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#432 erkenningsnummer P708816

june 1, 2016 \ newsweekly - € 0,75 \ read more at www.flanderstoday.eu current affairs \ P2

Politics \ P4

Rail stRike

Business \ P6

innovation \ P7

supply and demand

A major demonstration and an unexpected strike by Frenchspeaking rail unions meant a chaotic week of delays and scuffles

A new shop in Brussels devoted to all Belgian and largely organic and bulk foods sold out on its first day

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Start small, dream big

education \ P9

art & living \ P10

exhibition dance

Another premiere by Sidi Larbi for Royal Ballet Flanders brings together the fine arts, classical music and dance \ 15

© Courtesy Trias

flemish businesses share knowhow with entrepreneurs in south african townships alan Hope More articles by Alan \ flanderstoday.eu

With funds from the government of Flanders, business organisations Unizo and Trias have launched the second phase of Peers, a development project that supports small-scale entrepreneurs in some of South Africa’s most impoverished townships.

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he South African capital Pretoria recently hosted the launch of the second phase of Partnerships for Empowered Entrepreneurs Representation in South Africa (Peers), a development project that brings together Brussels-based organisation Trias, Flemish employers’ organisation Unizo and three South African business organisations.

For the next three years, the project will support and mentor nine local chambers of commerce in South African townships and assist small businesses there trying to grow in difficult social and economic circumstances. The project

is funded by the government of Flanders, represented in South Africa by Geraldine Reymenants from the Department of Foreign Affairs.

“The government of Flanders has been supporting programmes on job creation through small enterprises since 2005,” said Reymenants at the signing of the agreement. “The goal of such programmes is to give disadvantaged groups access to the jobs market. The encouragement of enterprise is of the utmost importance in an economy with high unemployment, and Flanders is convinced that these partnerships can be a bridge towards real change.”

According to Peers director Daan Janssens of Trias, his organisation was selected to lead the programme because of their experience in other parts of the world. “We focus on entrepreneurial concerns in 14 countries,” he says. “We don’t focus on the poorest of the poor; we concentrate on small entrepreneurs and family farmers because we know

that if we strengthen them, they can improve things for the people around them. They are the key people to invest in.”

The original idea for the Peers venture came from Unizo, the organisation that represents the self-employed in Flanders. “Nine years ago, we organised an economic exchange between small and medium-sized businesses in Flanders and South Africa,” explains Jan Boulogne, who’s responsible for training at Unizo. “At the time, we were interested in export-minded South African entrepreneurs. We learned a lot about the conditions in the country for SMEs and entrepreneurs in general.”

Whatever the differences between the Flemish and the South African business, he says, the two sides found a mutual understanding. “It’s easy for two entrepreneurs from opposite sides of the world to build a rapport if they talk about their jobs. A carpenter and another carpenter can always find things to discuss, so it was possible to bring continued on page 5

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Coins feature missing children child focus’ new €2 coin of Hope depicts the face of child missing for 20 years alan Hope Follow Alan on Twitter \ @AlanHopeFT

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he Brussels-based non-profit Child Focus has launched its first Coin of Hope (pictured), a €2 piece bearing the likeness of a missing child. The first coin features Liam Vanden Branden, a two-year-old who disappeared near Mechelen 20 years ago.

Liam was the youngest child ever to disappear in Belgium and represents all of the country’s missing children in the one million coins bearing his image, the organisation said. The coins will go into normal circulation.

Child Focus began operations in 1997, when the country was in the throes of

the Marc Dutroux affair, which involved six missing children and teenagers, four of whom were found dead and two of whom survived. Public attention turned to Belgium’s missing children, many of whom remain missing.

The organisation was set up along the lines of the Center for Missing and Exploited Children in the US and continues to publicise

cases of missing children and young people.

Liam went missing while out with his parents in May 1996.

Like many others who have become part of Child Focus’ records over the years – such as Gevrije Cavas, missing since 1985,

Ilse Stockmans (1987), Conrad Bosmans (1988) or Nathalie Gijsbrechts (1991) – his case appears impossible to solve but remains open.

“This remembrance is featuring Liam and, who knows, maybe that will advance our case,” Liam’s parents said. “But in the first place this is an honour to all the missing children and their families across the world, and an incitement to work for them.”

Child Focus has also launched a campaign on social media, inviting anyone who has a coin to post a photo when it changes hands, with the hashtag #CoinsofHope.

© Courtesy Child Focus

Rail and state employee strikes disrupt transport and public services

Wickmayer out of French Open in third round

As Flanders Today went to press, rail unions had rejected the latest proposal from management, and railway traffic was expected to be disrupted until at least Wednesday. A previously announced public sector strike and protest would have, in any case, taken place on Tuesday, socialist union ACOD announced, regardless of the outcome of the rail union negotiations.

The unexpected strike by Frenchspeaking rail unions that began last week hit Wallonia hardest, but Flanders felt some of the effects. There was disruption to train services on Monday, while the south was largely at a standstill as it was last week.

