regard the agree-ment with Flanders as a sign of recognition of the status of the autonomous region by a promi-nent European counterpart. “Flanders sets an example for us,” Urkullu said. “You can sign treaties, for instance, which we

cannot.” The agreement, he said, “increases the view of Flanders and the Basque region as world players with their own voice and their own presence on the world stage”.The Basque region also main-tains strong ties with Scotland, and Urkullu is considering a referendum on independence. Unlike Scotland, however, the question in the Basque region is overshadowed by the history of terrorist violence by the separa-tist group ETA. “I am quite convinced that this declaration of intent between the Flemish and Basque govern-ments will be an important step in our co-operation.” Bourgeois said. “Themes such as research and development, environment and training are top priorities for Flanders. I am certain that the bundling of our strengths will deliver a win-win situa-tion for both Flanders and the Basque country.” \ AH

Flanders signs memo of understand-ing with Basque government

Technology giant Microsoft has chosen Brussels as the location of its first Transparency Center outside of the United States. The only other Transparency Center is at the Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Washington state. The centre allows governments secure access to the source code of all Microsoft products and services, as well as providing infor-mation on cyber safety and online risk management. Forty-two insti-tutions related to 23 governments have signed up, including the Belgian federal, regional and local governments. Alexander De Croo, federal minis-ter for the digital agenda, was present at the opening of the new centre. “Ensuring the safety of our

liberties and of our achievements requires action from governments and companies that develop tech-nology and make it available to us,” he said. “Governments can come here to better understand how we work, so that they can trust us,” said Glenn Puttaway, responsible for “reliable computer use” at Micro-soft.“Brussels is a great place for contact among people because so many government organisa-tion are based here,” commented Bruno Schroder of Microsoft BeLux. “The centre gives us the chance to show that we are doing what we say we’re doing, as a means of building trust in the cloud and in our security.” \ AH

Microsoft opens Transparency Centre in Brussels

A group of 32 cities and towns in West Flanders have signed on to the “Mayors’ Covenant” pledging to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 20% by the year 2020. The document commits all 32 mayors to carry out measurements to determine the level of emissions on their territory. They will then draw up a plan of action to show how they will achieve the 20% reduction. Every two years after that, the mayors will report on their progress towards the target. Sixteen municipalities had launched the initiative previously, so the total now stands at 48.The next municipal elections in Belgium are due to take place in 2018, which means progress on achieving the targets set out in the cove-nant could be an important factor in local campaigning in the cities concerned. Aside from Bruges, other cities signed on to the covenant include Ypres, Roeselare, Poperinge and many coastal towns such as Ostend and Knokke-Heist.In West Flanders, the initiative was taken by the provincial author-ity and the intercommunal WVI, which carries out environmental studies, among other work, on behalf of 54 municipalities in West Flanders. “As a province, we wanted to be the driving force behind local authorities, to help them strive for and ultimately achieve their goals,” said provincial deputy Guido Decorte. \ AH

West Flanders municipalities join forces to fight CO2 emissions

Former government minister Leo Delcroix (pictured), in charge of the Belgian pavilion at the current World Expo in Milan, in under investigation for alleged irregu-larities during his previous stint in charge of the pavilion at the World Expo in Shanghai five years ago. According to newspaper L’Echo, police last year executed a search warrant on Delcroix’s office in the federal economy ministry, on the orders of the prosecutor’s office in Tongeren. A number of document archives were sealed. The Tongeren prosecutor’s office has confirmed that an investiga-tion is currently under way amid allegations of mismanagement of the Shanghai pavilion. The Court of Auditors in 2013 reported that so many rules had been broken or ignored at Shanghai that a proper inspection of the finances of the operation was “simply impossi-ble”. Six members of staff, for exam-ple, received a €10,000 bonus for reasons that cannot be identi-

fied. The construction and the later sale of the pavilion for €6.35 million – where most of the pavil-ion’s profits come from – took place outside the terms of the contract. The Court blamed the economy ministry for failing to keep proper records. “My client is giving his full co-operation to the investigation,” Delcroix’s lawyer told De Morgen. Delcroix has not been interviewed regarding any form of irregular-ity, and he is also not a suspect in that investigation. He is confi-dent the enquiry will make further progress.” \ AH

Head of Belgian expo pavilion subject of police inquiry

alan hopeMore articles by Alan \ flanderstoday.eu

© Michael Dalder/Reuters/Corbis

The entrance to BND headquarters in Pullach

© Courtesy Gazet van Antwerpen

jUNE 10, 2015

\ 5

On the bright sidenew app offers solutions to problems brought on by modern life

continued from page 1

positive mind-set.”Visitors to the website must register and can then complete two tests. One tests their resil-ience and another examines how they relax and cope with stress. Respondents are then shown their scores as well as tips to improve their performance. After they select the areas they want to work on – for instance, learning to say “no”, daring to ask for help or trying something new – they are offered related chal-lenges and exercises. The website also allows visitors to keep an online diary and set goals. All the answers and diary entries are processed anonymously.“The platform’s goal is prevention and can improve your wellbeing,” says Verhenne. “It can’t, however, solve every problem. People with an addictions or severe mental disorders need more support and professional guidance.”

evidence-basedThat said, “the exercises offered on the website are evidence-based and have scientifically proven positive effects,” she claims. “By listing three positive things every day for a week, you create positive feelings that can last for months.”Visitors can retake the tests three months after they first completed them to see whether their behav-iours have changed. If some-one scores way below average or shows signs of destructive behav-iour, he or she is advised to seek professional help. With 25,000 visitors on the site’s first day, and 1,700 app down-loads, the Fit in je hoofd relaunch last month was a success. And while the campaign focuses on Flemings age 16 years or older, the Flemish health institute also offers a special noknok.be programme for children and teens. And an adapted version of Fit in je hoofd exists for elderly people. In the Zilver-wijzer programme, an instructor visits rest homes and intro-duces residents to the 10 steps in group sessions.Regardless of whether you feel like you should take the test or not, figures from the 2013 National Health Survey have shown that no less than one-third of the Belgian popula-tion 15 years and older experi-

ence psychological distress, anxi-ety and sleeping disorders. According to Lydia Gisle, a researcher at the Scientific Insti-tute for Public Health, 32% of the respondents scored positively on the psychological distress scale, up from a stable 25% in surveys carried out in 2001, 2004 and 2008. “The results generally reveal a negative socio-economic trend in the distribution of health indica-tors, including those of psycho-emotional problems,” she says. “The recent increase of emotional disorders and distress is most likely due to the economic crisis, which hampers the feelings of security in the population, espe-cially for the most deprived.” Women scored higher than men on all indicators of emotional disorders in that survey. “The largest difference is found in the age group of 15- to 24-year-olds, with twice as many women as men reporting recent psycholog-ical problems,” Gisle reports. In general, psychological problems are also more common in cities than in rural areas, with Brus-sels leading at 40%. The figure for Flanders was 29%.“Flanders scores better with regard to the majority of health-related indicators – that has always been the case,” the researcher says. The next national health survey will be conducted in 2018. Although it’s difficult to make any kind of predictions, Gisle isn’t expecting the results to have significantly improved by then “unless there’s an evolution in the socio-economic situation”.In light of how many users Fit in je hoofd has already logged and these sobering survey results, it might be worth asking: Why are we so stressed out and depressed? “When people visit self-help websites and complete tests

online, they’re not just curi-ous, they’re looking

for information. They feel the need to talk about this, and tech-nology enables them to do so,” says Dr Paul Koeck, stress expert and

founder of the online self-help programme 15minutes4me.com.

“At the same time,” he continues,

“I do think there’s a grow-ing prob-lem. Until 2008, we believed the sky was the limit. But then

big multina-tionals went

bankrupt,

people lost their jobs and every-thing that previously seemed possible became totally uncer-tain.”There’s are big differences, of course, between stress, depression and burnout. “Stress is a warning signal,” explains Koeck. “It helps us to focus. A bit of stress every now and then is good.” Chronic stress, however, is bad. People who are regularly stressed out can lose 25% of the brain cells in their hippocampus because of the overproduction of the stress hormone cortisol, says Koeck.

The hippocampus is the part of the brain that is responsible for memory and concentration. It’s connected to the prefrontal cortex, which is also affected by negative stress. The left part of the cortex, in charge of positive feelings and future planning, is first affected, while the right side, involved in establishing negative feelings and critical thinking, is subsequently affected. “This explains why, when we slip into a depression, we feel negative and down first and become apathetic afterwards,” he explains. “When left untreated for too long, depressed people can

suffer from a burnout.”All three stages are treatable. In therapy sessions, patients are asked questions to help them focus on positive aspects of their life, Koeck says. “With these psychological exercises, we can train the brain and restore the balance.” “Women tend to talk about these things more easily; that’s why therapists and doctors often see more women than men,” explains Koeck, who adds that online ther-apy has been successful in attract-ing more men.

According to the doctor, ther-apy has changed in recent years, and the threshold to seek help has become a lot lower. “Whether online or face-to-face, structured help with therapy and or medi-cation will get patients back to normal. That wasn’t the general consensus 10 years ago.”So why are stress and depression such hot topics today? Accord-ing to Koeck, times have simply changed. “Our grandparents were told to say ‘yes’ to everything to get ahead. If we do the same and say ‘yes’ to every invitation, incoming call, message or mail, we go crazy. We weren’t brought up with the

skills to prioritise,” Koeck explains. Yet people’s inability to priori-tise inevitably results in feelings of stress. “Whether it’s at work or at home, adults need to learn how to talk about priorities. A busy job in combination with an intense social life – we unconsciously choose to do a lot of things, with-out any structure or breaks.” And while we might find it easier to tell our friends and family we’re too busy, notes Koeck, it’s impor-tant to tackle this discussion at work, too. “We all dread that conversation with our boss, tend to postpone it and end up blam-ing work for all the pressure in our lives, when your boss probably doesn’t even know how you feel and is open to a discussion,” the doctor says. Patients diagnosed with stress, depression or burnout often only have to stay at home for a few weeks, says Koeck. “I cringe when I hear people say: ‘When you have a burnout, you’re out for a year’. It proves that the basic informa-tion about stress and burnouts isn’t well known yet. On average, patients feel better and more like themselves again after three or four weeks of therapy.” And while this feels to many like too long to be off work, Koeck says he has seen a change in employ-ers. “They’re becoming a lot more understanding about the issue, and they would much prefer their employee be out for four weeks and come back feeling better than be back at work after only one week and relapse a few days later.”

\ COVER sTORy

fitinjEhoofd.BE

We all dread that conversation with our boss

© Chris FordThe revamped website offers users tests and challenges to, for instance, learn to say “no”

© katie lagast

According to Dr koeck, our inability to prioritise results in stress

\ 6

\ BUsINEss

Air ANAThe Japanese All Nippon Airways is launching a direct Brussels-Tokyo daily flight starting in October. Some 240 Japanese companies and 5,300 Japanese citizens are in Belgium.

Audit DeloitteThe local affiliate of the US-based audit, tax and management services company is negotiating a merger with the firm’s UK operation as part of a broader consolidation of the company’s activities in Western Europe.

Banking MeDirectThe Malta-based Mediter-ranean Bank has received a licence from the local regu-latory authorities to launch its MeDirect online banking services in Belgium.

Fast food QuickThe hamburger fast food group with 99 outlets in Belgium and some 500 throughout Europe, is up for sale for €800 million. The chain, launched in Belgium in the early 1970s, is owned by the French govern-ment’s investment fund Qual-ium.

Gaming Napoleon GamesThe gaming and casino group, operator of the Knokke Casino, 23 gaming lounges across the country and an online betting site, has been taken over by the Dutch Waterland private equity fund. Meanwhile, the UK-based Rank group is believed to be seeking a buyer for the Middelkerke Casino.

Insurance AgeasThe Brussels-based group has created a joint venture in the Philippines in partnership with the local EastWest Bank to sell life insurance policies.

Retail jBCThe apparel group, based in Houthalen-Helchteren, with 144 outlets in Belgium, Germany and Luxembourg, is opening 15 stores and launch-ing an online shopping in China in partnership with the local Deesha group. JBC, which also owns the 62-store strong Mayerline chain, is Belgium’s third largest clothing distribu-tor behind C&A and H&M.

weeK In BusIness Road toll protest planned

disruption expected as lorries take to streets of Brussels on 18 june

The three federations representing the road haulage industry have agreed to a common action next Thursday, 18 June,

in protest at the Flemish government’s plans to introduce a road use fee for all lorries larger than 3.5 tonnes. The toll will apply on all major roads in Flan-ders staring in April next year, varying between €0.074 and €0.2 per kilometre depending on the type, weight and emissions level of the vehi-cle. The toll is expected to raise €310 million a year and, according to the government, ensure that the cost of maintaining the roads is met by those who use them the most. “Transport companies will pass the cost on to customers; they see no other option,” said Isabelle De Maegt of one of transport federation

Febetra. “And if that happens, even the most healthy companies will be bankrupt within a month. We are also asking for accompanying

measures to ensure our competitive position, given the difficult conditions in which we have to operate.”According to the tariffs announced in May by Flemish mobility minister Ben Weyts, the feder-ations have calculated that a lorry averaging 80,000 kilometres a year on Flanders’ motor-ways will have to pay €10,240 a year in tolls, instead of the €1,250 it now costs for the eurovi-gnet certificate covering Benelux, Denmark and Sweden. That certificate will still be required for the rest of those countries. On 18 June, lorry drivers are expected to take their protest to the roads in Brussels. The protest is likely to take the form of a parade of lorries through the centre of the city, so some disruption to traffic can be expected.

alan hopeMore articles by Alan \ flanderstoday.eu

Following a marathon meeting last week, unions and management at sanitation department Ivago in Ghent reached an agreement to solve the nine-day strike that saw rubbish piling up in the streets of the city. The rubbish was a growing concern in Ghent, particularly with the warmer weather predicted for the weekend. Some residents also took advantage of the situation by dumping large objects, such as furniture and mattresses, on the sidewalks next to rubbish bags, estimated at around 300,000. The situation led Ghent’s city council to send 26 officials out into the streets to make an inven-tory of the problem and map the possible health hazards. Mayor Daniël Termont (SP.A) had already ordered 76 members of Ivago staff to clear

rubbish from sensitive spots such as schools, crèches and hospitals, though only about half of the staff turned up. “I recognise and respect the right to strike, but we can’t allow epidemics to be

started over a labour conflict,” he said. Terms agreed include the removal of Ivago’s personnel manager; De Morgen reported that it was agreed that the operational director would no longer come in contact with staff. “Both sides have made concessions,” commented Christel Demerlier of the socialist VSOA union. “There was a lot on the table, and sometimes the water was too deep, but at that point the only thing you can do is negotiate,” said Dirk Van Himste of the Christian ACOD. Termont himself could not be present for the announcement, as he was in hospital recovering from surgery for bowel cancer. The 62-year-old is expected to be off work for four to five weeks, during which time he will be replaced by first alderman Matthias De Clercq (Open VLD). \ AH

Ghent garbage strike ends with union agreement

Brussels-based pharmaceuticals firm Domobios raised €100,000 by crowdfunding in only 18 minutes last week, to finance a new product against dust mites. House dust mites (Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus) live in homes, particularly in beds, where they feed on the tiny flakes of shed skin. As if that doesn’t sound bad enough, the mites’ waste and exoskeletons of the mite are both triggers for allergic reactions. Although the creatures, unlike fleas or bed bugs, do not come in contact with people, the allergies pose a health problem for millions of people. It is estimated that 75% of all respiratory allergies are caused by house dust mites. The mites are nearly microscopic but are ubiquitous: They have been found in the Antarctic as well as in the Mir Space Station. Domobios’ product, Acar’Up, consists of spray that attracts the mites and a special pillow and mattress cover that traps them. After spraying the cover, the mites in the bed climb into the cloth, which can then be removed and laun-dered. The bed can then be vacuumed to remove any resi-due. The treatment can also be used on other household furnishings.The manufacturers claim that the product – unlike all existing products – is non-toxic and has no side effects. It works by replicating the pheromones emitted by the mites to communicate with each other when the atmosphere is too dry, and they risk being unable to absorb enough mois-ture from the air to survive. \ AH

Hatred of dust mites gets Brussels company €100,000 in minutes Alan Bernard, CEO of dredging and

civil engineering firm DEME, has won this year’s Vlerick Award, handed out annually by Vlerick Business School on behalf of its alumni association, which votes for the winner.The theme of this year’s award was “Legacy & Promise”. All the nominees “run a company with a proud history and valuable legacy that must be safe-guarded,” said Vlerick in a statement. “At the same time, the company must also continue to develop and grow.”Bernard has been the chief execu-tive of DEME (Dredging Environmen-tal & Marine Engineering) since 2006. Under his leadership, the company, based in Zwijndrecht, Antwerp prov-ince, has broadened its activities from dredging alone to land reclamation, hydraulic engineering, environmental projects and services for the offshore oil, gas and renewable energy indus-tries. The 59-year-old holds Masters’ degrees in civil engineering and industrial management from the University of Leuven and has worked at DEME since 1980. He also sits on the boards of water treatment company Aquafin,

Flemish chamber of commerce Voka, maritime engineering company CFE, Flanders Investment & Trade and the Royal Belgian Shipowners Association. Other nominees this year were Bernard Delvaux of aerospace company Sonaca, Dominique Leroy of Proximus and Koen Van Gerven of Bpost. \ AH

Head of DEME dredging wins annual Vlerick Award

© Belpress

A protest of by the truck driving industry in 2008 led to traffic jams in the capital

© Nicolas Maeterlinck/BElGA

© Courtesy Deme

jUNE 10, 2015

\ 7

One in five young Flemings has mental health concerns.

Sometimes the troubles resolve themselves, but frequently, they get worse, with potentially serious consequences. To raise awareness and break the taboo around psychological problems, Flanders will have its own Red Nose Day this year.On 5 December, TV station VTM and its partner radio station, Q-music, will host a show featur-ing Flemish actors, comedians and artists. They promise an evening of first-class entertain-ment, laughter and a lot of silli-ness. Through sketches, paro-dies and music, the aim is to create awareness about a diffi-cult contemporary issue.Of course, you can’t just laugh off depression. But experience has shown that these benefit shows are much more successful if they have a positive vibe. So, although the show will be frivolous, the goal of the campaign behind it is deadly serious: to raise as much money as possible to help young people deal with psychological problems.The campaign – raising money for a serious cause by putting up a funny nose – comes from the UK, where Red Nose Day is an annual tradition. After the Netherlands adopted a similar campaign in 2011, De Gekste Dag (The Crazi-est Day), it’s Flanders turn to host its own Rode Neuzen Dag.In recent months, events in Flan-ders have made us sit up and take notice: a boy committed suicide after being bullied at school, a girl was held in a jail because there was no room for her in youth psychiatric services… Taken with the region’s alarm-ing suicide statistics, including among youngsters (the number of suicides is 1.5 times higher than the EU average), it’s clear there’s a lot of work to be done.The numbers are frightening. One in five young people in Flan-ders struggles with a psycho-logical disorder, and one in 20 needs specialist psychiatric care. “One of our targets should be to prevent those from the first group ending up in the second group,” says Peter Adriaensens, a child and youth psychiatrist at the University of Leuven who has written several books on success-ful parenting.“We should really avoid young-sters having to go to a psychia-trist,” he continues. “It’s impor-tant that we encourage young people to talk about what trou-bles them. In Flanders, however, we’re not used to this. We’re always trying to be strong.”

Collecting money isn’t the only goal of the first Flemish Red Nose Day. “It’s important that we break the taboo around psychologi-cal problems in young people,” explains Adriaenssens. “I’m pleased that humour will play a central role in this campaign because it can be an important instrument in this mission. It’s the language of youth, so I like to see it connected with this serious issue.”