The spontaneous strike by Frenchspeaking rail personnel was in response to a decision by management to change how it calculates credit days

Flemish tennis pro Kirsten Flipkens was knocked out of the French Open in Paris last week in a first-round defeat to France’s Alizé Cornet. Her fellow player Yanina Wickmayer made it to the third round before losing to Spanish fourth seed Garbine Muguruza.

Flipkens, ranked 61 by the WTA, was beaten 6-1, 6-0 by Cornet, ranked 50, in a match that lasted just 53 minutes.

In none of her six appearances at Roland Garros has the 30-year-old Flipkens reached the second round.

Wickmayer (WTA 54) handily won her first-round match over Romania’s Alexandra Dulgheru (WTA 127) 6-1, 6-3 early in the week, and went on to beat Russia’s Ekaterina Makarova, ranked 29th in the world, 6-2, 6-2.

The strong Spanish fourth seed Muguruza was too much, however, beating Wickmayer in the third round 6-3, 6-0.

Muguruza, a quarter-finalist at Roland Garros in the last two years, converted all of her six break points on a sundrenched Court Philippe Chatrier. Wickmayer had few responses to the fast, flat groundstrokes and took the defeat with grace. “I was up against someone who was stronger than me,” she said. \ Leo Cendrowicz

© Zumapress/BelGA

– days off that rail personnel receive in compensation for a longer working week. Management wants to count actual working days as the basis for credit days; at present sick days and holidays count towards credit days.

The change affects all 34,000 railway employees.

The public transport user group TreinTramBus reacted angrily to the action.

“Students, working people and other

passengers are once more being taken hostage, without even having had the time to look for alternatives,” a spokesperson said. “Again, the unions have taken aim at the wrong target; the passengers affected are in no way responsible for this or any other conflict between rail unions and management.”

The public sector strike and marches on Tuesday, meanwhile, were in response to the Michel government’s austerity policies and had a greater effect on rail traffic, as drivers and other staff took time off to go to Brussels and Ghent for demonstrations.

The strike also affected day-care centres, schools and other public services. In Antwerp, people were asked to keep their recycling indoors for an extra week out of concern of a lack of manpower. \ AH

Youth in Antwerp were planning attack, says prosecutor Eight teenagers in Antwerp were arrested last week, admitting that they were considering carrying out terrorist attacks in the city, according to the federal prosecutor’s office.

The investigation into a group of radicalised youths moni-

tored phone calls and messages on social media in which the suspects, aged between 16 and 19, talking about planning to go and fight in Syria. Originally, police considered the communications to be merely boasting.

That changed when the group

came in contact with Hicham Chaïb in Syria. Chaïb, formerly a confederate of Sharia4Belgium’s Fouad Belkacem in recruiting Syria fighters, went himself to Syria in 2012, and rapidly moved up the ranks of IS. In the meantime, he was sentenced in absentia

to 15 years by a court in Antwerp.

The contact with Chaïb convinced the group to begin making more concrete plans. According to De Standaard newspaper, quoting an unnamed source, possible targets were Antwerp Station and farright Vlaams Belang politician

€247,572

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carats, or about 220g, the weight of the Lesedi La Rona, the world’s largest uncut diamond, which is currently on show in Antwerp’s MAS museum. As big as a tennis ball, it’s worth €62.5 million

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€2.3 million

for the renovation of the Bijloke concert hall in Ghent, culture minister Sven Gatz announced.

The works include enlarging the stage, improving the audience’s line of sight and replacing furniture

accidents in 2015 involving an electric bicycle, nine of them involving a fatality. In 14 cases, a pedestrian was involved. August was the worst month, with 66 accidents

Filip Dewinter. But plans, said the source, were still “in the brainstorm phase”.

Four of the eight arrested have been formally accused of taking part in the activities of a terrorist group. \ AH

of water samples from Flemish lakes and the coast tested by the EU scored “excellent” in 2015, while another 13.8% scored “good”, the Flemish Environment Agency VVM has reported

salary of the CEO of Flemish public broadcaster VRT, Paul Lambrechts.

A recent ruling by the Council of State obliged VRT to reveal the salaries of its top executives

june 1, 2016

Week in bRief The Czech pianist Lukáš Vondrácek, whose performance of the Rachmaninov Third Concerto brought Queen Mathilde to tears, has won this year’s Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels.

He also won the Canvas-Klara and Alberto Ferro de Musiq’3 prizes, based on votes by viewers of the live broadcasts of the finals on Canvas and RTBF. “I’m very grateful for the prize, but it’s above all about the music,” he said. “These are all impressive musicians, all of whom deserve to win.” The winner of the Queen Elisabeth is awarded €25,000 and is booked for an extensive series of concerts. \ cmireb.be

face of flandeRs Awards for sightseeing, ahead of the Eiffel Tower, the Great Wall of China and the Acropolis. The list is topped by Machu Picchu in Peru and the Sheikh Zayed mosque in Abu Dhabi.