In the build-up to the Decem-ber show, people will be able to support the campaign by donat-ing money outright or by buying a red nose. The noses will be for sale at Belfius, the bank that’s organ-ising the campaign alongside VTM and Q-music. But people can also apply to the organisers to sell noses themselves, or to set up their own collections.“For every 100 noses we sell, we can help one youngster who’s in trouble,” says actor Jonas Van Geel, who will present the show on VTM. The funding will allow youngsters to get free psycholog-ical help. One of the organisations that will use the money collected on Red Nose Day to provide that

treatment is Tejo (Therapeuten voor Jongeren, or Therapists for Youngsters), which specialises in providing accessible therapy to youngsters aged between 10 and 20. The help is immediate, short-term, free and anonymous. Tejo operates a number of houses where young people can calm down for a while, helped by professional therapists who work on a voluntary basis. Five years ago, the first Tejo house opened

opened in Antwerp, and there are now three more: in Ghent, Mechelen and Ronse.“Here in Antwerp we welcome between 500 and 600 new young-sters every year,” says Lieve Van Boxem, communications manager at Tejo Antwerp. “We try to help more than 700 young-sters a year. That means that since the opening of our house in 2010, we’ve had more than 10,000 therapeutic conversations.” So how does it work? “Youngsters who come to us are immediately assigned to a therapist,” explains Van Boxem. They can receive up to 10 free sessions. The average number of completed sessions at the moment is four.”Do the people at Tejo share the

feeling that there’s a tidal wave of young people needing help? Van Boxem: “I don’t know all the numbers. But I can say that since the turn of the century, the number of people in youth care has more than doubled – to 27,000 right now.”The woman behind Tejo is Ingrid De Jonghe. She is now a profes-sional therapist, but before she founded Tejo, she was a lawyer in youth court. “There I witnessed how long waiting lists for psychi-atric help can often turn rela-tively small problems into some-thing uncontrollable,” she recalls. “While I was in court, I often asked myself: What if these young-sters had received help sooner? I now know the answer. Young people who are in the midst of a crisis need fast and efficient support. We’re not helping them by putting them on a waiting list for three or six months.”When De Jonghe founded the organisation five years ago, she had a crew of 30 youth therapists and administrative staff, all of them working as volunteers. Now she can call on more than 100 people at Tejo Antwerp alone, in a townhouse in the city centre.As the organisation is growing and more Tejo houses are planned elsewhere, every form of support is welcome, so that young people in trouble can keep finding their way to one of the houses and find someone with expertise to listen to their troubles. So if you’re walking down the street in the coming months and see a stand selling red noses, you know what to do.

Laughter with a messagered nose day supports young people with mental health problems

shortage of geriatricians in BelgiumBelgium has a significant shortage of geriatric doctors and nurses, according to a new report published by the Belgian Health Care Knowl-edge Centre (KCE). The report evaluated the “intern geriat-ric liaison teams,” which are tasked with caring for the increasing number of elderly patients who cannot be accommodated in the special-ised geriatric departments of hospitals. KCE determined that the teams are often too small to handle the work-load. “The demand for geri-atric care greatly exceeds the available human resources and the allocated budget,” the report stated. KCE advised more training for the special-ity and the establishment of a platform to exchange practi-cal experiences.

\ kce.fgov.be

New website dedicated to hospital qualityPatients can now compare the quality of services provided in Flemish hospitals by visiting zorgkwaliteit.be. Launched last week by Flemish minister of public health Jo Vandeurzen, the website is in a preliminary stage and currently lists the results of two-thirds of hospi-tals in Flanders with regards to treatment of breast cancer. The site provides treat-ment and survival figures and patients’ experiences. Results can be examined by hospital, and hospitals can be compared to each other. More hospitals and services will be added as ready since participation in the website is voluntary. “This is a big step towards more transparency,” said Vandeurzen.

UGent focuses on social value of researchTo avoid the results of scien-tific research remaining behind closed lab doors, Ghent University (UGent) has created a policy plan to encourage attaching social value to research results and findings. Social value means that scientific knowledge is made available to and is useful for society. “The social value of research often gets little attention because the focus instead lies on getting arti-cles published,” said Esther De Smet of UGent. “But often, research findings can have a major impact on commu-nities and form the basis of social change.” The strategic plan creates a framework for quality care and evaluation of science communication, participative research and policy support. \ Andy Furniere

weeK In InnovaTIon

\ INNOVATION

rodEnEuzEndag.BEsenne starckxMore articles by senne \ flanderstoday.eu

From left: TV hosts jonas Van Geel and koen wauters join radio hosts sven Ornelis and Maarten Vancoillie to present a variety show in December

Since the turn of the century, the number of people in youth care has more than doubled

64 i best of belgium 2015

FaMIlYThere is no lack

of excellent

daycare options in

Belgium, but the bestplaces

fill up fast, so be sure to

book your place early. In

this section you will find

associationswho offer

information concerning

childcare and welfare,

and lots of fun activities

for youngsters. Details

of language courses for

children arealso provide

d

28/05/15 13:36

best of belgium 2015 i 25

list of fresh, cooked-to-ord

er pittas, it’sa popular

spot for a quick bite to eat

. Choosing isdifficult,

but as the pittas aren’t ver

y big there’sno shame

in ordering two.Themenu also featu

res salads and

sweet options, and there’s

a large, sunny terrace.

Ä 31 Rue Watteau, Brussels

King Kong isa trendy Peru

vian joint serving a

limited but finger-lickingmenu. Choose

a hot

or cold sandwich – the ham

burger and chicken

mayonnaise come highly reco

mmended – andopt

for a side such as the yuca

chips or mixed bean

salad. If you’re there arou

nd lunchtime, go for the

rotisserie chicken, with po

tato salad, salad, apple

sauce and a drink for just u

nder €12.

Ä 227 chaussée de charleroi, Brussels

When in Liège,you have to t

aste the famous

boulettes Liégoises: meatballs with

a savoury dark

sauce. Try them at l’Oeuf au P

lat, a populareatery

with an affordable menu.They also serve

amean

fry-upwith eggs, bacon an

d sausage, whichwill

set you back€11 if you go

for themeal deal which

includes a glass of wine, co

ffee and a shot of local

schnapps at the end.

Ä 30 La Batte, Liège

www.oeuf-au-plat.com

For cheap, cheerful and he

althy eating you can’t

go wrong with fast foodoutlet Potato

licious.

It serves soups and salads a

s well as baked

potatoes. The goat’s cheese option com

es highly

recommended, whilemeat eaters will enjoy the

crispy baconvariety. Kl/vr

Ä 5 Verlorenkost, Ghent

potatolicious.be

GoUrMet DINING

At Va doux vent, a duo of d

aring youngchefs,

Stefan Jacobsand Romain Mouton, serve

modern

dishes with a nod to retro cuisine.

The name

is a tribute tothe French c

olonial Indian spice

vadouvan; Jacobs’ passion

for spice was aroused

while working under Fren

ch spice master Olivier

Roellinger. Only 18 months after o

pening,

the team, including former Comme Chez Soi

sommelier GontranBuysse, picke

d up a Michelin

star in 2012.This compact Uccle to

wnhouse was

formerly occupiedby Brussels c

ulinary star Bon-

Bon, now the bearer oftwo Michelin stars

and

occupying new premises in Avenu

e de Tervuren,

Woluwe-Saint-Pierre. Gener

ous portionsand a

preference for meat in the mains. Menus €35-

€85.Ä 93 Rue des carmelites, Brussels

www.vadouxvent.be

At the heart of the tourist t

rap restaurant quarter

Rue des Bouchers lies Aux

Armes de Bruxelles, a

legendary address that’s p

erfect for traditional

Belgian cuisine.The institution

has been

serving generations of visit

ors as well asloyal

locals. On themenu: oysters,

lobster, Belgian

specialities such as shrimp croquettes,

waterzooi,

carbonnade,steak-frites a

nd plenty of fresh fish.

Service is impeccable. Mains €19-€57.

Ä 13 Rue des Bouchers, Brussels

www.auxarmesdebruxelle

s.com

Three-Michelin-starHertog Jan ope

ned in

new premises in 2014,in a renovate

d barn just

outside Bruges. Pared-do

wn pure design, the

dining roomis dominated by lar

ge glass walls

overlookinga farm garden.The green view

is

reflected in the menu, which f

eatures colourful

and seasonalveggies, and

the lack of clutter

continues inevery dish: th

e very best ingredients

served simply with tantalising flavours an

d

accompaniments. Chef Gert De Mangeleer and

host JoachimBoudens took

over the former

Bruges bistroBrasserie Her

tog Jan 10 years ago.

It’s now one of Belgium’s top culinar

y addresses,

as reflected in the prices.

Dishes from€60-€90;

menus €115-€315.

Ä 52 Loppemsestraat, Zedelgem

www.hertog-jan.com

At 23 and with only a fewyears of expe

rience

at high-end restaurants in

the Netherlands

and Spain, Kobe Desramaults took ov

er his

parents’ struggling Frenc

h bistro in deepest

Flanders andtransformed it into In D

eWulf, an

award-winning, Michelin-starred restauran

t

that promotes local ingredients. When he isn’t

growing his own herbs, Desramaults is sourc

ing

from neighbouring farmers and buyin

g fresh

fish in nearby Dunkirk.Th

e tasting menu (from

€140) features many regional

delicacies and the

results of thechefs’ foragin

g in the richsoil of the

agricultural land. Accommodation also

available.

Ä 1 Wulvestraat, heuvelland

www.indewulf.be

Arriving on the Antwerp r

estaurant scene in 2014,

The Jane has provoked asmuch discussio

n on

architectureand design bl

ogs as it has for its food.