Sofiane Hanni, the Algerian-born midfielder who last week transferred from KV Mechelen to Anderlecht, has been elected Professional Footballer of the Year with 411 votes from his peers, ahead of Lior Refaelov of Club Brugge on 380. Leon Bailey of Racing Genk was most promising newcomer, while Matz Sels of AA Gent was best goalkeeper.

The new “media park” that will house Flemish public broadcaster VRT and its French-speaking counterpart RTBF will not be ready until 2030, according to Brussels Capital-Region ministerpresident Rudi Vervoort. The new complex will be built on the Reyers site in Schaarbeek, which the two institutions already share, and will also include living and leisure sites such as a cinema, day-care centre, retail shops and at least 2,000 apartments.

The federal and regional governments are collaborating on a campaign to restore the image of Belgium, following the terrorist attacks in Paris last year and in Brussels and Zaventem in March.

The Positive Belgium campaign will have a budget of €4 million.

Meanwhile, the private sector launched its own campaign last week; Sprout to be Brussels brings together more than 120 companies and associations.

Flemish culture minister Sven Gatz has officially opened the Belgian pavilion at the Architectural Biennial in Venice. The pavilion, called Bravoure, includes 13 building projects by leading architects, with a stress on craftsmanship and resourcefulness in the use of materials. The pavilion itself was designed by Ghent architects De Vylder Vinck Taillieu, Doorzon interiors and photographer Filip Dujardin. “The Belgian pavilion shows what Flanders is capable of,” Gatz said. “A good overview of refined and well-considered creations.”

The Flemish VLM Airlines, based at Antwerp Airport, has had its application for protection from creditors, the usual last step before declaring bankruptcy, accepted by the commercial court in Antwerp.

The protection lasts for six months, during which time it will attempt to get its affairs in order, including a loss last year of €13 million and a debt burden of €6 million. The airline employs 150 people and flies to Hamburg and Southampton.

Grote Markt in Brussels has been voted 13th among the world’s sights most worth seeing by the users of TripAdvisor. The square features in the Travellers’ Choice

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Liesbet Vrieleman has been named the new editor-in-chief of the VRT news service, a post she previously held from 2009 to 2011. She then went to work for SBS Belgium as programme director for Vier and Vijf. She was succeeded at VRT by Luc Rademakers, who clashed with staff and recently received a vote

of no confidence. “We are living in important and fascinating times, in our society and in the media,” said Vrieleman.

Collectief Straatdoden, which monitors deaths of the homeless in Brussels has called for “structural solutions”, after reporting 55 street deaths last year. The youngest victim was 19, and the eldest was 87. Not all were permanently homeless: 14 had permanent addresses, and five were living in a squat. The numbers of deaths is growing, said Bert De Bock of the collective, mainly as a result of a shortage of affordable housing in the capital, where the waiting list for social housing is five years.

Victoria, at 47 the oldest gorilla in Antwerp Zoo, has died after a brief illness caused by an abscess in her throat. She was old for a gorilla, who have a lifespan of 35 to 40 years. The group of females in the zoo now consists of Mambele, Kiki and Amahoro, who is the youngest at 25. Kiki recently had to have part of her arm amputated after being bitten by Matadi, a recent male arrival.

Flemish business daily De Tijd has picked up three of the prestigious Belfius Press Prizes, for reports on health care, state security and rest homes. VRT also won three awards, for a radio report on the refugee crisis, a local radio report on radicalised youth in Antwerp and tackling racism in the classroom.

The City of Antwerp has launched a campaign to tackle inappropriate sexual behaviour and intimidation in public. The city hopes to raise awareness of the extent of the problem by opening it up for discussion, including reaching those who carry out such behaviour by explaining the laws and the sometimes devastating effect it can have on victims.

Wondermooi, where children live in harmony among the clouds.

One day they discover a hole in the cloud through which they see a storm on the Earth below. They tell this to the Sun and Moon, whose tears cause even more holes.

Finally Rood (Red) figures out the solution – magical cloud dust! The End.

Flemish chef Kobe Desramaults seems unstoppable. His Heuvelland restaurant In De Wulf has just been named the third best restaurant in Europe by the influential guide Opinionated About Dining (OAD). But don’t bother planning a visit: It’s booked full until the end of the year, and then he’s closing it down.

It’s time to reflect on what to do next Desramaults, 35, was born in Poperinge, the heart of hop country in West Flanders. His mother had a restaurant in nearby Dranouter, now a district of Heuvelland. And they’re still there, until December at least.

Desramaults didn’t do well at school, so his mother sent him off to a friend’s place to serve an apprenticeship in the kitchen.

His talents soon came to the fore, and he was off to Oud Sluis in Zeeland, which then had two stars, to work under the famous Sergio Herman.

In 2003, Desramaults’ mother told him she wanted to sell In De Wulf. He protested, and she agreed to give him a year to turn the business around. Two years later, when he was 25, Michelin awarded him his first star, making him one of the youngest chefs to earn a star from the organisation. In De Wulf is now one of the top restaurant destinations in the country.

Desramaults was one of the first in Belgium to emphasise using locally sourced products, and he was known for foraging across the fields and forests of West Flanders for ingredients, as well as growing many of them himself.

OAD voted him top of its European list in 2014, and fourth last year, when Desramaults, who owns two other restaurants in Ghent, announced that he would be closing In De Wulf. “I am 35 years old and have been working hard in this restaurant for 12 years,” he told Studio Brussel. “It is now time to reflect on what to do next.”

Desramaults will continue with De Vitrine and Superette in Ghent and has “plenty of ideas”, he says, for future ventures. \ Alan Hope

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offside walter van Beirendonck’s magical cloud of dust If you think Walter Van Beirendonck doesn’t look like someone who would design stuff for Ikea, you’re not wrong. He didn’t think so himself. Nonetheless, an exhibition of his designs for the Swedish lifestyle store is now showing in Antwerp’s Central Station.

And from 7 June you’ll be able to buy things bearing the Flemish designer’s strange but lovely characters, like Kwade Tijger (Angry Tiger) and Vliegmachien (Flying Machine).

The range is called Glödande, which means burning or incandescent, and there’s no better word to describe Van Beirendonck’s imagination. The collection contains characters from a universe he calls

Kobe desramaults

© Courtesy De standaard

Van Beirendonck is a product of the famous fashion department at Antwerp’s Royal Academy of Fine Arts and one of the original Antwerp Six. His work has adorned catwalks and performance stages for decades. He also created a children’s collection for the clothing chain JBC. The limited-edition Ikea collection consists of stationery, shopping bags, rugs, porcelain and pillows. “When I started with the Ikea project, I wanted to handle it almost like a fashion collection,” Van Beirendonck said. “I really wanted to gather a lot of inspirations … think about ideas that could evolve into other things. I wanted to tell a story.” \ AH

flanders today, a weekly english-language newspaper, is an initiative of the flemish region and is financially supported by the flemish authorities.

The logo and the name Flanders Today belong to the Flemish Region (Benelux Beeldmerk nr 815.088). The editorial team of Flanders Today has full editorial autonomy regarding the content of the newspaper and is responsible for all content, as stipulated in the agreement between Corelio Publishing and the Flemish authorities.

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\ POlITICs

5th column Two public opinions

As if to prove a point during a particularly turbulent time for the federal government, the government of Flanders is working harder than ever.

Last week it came up with an impressive number of reforms: child allowance, secondary education and the provinces.

These achievements may not get the credit they deserve, though, as all eyes are on the strikes. Baggage handlers, prison staff, railway personnel, possibly teachers and even magistrates… there seems no end to the number of professions protesting against government policies.

The strikers are mostly French speakers: Even trade unions, who have long been strongholds of national unity, are split along the language divide.

There is much discontent in Flanders, too, but a large part of it is directed towards the strikes. An unannounced rail strike by French-speaking unions in particular has caused resentment.

All this is bad news for prime minister Charles Michel, who does not seem to have the situation under control. On the Flemish side, nationalist party N-VA is not too bothered about the strikes, which somewhat reinforce its key points: Badly needed reforms will always meet with resistance, especially from French speakers.

The fact that the strikes are dividing the country, and even some unions, proves another of the nationalist views: There is no such thing as “the public opinion” in Belgium, rather there are “two public opinions”.

Christian-democrats CD&V, on the other hand, are very troubled by the situation the country is in. By its very nature, the party has always been the great conciliator, the one that bridged the gap between workers and employers. That power seems to have gone up in smoke.

CD&V is caught between having to defend the federal government’s decisions and its vow to be their “social face”.

Work minister Kris Peeters bears the brunt of the blame: He is responsible for a number of the contested “flexible work” measures, while he has yet to secure the capital gains tax he has demanded.

Theresultis discontentnotjust in the streets, but also within CD&V. Voters no longer know what we stand for, members complain. That’s not necessarily a new problem, but, in the past, the party could always count on the prime minister to bring in the votes. That’s no longer the case. In a recent poll, CD&V stood at a poor 13% of the vote. \ Anja Otte

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New child allowance agreement

government also approves changes to schools and provincial councils alan Hope More articles by Alan \ flanderstoday.eu

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amilies in Flanders will now receive a flat-rate child allowance of €160 a month for each child, as part of an agreement reached by the Flemish government at the weekend. The agreement, which also covers the responsibilities of the provinces and measures for primary and secondary schools, was hailed as “a historic breakthrough” by ministerpresident Geert Bourgeois.