Dutch chefs Sergio Herman (formerly of Oud S

luis

in the Netherlands) and Ni

ck Bril offer exquisite

coR De chAsse

L’AiR Du teMPs

28/05/15 11:30

88 i best of belgium 2015

travelBelgium has excellen

t

connectionsto the rest

of Europe, but getting

around the country is also

easy thanksto its public

transport system. In

this section you can find

information on airports,

national railservices,

buses and coaches, cyclin

g

organisations and car-

sharing schemes

28/05/15 13:55

38 i best of belgium 2015

Come the summer, there’s

no better place to unwind

and revive the senses than

at the Belgian coast. With

pristine sandy beaches

and handsome seaside

towns extending from

Knokke-Heist in the northeast to De Panne in

the southwest, the area offers something for

everyone – from thrill-seeking water sports

fanatics to those who prefer sipping cocktails

at the beach after a day of shopping.

eXPloreThe coastal tram makes exploring Belgium’s

seaside comfortable and affordable. Don’t worry

about traffic jams or finding a place to park –

the 67km tramline, the longest in the world,

departs from 68 locations between Knokke-

Heist and De Panne every 10 minutes during the

high season and stops at all the resort towns.

Tickets are available at tram stations, kiosks and

supermarkets for €5, and for €7 in the tram.

www.delijn.be/en/kusttr

am

SeeThough all the resorts are worth a visit, make sure

you take time to revel in the opulence of Knokke,

also known as the Saint-Tropez of the North Sea.

Here, the elegantly dressed and well-coiffed stroll

through streets dotted with high-end boutiques,

art galleries and trendy restaurants. Many wealthy

Belgians own weekend mansions in Knokke. It’s

definitely a place to see, and be seen.

DoWant to sunbathe undisturbed, challenge the

waves on a surfboard or go for a zen-inducing

walk? De Panne not only boasts the widest beach

on the Belgian coast, it’s also surrounded by

four nature reserves. In the sandy dunes of the

Westhoek you can peacefully wander for hours,

clearing your head and admiring myriad plants

and wildlife as you go. Ever tried land yachting?

De Panne is where this adventurous sport first

evolved.

eatA visit to the coast is the perfect opportunity

to sample the region’s fantastic seafood. At ’t

Kantientje in Knokke, chef Dominique Pille will

delight you with his culinary expertise. Start

your meal with oysters, follow with one of his

lobster specialities and end with a mouthwatering

dessert. For mussels, Resto de Rimini in Sint-

Idesbald (Koksijde) is sure to please. Bear in mind,

however, that mussels aren’t usually served out

of season (between April and July). But Rimini’s

other seafood choices – such as prawn croquettes

– will not disappoint.

www.kantientje.be

www.restohofterhille.be

SleePFor the ultimate indulgence, stay at Hotel Manoir

du Dragon in Knokke-Heist. Set in a beautifully

restored villa dating to 1927, the four-star hotel

offers 16 rooms, most with private jacuzzi and

a view of the Royal Zoute golf course. In the

morning, enjoy a sumptuous breakfast that

includes fresh fruit, eggs, homemade preserves

and Belgian specialities. Another excellent choice

is Esprit de Mer in De Panne. The cosy bed and

breakfast has three tastefully decorated rooms

and is just 400m from the beach. PW

www.manoirdudragon.be

www.espritdemer.be

tHe CoaSt

21/05/15 16:32

At newsstands from June 11 or at www.thebulletin.be

For the ultimate indulgence, stay at Hotel Manoir

du Dragon in Knokke-Heist. Set in a beautifully

restored villa dating to 1927, the four-star hotel

offers 16 rooms, most with private jacuzzi and

a view of the Royal Zoute golf course. In the

morning, enjoy a sumptuous breakfast that

includes fresh fruit, eggs, homemade preserves

and Belgian specialities. Another excellent choice

is Esprit de Mer in De Panne. The cosy bed and

breakfast has three tastefully decorated rooms

and is just 400m from the beach. PW

www.manoirdudragon.be

PLUS YOUR ESSENTIAL 45-PAGE EXPAT DIRECTORY

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BELGIUM EXPOSEDAll that’s quirky and coolabout this country

Offbeat museums Underground art Where to eat Travel tips

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Hey you.Yes, you, with the smartphone.

There is an app for Flanders Today, you know, which makes it super easyto keep up with daily news and features anywhere at any time on yoursmartphone or tablet

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It’s free.

easy ways to download the app: visit www.fl anderstoday.euand click on “Download the Flanders Today app” or go straight to your app

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IF YOU GO DIRECTLY TO A SECTION, ARTICLES LOOK LIKE THIS

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jUNE 10, 2015

\ 9

Social engineeringconference teaches future engineers to put skills to good use

Agreement to promote airplane tech studiesThree Flemish secondary schools and representatives of the local aviation sector have signed a commitment agree-ment to strengthen the stud-ies in airplane-related tech-nology. The schools preparing youngsters for a technical job in the aviation sector are the Stedelijk Lyceum Meir in Antwerp, VTI Sint-Petrus and Paulus in Ostend and Zavo in Zaventem. With the skills acquired, graduates can find work at companies manufac-turing airplane parts or as tech-nicians with airlines. The three schools combined have only 70 students enrolled in these studies this academic year, so the sector is hoping the agree-ment will improve the figure.

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VUB launches chair on flexible careersThe Free University of Brus-sels (VUB) has launched a chair to stimulate the discus-sion and concentrate on research on flexible career trajectories. Mainstreaming the idea of flexibility in one’s long-term job prospects can help reduce the ever-growing number of burnouts, accord-ing to the chair’s co-ordina-tor, communication scientist Tanja Verheyen. According to a VUB statement, there is still a taboo in Belgium around career changes, although the need for them is more acute than ever. “The time of employ-ees working for decades in the same place and in the same position is long gone,” said the university. Verheyen pointed to two crucial developments: the ageing of the population and the increasing use of robotic technology. More and more jobs will no longer be carried out by humans but by digital systems, she explained.

Record diplomas via Exams CommissionA record number of 936 students last year earned their secondary school diploma via the Exams Commission. That is 38% more than the year before. Some 8,000 youngsters left secondary school last year without a diploma. Increasing numbers of them are turning to Flanders’ Exams Commission, which administers courses of study and diplomas equal to secondary school diplomas. Nearly 3,660 people registered with the Exams Commission last year, and a record number of 936 passed the exams. Half of these earned a diploma of professional education (BSO), about one-quarter in technical education (TSO) and another quarter in general education (ASO). \ Andy Furniere

weeK In educaTIon

\ EDUCATION

The University of Leuven (KU Leuven) and the Geel campus of Thomas More University College are working together

to introduce engineers to the social enterprise sector.On 18 and 19 June, engineers from all over the world will gather at the historical buildings of the Groot Begijnhof in Leuven for the first Engineer-ing4Society conference. The 30-odd speakers will demonstrate how valuable the work of engineers can be in various social enterprises.Engineers can provide solutions for problems such as climate change, poverty, disability, exclu-sion and addiction. A speaker from Ghana, for instance, will talk about an initiative to recycle electronic waste, while KU Leuven architecture professor Ann Heylighen will emphasise how important it is to consider the needs of people with disabilities when designing a building.“Unfortunately, many engineering graduates have no idea how the social enterprise sector works because they never learned about it during their studies,” says KU Leuven professor Jan Engelen, one of the organisers of the confer-ence.

The event includes inspiring examples from abroad, like lectures on designing for the home-less as part of the product and industrial design Master’s degree at the University of Porto in Portugal.KU Leuven has set up a pioneering initiative with the Geel campus of Thomas More University College: a postgraduate programme on commu-nity service engineering. The English-language programme, which was organised for the first time this academic year, prepares engineers for a career in the international social sector. Lecturers include representatives of vulnerable

groups in society, staff of social enterprise organ-isations and policymakers. “Students can learn about the diversity of social enterprise initia-tives,” explains Engelen. “They also get to know the financial organisation of the sector, which relies to a large extent on attracting subsidies.” Students are also taught how to involve the necessary stakeholders to make sure that projects meet the demands of the target group. “This is a skill that many graduate engineers now lack,” says Engelen.The first graduates of the programme will present their theses at the Engineering4soci-ety conference. Sonia Van Ballaert, for example, will explain how the use of online platforms like social media can help to motivate volunteers working on suicide prevention hotlines. Annemie Morel will explain how the memory of people with dementia can be stimulated by linking objects to important aspects of their lives. For example, a chair for a visitor can be equipped with technology that starts playing a video message from a grandchild when the person with dementia holds a tablet computer near the chair.A separate postgraduate programme is a step in the right direction for Flemish education, but the big challenge is to adjust the curricula of the

regular engineering degrees. “A separate course on community service engineering is a goal in the long term, but social profit aspects could be integrated into the current courses quickly,” explains Engelen. Informatics courses could include an explana-tion on making web pages accessible for people with a reading disability, and economics courses could provide more information about the non-profit sector. Encouraging students to work on social projects for their practical assignments would help as well.The Geel campus of Thomas More University College already gives students the chance to follow extra courses on how the social enterprise sector works. The additional efforts of students are rewarded through a special mention on their diploma. According to Engelen, an increased focus on social enterprises can make the profession of engineer more intriguing, which is necessary, he says, because there is a shortage of engineers on the labour market. “Many youngsters have trouble understanding what engineers do exactly and have a somewhat negative view of the profession,” says Engelen. “We have to make it clear that many engineers devote their efforts to good causes.”