The new system replaces the current one, under which parents receive €90 a month for a first child, increasing at the ages of six, 12 and, in some cases, 18. Families received €167 for a second child and €249 for a third.

Now all children will be eligible for an allowance of €160 a month, giving families with one child more per month and families with multiple children less. “Every child is the same,” said welfare minister Jo Vandeurzen. “With this decision,

© Ingimage

Flanders is taking the historic opportunity to give every child an equally strong start in life.”

The government also agreed to some changes in primary and secondary education. Pupils in the first year of secondary school will all follow the same basic curriculum for 27 hours a week, with an additional five hours of free options.

In the second year, education minister Hilde Crevits said, the options increase to seven hours, but the choice is limited to one option, which schools are free to decide for themselves.

“Pedagogical liberty and the freedom of education are not under threat,” she said.

In primary schools, pupils will be introduced to foreign languages – French, German and English – from the first year, with formal lessons starting in the third year; at present language lessons start in the fifth year.

Finally, the provinces must make do with fewer members of provincial councils and smaller budgets. “We are slimming down the provinces and creating a more effective and more efficient layer of government,” said Liesbeth Homans, minister for administrative affairs.

Crevits addresses Commission on efforts to fight radicalisation

Tommelein ‘promising nothing’ on electricity tax

An information centre for schools and pupil support agencies worried about radicalisation among students has been consulted more than 700 times since it started operations in January 2015, but more co-ordination is needed with the police, said Flanders’ minister for education, Hilde Crevits, speaking to the parliamentary committee on terrorism.

The centre, established to aid in the prevention of radicalisation, refers questions to networks of education and Islamic experts, the latter of which has received some 195 questions since it was established last October.

But the education minister (pictured) said that a contact person for schools in each police district is required, and that this only exists in two-thirds of the districts in Flanders and only in half of police districts in Brussels.

Crevits also told a colloquium organised by the European Commission’s

The new Flemish energy minister, Bart Tommelein, is not ready to abandon the energy surcharge that led to the resignation of his predecessor, Annemie Turtelboom. The minister made clear in an interview with the magazine Knack that all options remain open.

The “Turteltax”, as it came to be known, is a surcharge on electricity bills that is costing average households some €100 this year. The tax was approved in order to make up for a budget gap caused by government subsidies for the installation of solar panels.

Turtelboom left office in April after deciding not to license a biomass centre that would have cost the government €2 billion in subsidies. The savings could be used to reduce the electricity surcharge. A similar saving could be gained if the same decision is taken regarding another biomass centre planned in Limburg.

“I’m promising nothing,” Tommelein told Knack. “As a liberal, I’m not going to miss an opportunity to reduce taxes. But the opportunity has to be there.”

The decision not to enter into even greater debt on biomass does nothing to reduce the existing debt, he pointed out. The Flemish government will still have to achieve its environmental goals for 2020, but without biomass. \ AH

© jasper jacobs/BelGA

education directorate that a more holistic approach was needed to tackle the problem. “We must deal with the issue in our schools but also in the way we organise our society.” If society does not succeed in making youngsters feel appreciated and valued, then measures to prevent radicalisation and extremism will not work, she said. \ Emma Portier Davis

No more new construction in Flanders by 2050

Leuven alderman demands space for 1,000 more school students

By 2050, there will be no more land converted from nature or agriculture to construction in Flanders, according to a new policy for public planning currently being finalised by environment minister Joke Schauvliege.

The planned “embargo on concrete” means no new roads, houses or industrial zones without a corresponding area of built-up land being returned to nature. “I want to see evolution, not revolution,” said Schauvliege. “Everyone should have the chance to exercise or simply relax in green areas.”

Another part of the plan, which has still to be approved by the government of Flanders, would involve relaxing local zoning regulations to make it possible to rebuild housing.

Leuven’s education alderman, Mohamed Ridouani, has demanded that the government of Flanders find the budget to create an additional 1,000-student capacity in the city’s secondary schools.

There are currently some 80 students in Leuven with a preference for a Catholic secondary school on a waiting list for the school of their choice. Among them are a number of students who live in Leuven. About 60% of secondary school students in Leuven don’t live in the city.

“I can’t explain to a mother from Heverlee [a district of Leuven] why a student from Vilvoorde can get a place at a school in Leuven, but her child ends up on a waiting list,” said Ridouani.

According to estimates, 1,000 more spots are needed in the city by 2020 to accommodate all secondary school students. If funding cannot be found, said Ridouani, then he’d like to see a reform of the registration system.

The online registration system requires parents to provide a list of preferred schools, and the computer appoints places, but “doesn’t take into account where parents live,” explained Ridouani. “I am asking for a solution that makes it possible for children to go to school close to home.” \ Andy Furniere

At the same time, the rules would aim to extract more value from a given space – by having a school open up its sports facilities to other groups, for example.

“Everyone can see that it’s not possible to continue as we have been,” Schauvliege said. “We have to think clearly about how and where we live.”

\ AH

\ COVeR sTORy

june 1, 2016

© Courtesy Trias

Alexandra is one of nine townships participating in the Peers project, which has worked with more than 750 small-scale business owners

Start small, dream big

from tech to hairdressers, Peers strengthens entrepreneurship in impoverished areas continued from page 1

together organisations that share the same spirit.”

For the past 25 years, Trias and Unizo have worked together on similar projects in other parts of the world, from the Philippines to El Salvador and Peru, and their collaboration in South Africa was almost a foregone conclusion. “We work closely with Unizo because they have more than 100 years of experience in bringing small entrepreneurs together,” says Janssens. “And that’s what Peers is about: sharing experiences on all levels.”

The term township has a particular meaning in the South African context. During Apartheid, only white people were allowed to live in the cities, although non-white labour was still required in their factories and homes.

Camps where black workers could spend the night began appearing on the peripheries of the cities.

Originally shanty towns, the townships gradually became more permanent, but were plagued by poor construction, crime and lack of access to basic amenities such as electricity, water and sanitation. Today, the word township no longer carries the racist connotations, but the problems associated with them remain.

The first phase of Peers, which lasted three years, involved the South African Chamber of Commerce and Society (SACCI), the National African Federated Chamber of Commerce & Business (NAFCOC) and the Afrikaanse Handelsinstituut (AHI).

In the second phase, the three organisations have each recommended three local chambers of commerce. AHI selected chambers from the townships of Bothaville, George and Tsitsikamma; SACCI chose those in Alexandra, Diepsloot and Nongoma; and NAFCOC nominated its provincial branches in East-

ern Cape, Western Cape and Kwa-Zulu Natal provinces.

“The nine local and provincial organisations are a diverse group that represent entrepreneurs from a wide range of townships, including established townships, newly constructed urban townships, semi-urban townships and rural townships,” reads the proposal submitted to the Flemish government. “This is to ensure that the lessons learned during this phase can be scaled up by the national partners at the end of the programme.”

Peers comes with certain diversity conditions. At least 50% of participants have to be young or female. At least 50 entrepreneurs in each township are to receive training each year, and at least 40% of the training participants should receive on-going mentoring and support.

“These are mostly micro-entrepreneurs,” Janssens says. “Diepsloot, for example, is quite a recent township, with a lot of smallbusiness owners. You can have someone who runs an internet cafe, but, in the meantime, he’s also installing solar panels. One business doesn’t necessarily have to be related to the other.”

The businesses involved in the programme reflect this wide spectrum, from hairdressers to second-hand dealers to tech and B2B services. And the focus is on township entrepreneurs who live in impoverished areas.

“SACCI has selected chambers located within townships,” says Sourour Nouho, programme officer for Trias in South Africa.

“AHI, by contrast, have chosen chambers within established areas that are looking to increase their reach and create a more inclusive environment by bringing in entrepreneurs from remote areas.”

The three national organisations have

slightly varying goals. “Our strength is the non-metropolitan areas right across the country, with many of them in the Western Cape,” explains Nadia Carolissen of AHI. “The businesses range all the way from transport logistics to soap factories, cheesemakers and clothing. They cover all industries.”

Most are small scale, she says, but some are in the process of expanding. “Many start off as single-person businesses, or a family business, but we encourage them to expand because job creation is one of our goals.

Many of them do create jobs, even if it’s on a part-time basis.”

Janssens says the programme’s aim is to promote entrepreneurship. “We want to turn

adds. “They used to work on the big farms as employees, but being a farmer and owning land is quite a recent experience for them.”

The government of Flanders has provided €1 million to the Peers project, which goes some way towards its development policy goal of job creation. “The latest figures suggest that more than 750 people have been trained under the programme,” says Carolissen. “Quite a few of the businesses do very well, and we also found that, even though people did not stay in their jobs, they were better equipped to go out and find new work thanks to the additional skills they had acquired.”

What does Flanders get out of it? “A feel-

We concentrate on small entrepreneurs because they can improve things for the people around them dreams into opportunities, so we start with small entrepreneurs who have a vision. And we think the best way to make their dreams come true is through associations, civil society and member-based organisations of small entrepreneurs and family farmers.”

For now, the project focuses on entrepreneurs. “In the future, we will also work with small farmers,” says Janssens. “But we will only involve family farmers, because the big farming industry doesn’t need our support.”

Homelands and rural areas are regions where Janssens thinks the programme can make the biggest difference. “Farming is also quite new to some of these people,” he

ing of solidarity,” says Boulogne. There’s no direct economic gain, but Unizo is trying to find project ambassadors among Flemish entrepreneurs, who will support the work in South Africa, arrange visits and invite the entrepreneurs to share their experiences.

“But if you expect us to gain a lot of economic advantage from this project, then I’d say no,” Boulogne adds. “In Belgium, we are very conscious of the international situation and share a sense of solidarity, and that’s the meaning of the project. That’s the reason why we keep going.”