Exchange organisation WEP is looking for 14 Flemish families to host a student from Wallonia in September. The youngsters, aged 15 to 18, will go to a local school to practise their Dutch and learn more about Flemish culture.WEP stands for World Education Program, a Belgian organisation founded in 1988 that has grown to have offices in France, Italy, Argen-tina and Australia. “We organise language trav-els, put people in touch with charity organisa-tions all over the world and work with exchange students,” explains WEP’s Dominique Trocmé. “Every year, we find a place for foreign students who want to come to Belgium and help about 2,500 Belgian students with an educational or cultural programme abroad.” For the past 10 years, WEP has been setting up exchange programmes between students from Wallonia and Flanders. It might seem a bit strange to arrange exchange programmes within their own country, but it’s a fun way for

the French speakers to practise their Dutch.“It’s a cliché that French-speaking students don’t want to learn Dutch; they do,” Trocmé says. “For those who want to practise their second language in Flanders and live with a Flemish family, we try to find a secondary school and a host family they can join for a period from a trimester up to a year.”About 20 students from Wallonia have signed

up for the programme, most of them in their last year at secondary school. WEP is still looking for 14 families who want to invite one of them into their home. “A young couple with or without children, pensioners, a single mother: Anyone can volun-teer as long as they have a spare room and don’t mind putting an extra plate on the table,” Trocmé says. “Our local co-ordinators screen the host families and stay in close touch throughout the entire stay.” And how about the schools? “If the student joins a family with children of a similar age, we try to send them all to the same school,” he explains. “So far, we’ve always been successful in finding a place for the students at one of the local schools. Most of the schools know our organisation and see the benefits of such an exchange.” WEP also organises similar exchanges for Flem-ish students who want to brush up their French in Wallonia. \ Katrien Lindemans

Students seek host families across language border wEP.BE

andy furniereMore articles by Andy \ flanderstoday.eu

We have to make it clear that many engineers devote their efforts to a good cause

students at kU leuven, where a new programme prepares engineers for a career in the social sector

© kU leuven/Rob stevens

EnginEEring4sociEty.org

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\ lIVING

Of boards and brandssnowboarder-turned-entrepreneur raf maes on making it in the us

Raf Maes was born in Mol, Antwerp province, but is looking to make his home

Los Angeles, California – all thanks to snowboarding. As a pro snowboarder for 10 years, Maes (pictured) travelled the world from mountaintop to mountain-top, eight months of the year. It fostered a love of travel that perme-ated his career. “I really liked the travel aspect of snowboarding,” he tells me. “I started combining my Helly Hansen sponsorship with my career. They needed an assistant to take care of the European team, of which I was a part, so I became team manager. That meant I could ride, combined with an extra budget. It was a good job, doing what I loved for a few years.”From there, it was a natural evolu-tion. “I started a distribution company in Belgium for streetwear and accessories,” he recalls. “That’s where I gained experience of work-ing with brands – learning what they did well and what they did wrong, and from there I created our own brand, Komono.”The sunglasses and watch company has experienced progres-sive growth, first in Europe and now in the US. “The US was one of our last countries, and it was a big market,” Maes explains. “We didn’t want to be amateurs, so we waited until the brand was ready. In 2014, there were 200 stores selling our products and, as of today, there are over 600.” For a brand that only launched in 2013, he reckons that’s not bad. “We’re in Nordstrom and Urban Outfitters, as well as smaller boutiques. It’s diverse. We’re pretty happy with what’s happening.”Trying to crack the US market was

the catalyst for Maes’ inclination to move stateside. Working with an American sales and PR agency and dealing with a nine-hour time difference meant that “it’s been two years of me calling and emailing until one in the morning. We want to make it happen here in the US, and you can’t do it from your chair in Belgium. It’s a very big market; you need to be here. A nice talk face to face is better than LinkedIn.”Maes thinks that a focus on personal interaction is one of the

reasons behind Komono’s success. “With major brands, you need to listen to your partners or examine the market situation,” Maes says. “Some brands are very arrogant, even destructive. We’re construc-tive; we listen to what’s happen-ing and come up with solutions as needed.”Despite this success, he’s deter-mined to stay down to earth. “We keep listening to our partners,” he says. “It gets harder as you grow, but this should be fundamental.

Some brands don’t see partnership, they just see a channel to sell. But for us, it really is a partnership.”Belgians, he believe, keep both feet on the ground and stay realistic. “It’s a nice quality to have,” he says. “Belgians have strong ambitions, but we keep calm about it. I don’t have the urge to try to impress people.” And that understated local pride comes through in the brand. “We always want to stay a Belgian brand with roots in Antwerp,” he insists. “We’ll never become an American brand. We simply want to trans-late our message, to connect both worlds. We think globally while respecting our down-to-earth mentality and European aesthetic.”That’s not to say he doesn’t have respect for American culture. On the contrary, he says he’s found the overt friendliness a welcom-ing aspect that better suits his own outgoing nature. “Here in California, it’s very friendly,” he says. “There’s openness about talking about successes. Belgium is a bit more reserved. People are more protective of their success; they try to hide more. I’m an open book and love to talk about things, and that’s certainly possible here.” The sheer size and scope of the US also inspire Maes. “We just collabo-rated with an artist and illustrator in Philadelphia,” he says. “There’s a bigger network to work with, and that’s one of the goals of being here – to collaborate with good brands, artists and designers. “There’s a young and creative energy in a city like LA. It’s larger, with a bigger concentration of creative people, which gives me a lot of inspiration as an owner.”

“This isn’t just one of those expensive demo conventions, where you sit and watch a bunch of nervous chefs showing off their skills on stage,” reads the website of the event that aspires to be “the best and biggest restaurant in the world”. Albeit for one day only. The organisers of the Flemish Food Bash are allowed to be confident; their upcoming second edition promises to be just as fun-filled and food-heavy as the first one. Unlike last year’s successful edition at Antwerp nightclub Café d’Anvers, space will not be an issue, as organisers are moving shop to the wide-stretching beach of the little coastal town of Oostduinkerke.Besides ambition, creating the world’s biggest and best restaurant for a day requires some seri-ous orchestration. That’s why Flemish Food Bash founder Vincent Florizoone, chef of restaurant Grand Cabaret in next-door Nieuwpoort, has enlisted the help of 20 Flemish and 20 interna-tional chefs to prepare about 2,000 dishes – using all Flemish ingredients, including beer. “Flanders has an incredible amount to offer culi-

nary wise,” explains Florizoone. “It’s a region with one of the largest concentrations of top chefs and star restaurants in the world. It also has so many local products of particularly high quality – like our beer.” Some of the big local names include David Martin of Brussels’ La Paix, Seppe Nobels of Antwerp’s Graanmarkt 13 and Tim Boury of Boury Restau-rant in Roeselare.In addition, there are pastry chefs, butchers and cheese aficionados on board. And more than 30 beers will be available, thanks to a donation from microbrewery De Struise Brouwers of nearby Oostvleteren. It’s not just about beer, however. “This is also for our colleagues from the cocktail world,” says Florizoone. “They will get the opportunity to promote Flemish gins, jenevers and other local liqueurs. Some even know how to mix beers into the cocktails.”To top it off, the Flemish Food Bash aims to be an informal, avant-garde event with a strong link to street-style art (graffiti, body painting) and urban

culture, with tattoos, skating, hairstyling and DJ sessions.Far from just another expensive demo conven-tion, indeed. \ Robyn Boyle

BITeflanders’ funkiest food fest goes to sea

Retro Tour of FlandersAnnual nostalgic cycling tour, with participants from across Europe riding classic bikes and wearing vintage togs. Rides of 40, 74 or 100 kilome-tres. Bike swap meet, contests and Saturday evening retro dance party. 13-14 June, Oudenaarde (East Flanders); free for spectators

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westende Fish weekendAn annual celebration of fish-ing on the coast, with music and entertainment, tradi-tional crafts, kite festival, shrimp-peeling contest, chil-dren’s activities and, of course, lots of fresh seafood. 13-14 June; Westende city centre; free

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Beach RugbyKortrijk’s Grote Markt will become a sandy beach for a weekend of hard-hitting sports as teams from Belgium and abroad meet for the annual event. Veterans compete on Friday night, top men and women’s teams on Saturday. 12-13 June; Grote Markt, Kortrijk; free\ tinyurl.com/beachrugbykortrijk

Hex Garden DaysAnnual summer gardening event on the grounds of Hex Castle. The theme for 2015 is Edible Flowers. Dozens of exhibitors, experts, book signings, demonstrations, plants for sale and more, with a focus on roses and rose gardening. 12-14 June, 10.00-18.00; Kasteel Hex, Heers (Limburg); €10

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Big Grazers walkA guided nature walk in De Liereman Nature Reserve, where you’ll meet the resident stewards of the land: Galloway cows, “konik” horses, wild ponies and sheep. Learn about these animals and why they’re important to the landscape. 13 June, 13.30-16.00; Meet at visitors’ centre, Schuur- hovenberg 4, Oud-Turnhout; free

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sand sculpture FestivalA Frozen-themed attraction on the beach with giant sand sculptures depicting all your kids’ favourite Disney and Pixar characters. 13 June to 6 September; Ostend; €8-€12

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weeK In acTIvITIes

flEmishfoodBash.com

© Flemish Food Bash

Oostduinkerke beach

5 july, from 12.00

courtney davis o’learyMore articles by Courtney \ flanderstoday.eu

© Guillaume lechat

Komono.com

jUNE 10, 2015

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When innovation met traditionBruges’ halve maan brewery supercharges operations for a new age

De Halve Maan prides itself on being the last brewery in Bruges’ historic city centre. When I ask Annelies Geneyn,

who manages the daily operations, for the secret to its continued existence, she quickly responds: “Innovation, of course, but also respect for the family tradition.”Founded in 1856 by Leon Maes, who was better known as Henri I, De Halve Maan was the first brewery in Bruges to produce English-style ales, as far back as the 1870s, and it revolution-ised the local market when it began delivering beer to private homes using diesel trucks in the 1950s.