\5

\ BusIness

Week in business Transport CMB The Antwerp-based shipping and transport group has finalised the acquisition of TNT Airways and the Spanish Pan Air, two freight carriers that were part of the TNT group sold recently to the US’ FedEx company. CMB will now operate, through its ASL freight affiliate, some 130 cargo aircraft based in Ireland, France, Hungary, Spain and Belgium.

energy eDF luminus The local affiliate of the French EDF energy group has acquired the Hoegaardenbased Van Parijs Engineering, specialised in turnkey solutions in the field of energy applications and services.

Chemicals solvay The Brussels-based chemical and composite materials group has acquired from its US partner Eastman Chemicals the 50% it didn’t own in Primester, specialised in cellulose acetate flakes. The deal gives Solvay full control of the Tennessee-based production facility, which supplies its cable units in Germany, Russia and Brazil.

Insurance Ageas The country’s largest insurance group has finalised the sale of its Hong Kong life insurance activities to the local JD Group for €1.22 billion.

Brewing AB InBev The world’s leading beer group, based in Leuven, has finally received the green light from EU competition authorities to acquire the Londonbased SABMiller now that the latter has sold several of its brands, including Peroni, Grolsch and Meantime. It is still seeking a buyer for Pilsner Urquell to meet the EU regulator’s requirements.

Online retail Alibaba The Chinese online shopping group is opening a public affairs office in Brussels to follow EU legislation.

Packaging Abriso The insulation and packaging group, based in Anzegem, West Flanders, and with operations in France, Poland, Ukraine, Hungary and Romania, has been acquired by the Belgo-Dutch Bensis investment fund.

\6

€100 million for enterprise

new fund will offer businesses assistance once they get off the ground alan Hope More articles by Alan \ flanderstoday.eu

F

lemish economy minister Philippe Muyters has announced a new enterprise fund worth €100 million over the next four years. The money will be spent on a range of projects aimed at stimulating entrepreneurship.

The economy needs more stayers and more growers, Muyters said.

“The government already has a role in making it as easy as possible for entrepreneurs to start up and run their businesses,” he said. “We are creating a playing field, but a lot of other factors come into play in determining the enterprise climate.

Think of the image we have formed of entrepreneurship, the stigma of failure or support for young entrepreneurs and strong growers. Those

© Courtesy baasenvlaanderen.nl

are matters better handled by the government’s partner organisations.”

To cover those issues, the government has established a commission, “for which anyone with a good idea can sign up,” said the minister.

The commission will cover three main areas: the creation of a culture of ambitious enterprise in Flanders; support tailored to the life cycle of a company, focusing on starters, and with a concentration on finance and continuity; and the special situation of high-risk and high growth firms.

According to Muyters, too few in Flanders take the step towards becoming an independent business owner. Compared to an average of 12-13% in Europe as a whole, only about 5% of the Flemish go it alone.

Founder of rental companies is Student Entrepreneur of the Year

National demo attracts thousands but has ‘little impact’, say employers

Lothar De Keyne, a business student at Ghent University, has won the Student Entrepreneur of the Year award from Unizo, the organisation that represents the self-employed in Flanders. De Keyne, 25, runs two businesses: SkiLi and AléGo. De Keyne (pictured) launched SkiLi – a rental company for ski equipment and clothes – at the end of 2014 together with two friends. “Ski clothing is expensive and is mostly just used once a year, so there is a rental market for it,” he told Het Nieuwsblad.

SkiLi has established a partnership with tour operators Thomas Cook and Neckermann, whose clients now automatically receive the option to rent from SkiLi. De Keyne recently applied the success formula of SkiLi to a different market: camping equipment.

An estimated 50,000 people from all over Belgium travelled to Brussels on 24 May to take part in a union demonstration against the federal government’s new policies on work hours and retirement age.

Unions were protesting against labour measures including the raising of the retirement age, the end of the guaranteed 38-hour work week and a recent statement by federal labour minister Kris Peeters that the country was living beyond its means. “If we don't stand up for the common man, no-one will,” an ACV union member said.

The march from North Station to South Station was relatively peaceful, though there were clashes at the end with police by a small group of demonstrators, who threw stones. Brussels police chief Pierre Vandersmissen was struck in the head and spent the night in hospital.

Police made 23 arrests. Five people were treated in hospital. Union representatives condemned the actions of the minority. “The trouble-makers abused our demon-

His new company AléGo rents out equipment such as sleeping bags and tents at music festivals, so people – often travelling by train – don’t have to transport the heavy gear themselves.

Unizo selects students for Entrepreneur of the Year who combine their studies with entrepreneurship that emphasises socioeconomic values. There are currently some 5,000 student entrepreneurs in Flanders, and their number is on the rise. \ Andy Furniere

Head of customs banned from entering Brussels Airport The head of the customs services at Brussels Airport has been transferred to another job and refused entry to the airport after several days of allegations and controversy. Customs officers have been ordered to hand over their service weapons after a quarrel, and it emerged that the husband of the head of the service is a convicted drugs smuggler.