Faced with increased competition from super-markets, the brewery gradually switched focus and was outfitted as a restaurant and a museum. By 2002, it even stopped producing beer altogether.But the standstill didn’t feel right for one of the family’s youngest members. “Xavier Vanneste – Henri I’s great-great-great-grandson – became convinced that Bruges couldn’t part with its brewing tradition so easily,” says Geneyn. So in 2005, Vanneste, just 25 at the time, refur-bished the brewing equipment, and produc-tion resumed.Today, under Vanneste’s stewardship, De Halve Maan is one of the fastest-growing breweries in West Flanders, with an annual growth of 15 to 20%. It brews only two beers – Brugse Zot and Straffe Hendrik. But, while the former comes in two varieties – blonde and double – the latter

has no less than four, including an oaked, aged Quadrupel and a fruity Tripel refermented with wild yeasts. This year, the Bruges Zot Dubbel won the Strong Beer category at the UK’s International Brewing Awards, while last month it pulled down no less than five medals at the Austral-ian International Beer Awards in Melbourne and was named the Best International Brewer.Henri IV, Vanneste’s grandfather, created Straffe Hendrik in 1981. “During his time, De Halve Maan established itself as the city’s main brew-ery,” Geneyn explains. “With Straffe Hendrik, Henri IV wanted to honour the namesakes who ran the brewery before him.”Brugse Zot, meanwhile, is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. The fruity but spicy ale quickly established itself as the city’s most

popular beer and is the main sponsor of the annual Dwars door Brugge city run. The brand now makes up more than 60% of De Halve Maan’s 4-million litre annual production. Even as Belgians consume less and less beer every year, the brewery continues to see rising demand for its products. “That’s no small thanks to successful ventures abroad,” says Geneyn. In 2014, De Halve Maan opened a Brugse Zot-themed restaurant in Tokyo, and it’s currently seeking partners in North America. “One-third of our production now goes to export,” Geneyn says. “And while we hope to reach new and larger markets, we want to continue brewing in Bruges.”And that means investments in more efficient machinery. “Because we’re located in a Unesco-

protected city, we can’t move beyond the confines of our brewery,” she explains. “So we have to be creative with the space we already have.”So when it installed four new brewing vats last year, instead of expanding into the adja-cent buildings, the brewery took a verti-cal approach. The first step was to empty the museum, which was housed in the cellar, and move all the memorabilia to the attic. The construction crew then cut out holes in the floor above the basement and managed to fit the brewing tanks inside. The new equipment can produce up to 10 million litres of beer annually, but “it will be a long time before we reach that limit,” Geneyn says. “And by then, we will have come up with another solution.”Every morning at 6.00, tanker trucks arrive at the brewery to transport the beer to a bottling plant in the industrial district of Waggelwa-ter, about three kilometres away. But the daily routine – which some residents in Bruges complained produces too much noise and damages the cobblestone streets – will soon end.Last year, De Halve Maan announced plans to construct an underground pipeline that will connect the brewery to the bottling plant. Capable of carrying more than 6,000 litres of beer every hour, it will be the first of its kind in Belgium and only the second in Europe. “We are now looking for the best possible route,” Geneyn says, “and we will begin construction later this year.”In the meantime, 2015 has already proven to be a defining year in the brewery’s history. In Janu-ary, Henri IV – who first began working at De Halve Maan in the 1950s – passed away at the age of 89.“Although he retired many years ago, he would still come for lunch every day,” says Geneyn. “When we were installing the new brewing vats last year, he was so proud, he insisted on over-seeing the entire process. His death was a great loss to all of us – to the family and to the staff.”

If you’re the kind of person who shops at zero-waste supermarkets and prefers public trans-port to being stuck in traffic, you’ll love Ampere. Founder Joachim Marynen calls it “the first sustainable club in Belgium,” and he doesn’t take the title lightly. The venue, in the catacombs of Antwerp’s Central Station, was created by local architect bureau B bis using reclaimed wood, glass and steel. The club tries to minimise waste and save water, works only with recycled paper and even recuperates the warmth produced during an event and re-uses it for heating. After a night of dancing by a thousand party people, the club can be heated for an entire week.Another aspect of the sustainability story is the location. You can leave your car at home as the club is easily reachable by train and tram. You find the almost hidden entrance when you keep walking south along the walls of the station. The neighbourhood that juts up against that end of the station has a slightly grubby reputa-tion, but that didn’t scare Marynen off. He sees

Ampere as part of an urban pioneering project and hopes it will help revive the neighbourhood in a way similar to the development of once-shady, now-trendy boroughs like downtown LA, London’s Hackney and Kreuzberg in Berlin.To further this noble cause, there will be plenty

going on during the day as well. When the sun comes up and the nighthawks fly home, Ampere opens its doors for all kinds of creative workshops and cultural events aimed at young people. In September, a restaurant with terrace will welcome coffee lovers, flex-workers and

those looking for an organic bite to eat. The efforts towards neighbourhood and envi-ronment are praiseworthy and got Ampere the blessing – and financial support – of the city of Antwerp, but that doesn’t make the club soft. The core business here is in throwing world-class parties, and the opening event with super-star DJ Laurent Garnier last month has already gone down in local rave history. This summer, Marynen, who himself used to spin the decks at Café d’Anvers, wants to offer the best there is in electronic music as well as live shows and a mix of international acts and local talent.The future looks bright for Antwerp’s newest nightlife hotspot and – believe it or not – even more ecological. Marynen is trying to raise money through crowdfunding for a state-of-the-art reactive dance floor that generates energy through movement. Soon, your voguing, twerking or head-banging may literally light the place up. \ Catherine Kosters

Clubbing just got sustainable in Antwerp

© jan steylemans

amPErE-antwErP.com

Bartosz BrzezinskiMore articles by Bartosz \ flanderstoday.eu

halvEmaan.BE

We hope to reach new and larger markets, but we want to continue brewing in Bruges

De Halve Maan is a combo restaurant/brewery and gives tours of its facilities to Bruges’ masses of tourists

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\ ARTs

Doing it for themselvesdiy store in ghent becomes diy project for the whole neighbourhood

The logo on the door still refers to the shop that was here before: Standaert, a

DIY store and a landmark in the Ghent borough of Ledeberg. In 1933 the Standaert family started selling construction mate-rials and tools here. Their busi-ness grew quickly; half the houses in Ledeberg were built with their materials. But in 2012, 80 years and three generations later, the shop closed. The competition from the big DIY chains had become too fierce, and Ledeberg residents were left feeling the void.

“There was a feeling that it would be regrettable if this place were used to build another of

these generic stores,” says Inez Louwagie, one of the initiators of Ledeberg Doet Het Zelf (Lede-berg Does It Itself), the organisa-tion behind the temporary project now on the site. “Ledeberg is one of the most densely populated areas of Ghent,” she continues. “There’s little room to meet, and too little green space for children to play. The district is desperate for space, and this site offered an opportunity.”A neighbourhood consultation

showed that this desire for more space was widespread, so they went to the city council to ask if they could buy the site. The coun-cil was in favour of the idea; the site is now owned by the city, and a team of architects is working on a final plan for it.Ledeberg Doet het Zelf is handling the temporary use of the site today. The old shop was no longer safe enough to host indoor activities, so instead they use a container decorated by a designer using old

material from the Standaert shop. “This temporary project offers us the opportunity to realise the elements that we want to see in the final plans, like this meeting place,” explains Louwagie. Meanwhile, the place has come to life. A discount shop, cycling lessons for children, a sewing club… they’ve all found their way to the Standaert site.“Things could move faster, but we want to grow at the pace of the neighbourhood,” says Bart Verhaeghe, who is also involved in Ledeberg Doet het Zelf. “We don’t want to be a new group alongside other groups that are already here in Ledeberg; instead we want to involve as many people as possi-ble, from the carnival society to the mosque. Ledeberg, he notes, “is a very diverse community, and we want to represent that diversity here. It works, though it’s not equally easy for each activity. In this way we differ from other temporary projects in Ghent such as DOK and Kerk, which have a more artis-tic point of view. We’ve chosen a more local, community-based approach – something Ledeberg needs.”

If music is the universal language, there might not be a better oppor-tunity to experience it than at Bozar in Brussels this month. As four amateur choirs take turns going on stage, their 120 members will represent all sorts of profes-sional and cultural backgrounds, from doctors and social workers to expats and members of the EU professional community.On the repertoire will be Renais-sance madrigals and the “Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves” from Giuseppe Verdi’s Nabucco, but the audience should also expect pieces from pop, jazz and world music.“Some of these people have never sung in public before,” says Wenke Minne, who has organised the concert. “At the same time, they’ve worked really hard to be where they are now, so their skillset is quite strong.”The event concludes the first stage of a series of voice festivals, public concerts and workshops that have taken place in Brussels over the past two years as part of the Sing-ing Cities initiative. The aim of this European move-ment is to advocate musical education and promote the posi-tive effect of singing on physical,

emotional and social well-being. Brussels is part of a network that includes Berlin, Newcastle and Namsos in Norway.“Through music, we want to create dialogue between people,” explains Minne, who works at Bozar and co-ordinates the Brussels chap-ter of Singing Cities. “We created these choirs to promote our mission that everyone, no matter their language, age or musical experience, should be able to enjoy singing.”When a call came for amateurs in Brussels to join the singing project, Majella Martelé, a retired primary teacher from Lennik in Flemish Brabant, didn’t hesitate. “Many of the choirs in Belgium are too competitive and demanding,” she says. “But here, no one has any unrealistic expectations of each other.”Under the guidance of profes-sional artists, the choirs met every week at Bozar to practise vocal techniques and rhythm, and did stretching exercises to help cope with the demands of singing on stage.A year later, Martelé says the choirs have exposed her to the multi-cultural nature of Brussels. “We

had a woman from Turkey and a man from Morocco who taught us songs from their countries,” she says. “And while our choir leader only speaks French, we also sang songs in Dutch. I’ve learned that singing nourishes respect for other cultures and languages.”While preparing for the upcoming concert, members often brought food and wine to rehearsals, met up for barbecues and even staged a flash mob in the centre of Brussels. “Our passion for singing brought us here as complete strangers,” says Martelé. “But over time, we have become true friends.”

As Singing Cities prepares to launch the next phase of its Brus-sels initiative in the autumn, Minne says it remains uncertain if the choirs will resume rehearsals after the concert. “It’s a big under-taking, and we can’t do every-thing on our own,” she says. “But if people would like to start a simi-lar initiative, we would be glad to help.” \ Bartosz Brzezinski

To reserve a seat for the concert, contact Wenke Minne on 02 507 82 37 or wenke.minne@bozar.be

Brussels singers united by European music programme www.singingcitiEs.nEt

BozarRavensteinstraat 23, Brussels

18 june, 19.30

toon lambrechtsMore articles by Toon \ flanderstoday.eu

The district is desperate for space, and this site offered an opportunity

© Toon lambrechts

workshops on the standaert site cater to both kids and adults

leuven barkeep is Champion Beer PullerJan Vandenplas of the cafe Louvain Louvain in Leuven is this year’s Belgian Champion Beer Puller. He will repre-sent the country at the Stella Artois World Draught Masters in London on 27 June. Up against 19 other candidates, Vandenplas was chosen by a jury of former champions and Jean-Louis Van de Perre, chair of the Belgian Brewers federa-tion. The competition requires participants to follow the nine steps to the perfect beer pull and service to the table. The public prize for best cafe went to De Rijskwacht in Hoog-straten, Antwerp province. The 20 bars that sent compet-itors to the Belgian champi-onship were eligible for the award.

Gelukkig zijn extended due to popular demand

Due to an enthusiastic response, the show Geluk-kig zijn by theatre group Fast Forward will be staged again across Flanders from Septem-ber. Fast Forward produces shows starring amateurs who speak Dutch as a second language. Gelukkig zijn is a musical featuring beloved Flemish songs. The show has become something of a cult hit, with the Flemish press proving enthusiastic about its unique cast and amusing take on local culture. “What no-one realised was that the project would grow into a stage hit,” wrote Het Nieuws-blad, while pianist Jef Neve posted on Facebook: “It’s been quite some time since I spent an evening with such a big smile and high hopes for our future generations!” Fast Forward is auditioning new cast members on 21 June. For complete into, see the website.

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Gentse Feesten to honour De Buck and De Vos

This year's Gentse Feesten, which begins on 17 July, will feature special tributes to Walter De Buck and Luc De Vos, two prominent musi-cians and pillars of the annual music and street theatre festi-val in Ghent who have died since last year’s edition. De Buck will be commemo-rated by a concert given by a 20-piece ensemble. De Vos will be commemorated with a three-band concert last-ing until 3.00, followed by a screening of the video of the concert he performed at last year’s festival.

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Musical shapeshifterBert dockx stubbornly jumps genres, bands and languages

Whether as a solo artist or with his two bands, Flemish musician Bert Dockx has consistently pushed his own musical limits. That adventurous spirit has resulted in a growing flock of fans and, now, praise from an unlikely corner.

The music of guitarist and singer Bert Dockx cannot be neatly categorised. With

Flying Horseman, he writes slow-burning rock with an occasional, violent outburst of noise, while the Dans Dans (Dance Dance) jazz ensemble attacks a Charles Mingus tune with as much gusto as it does a Tom Waits number. And as Strand (literally “beach” but also referencing stranden, Dutch for “to strand”), he sings mesmerising songs in Dutch, accompanied by only his acous-tic guitar.This genre-bending discography has slowly but steadily earned him a growing flock of fans – and now plaudits from an unlikely corner. Because rather than being feted at, for instance, the MIAs (Flem-ish music awards), Dockx will be awarded KU Leuven’s Culture Prize on 16 June. For the first time in the history of the prize, it will be given to someone who isn’t a clas-sical musician.“I was extremely surprised when I got the news,” the Antwerpe-naar tells me. “Apparently, half the jury was violently opposed to me, while the other half rabidly defended me.”The jury eventually settled on a compromise, it seems: They would split the award and the accom-panying €10,000 prize money between Dockx (pictured) and the Nadar Ensemble, which special-ises in contemporary music. For Dockx, 34, this prize repre-sents a major recognition as it has always rewarded trailblazing

artists who defy borders. “I told them I’m not the former, but it’s true that I try to do the latter,” he says. “I have noticed that I attract a very diverse audience: 16-year-old metalheads but also 50-some-things who listen to Klara – and everyone in-between. Great!”While it may be true that Dockx hasn’t invented anything that you haven’t heard before, the way he assembles elements to create his own universe is certainly innova-tive. Dockx says he thinks all good musicians do this – one way or the other. “I just don’t like to repeat things,” he says. “That’s not a grand state-ment; that’s just who I am. Other-wise, I would be bored to death. Even so, I only realised I was mixing different elements when people pointed it out to me.”Music was Dockx’s first love and – though film and literature are now also passions – it’s still his greatest love. “I was deeply bored

in primary school, and I really hated secondary school. When I was at home, music was my safe haven.” From a young age, he knew that he wanted to become a musi-cian, but he lacked the discipline to practise daily. “A fear of failure,” he calls it. “It took a lot from me to

pick up my guitar.”Eventually he realised that he would never pursue a musical career without external motiva-tion, so he enrolled at the Jazzs-tudio in Antwerp and later at the Brussels Conservatory. “Until seven, eight years ago, I only played the guitar. I was too shy to sing. But when I started to, the

songs gushed out of me, as if they had been waiting to be released all this time. And I’m still grate-ful to my then girlfriend that she pushed me to share them with the world.” Those early songs became the basis for what would become Flying Horseman, a solo project

that morphed into a fully fledged band that will release its fourth album this autumn. This left Dockx room for another solo project, Strand, with which he released his first, eponymously titled album last year. But while he had always sung in English with Flying Horseman, with Strand he embraced Dutch.

“People have called it a style exer-cise, but it certainly wasn’t that. The idea!” he scoffs. “I just felt the desire to sing in Dutch. A next album by Strand probably won’t be solo anymore nor acoustic, but I will stick to Dutch.”Writing in Dutch was a revelation for Dockx. He was surprised by how much easier it was to write and was also more happy with his Dutch lyrics. “I really wonder why more Flemish musicians don’t sing in Dutch; it’s our language,” he says. “I’ve been praised for my courage in doing this, although I don’t find this exceptional. In most other European countries, singing in one’s mother tongue is more easily taken for granted. We Flemings have a difficult relation-ship with ours.” So wouldn’t it be better to stop singing in English altogether? “I’ve toyed with the idea because I worried if I’d even be able to go back to writing English lyrics for Flying Horseman,” he admits. “I’ve discovered, though, that it still works. Flying Horseman is another band, and, in that context, it sounds natural.”You can see Dockx both solo as well as with his two bands at festi-vals this summer, and he’s looking forward to those performances. “I’ve come to realise that when I play live, my life is in balance for a short time, while chaos waits to ambush me. That’s dangerous, since playing live literally has the effect of a drug – it pushes me to a high. When the effect wanes, I feel down and count the days to the next show. Only on a stage do I feel I’m really connecting with other people. The stage is my natural habitat, and afterwards I feel like an alien in my own flat.”

Dans Dans play the Cactus Festival in Bruges on 12 July; Flying Horse-men play the AB in Brussels on 27 November

taxiwarsTaxiWars • Universal

Tom Barman is most famous for fronting the rock band dEUS, but he also is part of the electronic music duo Magnus with CJ Bolland and is now diving into the world of jazz (with some hip-hop) with TaxiWars. But it would be wrong to see this new album as Barman’s temporary foray into jazz. Saxophonist and composer Robin Verheyen is as important to TaxiWars as Barman, and Nicolas Thys (bass) and Antoine Pierre (drums)make for a great

rhythm section. Their eponymous first album offers an übercool mix of funky grooves, lazy musings and angular rhythms. Barman, who sings and raps on the tracks in a parlando style, is impressive and uses his voice – which is richer than ever – to dazzling effect. Verheyen is equally absorbing. Compelling from the first note to the last.

joy wellboyWedding • BPitch ControlFor years, Leuven born multi-instrumental-ist Wim Janssens was one of the best-kept

secrets of the Flemish music scene. He lent his talents to other artists as there seemed to be almost no appetite for his own music – a shame, just listen to Sun Circus, the only album he’s ever released, which he did under the name Ellroy. But a meeting with Brussels singer Joy Adegoke put him on a new course: The two became partners in music and in life (pictured). Wedding is the duo’s second album, and the title refers both to their marriage and to the Berlin district where they live. The record is packed with jumpy electronic pop songs, built around Adegoke’s nimble voice. Summer’s here, thanks to Joy Wellboy.

More new alBuMs THIs weeK

© Geert Vandepoele

I have noticed that I attract a very diverse audience

christophe verbiestMore articles by Christophe \ flanderstoday.eu

jUNE 10, 2015

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The inaugural edition of this photography festival transforms the whole of Ghent into a vast, open-air art gallery. Ten venues, including Sint-Pieters Abbey, city museum STAM and repurposed psychiatric hospital Dr Guislain Museum join forces to put on 27 exhibitions, featuring 20 interna-tional artists, over the course of 80 days. The art isn’t cloistered in the institutions themselves. No, the festival promises nomadic pop-up exhibitions in public space as well. The theme – identity – guaran-tees a fair amount of portraits but much more besides. \ GV

Beursschouwburg’s month-long, season-closing festival Out Loud! continues with a free concert by Ext’inT (pictured). This Dada alter ego of Lille-born, Brussels-based performance artist Maxime Duquesne marries the clinical electronic experiments of Kraft-werk with the raging weirdness of David Lynch, proving that elec-tronic music and ironic mous-taches are not bankrupt in them-selves; they have just been hijacked lately by bankrupt artists. The evening also features Ext’inT label-mates Black Bones and Prieur de la Marne from the stable of French label Alpage Records. \ GV

De Munt closed its doors this month for a projected six-month renovation. If all goes well, the historical venue will

celebrate its grand reopening with a Berlioz opera in early 2016. In the meantime, the Brussels opera house continues its civilising mission by remote with an Extra Muros programme put on in collaboration with partner venues across the city. The in-between season’s inaugural produc-tion, Rachmaninov Troika, hosted by Théâtre National, is a doozy. Each evening features not one, not two but all three operas composed by early 20th-century Russian pianist Sergei Rach-maninoff: the gypsy tragedy Aleko, the cynical drama The Miserly Knight and the doomed love story Francesca da Rimini.It’s an ambitious project on many levels. These one-act operas may not be marathons, but the

programme still clocks in at three hours and 40 minutes (with two intermissions). There’s also the fact that times (and artistic values) have changed since 1900. As one of the last champi-ons of Romanticism, a composer who looked to Pushkin and Dante for his themes, Rach-maninoff ’s unabashedly lyrical works are rarely performed on contemporary opera stages – and certainly not back-to-back-to-back.De Munt’s Troika stays true to the spirit of Rachmaninoff while introducing contemporary elements. The cast, some of whom appear in multiple roles throughout the performance(s), are almost entirely native Russian speakers. De Munt’s house orchestra is led by guest conduc-tor Mikhail Tatarnikov of Saint Petersburg’s Mikhailovsky Theatre. The scenography, on the other hand, has been outsourced to Scandinavia. Danish director

Kirsten Dehlholm and her company Hotel Pro Forma frame Rachmaninoff ’s timeless themes in innovative ways. Dehlholm and her partners at De Munt are especially keen to adapt the conventional opera form to the unique architec-ture of Théâtre National. (In Russian with surti-tles in Dutch and French) \ Georgio Valentino

Queen’s epic hit “Bohemian Rhap-sody” raised the bar for pop music, not just because it poached on the reserve of European opera but because it proved that such poach-ing can yield one of the biggest pop singles of all time. (Alice Cooper, in contrast, never broke out of the hard-rock ghetto and Genesis had to lose its preening, flute-play-

ing frontman Peter Gabriel before it struck pop gold with bland everyman Phil Collins.) Belgian conductor Jean-Paul Dessy and his Mons-based ensemble Musiques Nouvelles pay homage to this curi-ous 1975 pop song with five orig-inal chamber pieces composed by young composers who were inspired by it. \ GV

Triple play

Rachmaninov TroikaconcerTBrusselsBaiba Skride & Friends: Latvian violinist Baiba Skride, accompanied by friends on violin, viola and cello, performs a programme for string quintets spanning three centuries, from Mozart’s Clas-sicism and Brahms’ Romanti-cism to contemporary music by Australian composer Brett Dean. 15 June 20.00, Royal Conservatory, Regentschaps- straat 30

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PerforManceAntwerpStand-Up Antwerp: English Comedy Cellar presents an evening of stand-up comedy in English, featuring top interna-tional comedians Dave Thomp-son, Marcel Lucont, Tony Vino, Tom Deacon and resident MC Nigel Williams. 16 June 20.15 (17 June sold out), De Groene Waterman, Wolstraat 7

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vIsual arTsBrusselsAll The Brutes: The first solo exhibition by Polish painter Radek Szlaga in Belgium, including a series of works related to the text “Heart of Darkness” by Polish author Joseph Conrad. Until 11 July, Harlan Levey Projects, Jean d’Ardennestraat 46

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Ghent(Photo)sensitive: Psychi-atrist Patients Portraits 1865-2015: Portraits of patients taken as a form of inventory in psychiatric hospi-tals for more than a century, revealing a long history of surprising recurring motifs. 12 June to 11 October, Museum Dr Guislain, Jozef Guislain-straat 43

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faMIlyBrusselsSuperVlieg: Fourth annual children’s festival in the park, featuring more than 60 free performances and workshops. 14 June 10.00-19.00, Park van Vorst

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acTIvITyBrusselsRoller Bike Parade 2015: True to tradition, hordes of roller-skating speed devils take to the streets of Brussels (made car-free for the event) every Friday evening throughout the summer. Until 25 Septem-ber 19.00-23.00, depart from Poelaertplein

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Markt van Morgen has been giving Flemish artisans and independ-ent designers a place to show their wares since 2007. It’s a showcase for local talent and a place to meet like-minded consumers. Each bimonthly edition of the creative market takes place in Antwerp’s cosy old fish market and features some 40 regional vendors offer-

ing a range of original, handmade products from fashion to jewellery to graphic design to furniture and home decoration. Here you’ll find plenty of alternatives to globalised goods manufactured in low-wage countries. It isn’t just a market, either. There are also cocktails and (groan) DJs. \ GV

Ext’int

markt van morgen

80 days of summer: stories of identity

tribute to Bohemian rhapsody

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Théâtre National, Brussels dEmunt.BE

16-30 june

Beursschouwburg, Brussels BEursschouwBurg.BE

12 june, 20.00Across Ghent sintPiEtErsaBdijgEnt.BE

12 june to 30 august

Vismijn, Antwerp marKtvanmorgEn.BE

14 june, 12.00Flagey, Brussels flagEy.BE

17 june, 20.15

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Summer has finally arrived (sort of). Time to head to the beach for a quick dip in the sea (or maybe not) followed by a drink on a cafe terrace. Though

it’s not always easy to find a table on the promenade. And even if you do, you might have a long wait until a waiter appears.But it seems there might be a solution. Een cafébaas in Blankenberge heeft drukknoppen op zijn tafels geïn-stalleerd – A cafe owner in Blankenberge has installed buttons on his tables, waarmee je een ober kan wenken om te bestellen of de rekening te vragen – so that customers can call a waiter to order or pay the bill.This is just the beginning of the digital seaside, or Kust 2.0 if you will. Danny Van Assche van Horeca Vlaanderen zegt dat café- en restaurantbezoekers in de toekomst nog meer van dit soort vernieuwingen mogen verwachten – Danny Van Assche, president of Flan-ders Catering Association, said cafe and restaurant customers can expect more innovations like these.Bepaalde tafels op cafés en restaurant zullen in de toekomst uitgerust zijn met touchscreens waarop je zelf kan aanklikken wat je wenst te bestellen – Certain tables at bars and restaurants will soon be equipped with touchscreens you can use to tap out what you want to order, Van Assche said in an interview on Radio 2. Dat wordt dan automatisch doorgestuurd naar de keuken – The order is then automatically sent to the kitchen.Ook op het einde heb je geen ober meer nodig – You won’t even need a waiter any more once you’ve finished your meal, want betalen kan je door gewoon je bankkaart in het systeem in te brengen – because you’ll be able to

pay simply by inserting your card into the system. De enige ober die je nog zal zien, dient dan je eten op – The only waiter you’ll see is the one who serves your food.Meanwhile, Japan is (as usual) way ahead of us. In Japan is er nu ook al een café dat met drones werkt om de bediening te doen – In Japan, there is even a cafe where they use drones to serve the customers, says Van Assche, maar dat lijkt me eerder gevaarlijk – but that seems to me rather dangerous.Al zal de aloude manier van bestellen niet zomaar verd-wijnen de eerstkomende jaren – The old-fashioned way of ordering won’t simply disappear in the coming years, he predicts – en hij zal wellicht ook nooit hele-maal vervangen worden – and it will probably never be replaced entirely.So you’ll just have to wait patiently for the waiter to arrive.

Talking Dutchwaiter, there’s a drone in my soup

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THe lasT word

roots of success“In my childhood I was bullied for being a redhead, but it made me stronger.”Belgium’s new tennis hope Alison Van Uytvanck went all the way to the quarter-finals of Roland Garros to show just how strong she’s become

luck of the draw“Even I have no idea what the final result will be, not even when I’ve already penned in the first lines.”Antwerp tattoo artist Dennis Tyfus will do you a tattoo, but you don’t get to choose what it is

zero tolerance“This is unheard of, but in my view absolutely correct. It’s a signal to everyone who is involved with youth football.”Yves T’Sjoen, whose 16-year-old son was refereeing a youth football match when he was attacked by one of the players, who has now received a five-year suspension

wind at her back“Every time I see a tornado, it brings tears to my eyes.”VTM weather forecaster Jill Peeters is a storm-chaser, tracking tornados in the American Midwest in her free time

a. Yes! NMBS seems to be doing nothing to stop the strikes happening. Maybe a financial penalty will light a fire under them

b. Right idea; wrong method. Test-Aankoop should work to make the existing compensation system easier instead of tying up the court

c. No. The right to strike is a fundamental one, and using the courts to penalise strikers is anti-democratic

Belgium’s first class-action suit since the law was changed last year to allow them hit the head-lines recently: Test-Aankoop sues rail authority NMBS regarding the money lost to pass holders because of so many strikes.A majority of our readers are against the idea of the court action

being taken by Test-Aankoop. A small number of you are hold-ing out for the unrestricted right to strike, something which hardly exists anywhere any more. Far more of you – half the vote – thought the suit was the wrong way to go about things. A proce-dure already exists to compensate

rail pass holders for days lost to strikes. What’s needed, you think, is to make the claims procedure simpler and faster. Maybe a court case will force the NMBS to do just that. One-third of you think the lawsuit is a good idea. We’ll see if the courts agree.

Polldo you support test-aankoop’s class-action suit against rail authority nmBs based on the number of strikes lately?

\ next week's question: A classroom experiment has revealed that children can easily be convinced to discriminate against others on the basis of something arbitrary, suggesting racism (see p2). What do you think? Log on to the Flanders Today website at www.flanderstoday.eu and click on VOTE!

CONNECT WITH US LIKE USTweet us your thoughts @FlandersToday

Milkon Hayk @MilkonHayk After 2 years as youth trainer and assistant with the reserves of Royal Antwerp FC, I’ll move to KV Mechelen as head coach u16 & u12

Lucie Burgess @LucieCBurgess Standing in a room full of stunning 15C and 16C printed books written by or about Dutch Jesuits at KU Leuven

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In response to: Brussels youth spread street workout gospelJunior RobertMotivation!!

In response to: Urban race brings all-female, no-prisoners concept to BrusselsDee Harrington Oh cool, what a fun idea!

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In response to: Classroom experiment shows how susceptible children are to racismNajeebah Rayson In my experience nothing has changed.

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derek BlythMore articles by Derek \ flanderstoday.eu

A drone by Infinium serves customers in singapore

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