Last month, some 30 customs officers were told to hand over their weapons after one officer was accused of threatening another at gunpoint.

According to one source within the service, who spoke to De Standaard, the problem was with a group of recent recruits who were harassing other members of the service.

According to the source, the head of the service, Annick VC, was protecting the officers involved. She was called into the office of the director-general of the service in Brussels last month, and the decision to withdraw the weapons was taken “to prevent a quarrel from escalating and an accident happening,” the service said.

Later it emerged that Annick VC is married to a convicted drugs dealer.

The man was sentenced to five years in prison by a court in Antwerp in 2006 for his part in smuggling 2,800 kilograms of cocaine through the harbour. Annick VC was not involved in any illegal activity, though the trial suggested she had suspicions she did not act upon. \ AH

© Olivier Gouallec/BelGA

stration and not only damaged our aims but, worse, injured people,” a spokesperson for the socialist union ABVV said. “We hope the wounded recover soon.”

According to the employers’ federation VBO, the demonstration had little impact on businesses.

“Employers had taken precautions, but the absence of workers can make production and deliveries to clients more difficult,” a spokesperson said.

The national strike originally planned for 24 June has now been postponed until 7 October, following another demonstration on 29 September. “We will continue until we get a result, and not just an agreement for the sake of appearances,” promised ABVV chair Rudy De Leeuw. \ AH

‘Right to be forgotten’ extends to newspaper archives The “right to be forgotten”, which allows members of the public to have references to their private life removed from internet searches, also extends to newspaper archives, the Cassation Court has ruled.

The court was ruling on an appeal by Rossel, publishers of Le Soir newspaper. They had been sued by a member of the public who had been involved in a traffic accident in the past and who demanded that all reference to the matter be expunged from the paper’s archives.

He won his case in the lower court, and Rossel appealed and lost. The lastresort appeal to the Cassation Court also failed, as the court ruled that the right to be digitally forgotten formed part of the constitutionally guaranteed right to be left in peace in one’s private life. That is a justification for infringing on the newspaper’s right to freedom of expression.

The Rossel group said it regretted the ruling, which it said “opens the door to the rewriting of history”. \ AH

\ InnOVATIOn

june 1, 2016

Everyone’s a scientist

Week in innovation

citizen science portal lets members of the public play darwin toon lambrechts More articles by Toon \ flanderstoday.eu

iedereenwetenscHaPPer.Be

A

lways wanted to follow in Darwin’s footsteps? It’s possible, thanks to a group of young Flemish researchers.

Through an ongoing project at the University of Sheffield in the UK, you can analyse a series of birds’ beaks in 3D, just as Darwin did in his time.

It’s one of many citizen science projects on the Everyone a Scientist portal, an initiative of the Jonge Academie. The organisation was founded in 2013 under the auspices of the Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium for Science and the Arts. It consists of young researchers from various Flemish universities.

One of Jonge Academie’s first assignments was to promote science communication, says Violet Soen, a historian at the University of Leuven who special-

© Ingimage

Measure your dog’s intelligence in one of many research projects asking for citizen participation

ders is lagging behind in terms of citizen science, and we want to help bridge this gap.”

The portal is a collaboration between Jonge Academie and the

Flemish science magazine Eos. Scientists can propose research projects on the site to the audience, who are asked to participate.

“Usually there are about 80 projects running where you can get involved immediately,” Soen explains. “The site fills a need for researchers who want to set up participative projects, where previously each one had to reach an audience on their own. Now all the initiatives are bundled. There is a lot of enthusiasm among both

the public and scientists for participative research projects.”

On the site you can find projects on measuring your dog’s intelligence, tracking the growth of local trees or deciphering a 17th-century census. “What they all have in common is that they rely on the help of citizens, not just to fill in a questionnaire but to actively join in the research,” says Soen. “Citizens conduct research and deliver data. In some projects, the participants even have a say in what exactly will be investigated.”

The active participation of citizens is more than a communication strategy. It’s a new form of research that has a lot of potential, explains Soen. “The benefits are on different levels. It’s a democratic and interactive form of science with a profound interaction between scientists and citizens.”

On the other hand, there is a clear benefit to science, as such projects give researchers the opportunity to collect a lot more data than they could on their own. Soen: “I’m a historian. On my own, I can go

Jessica Ramos-Byrne (pictured, centre) is chief of staff at the financial messaging network Swift. Together with three other professional women, she set up Mizbiz, a networking organisation for women based in Belgium

the fact that assertive women are often frowned upon, whereas men who are assertive are seen as potential leaders.

Why Mizbiz?

As female professionals, the other founders and I felt we faced similar issues in our various jobs and companies. We had read Sheryl Sandberg’s book Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead, and it really struck a chord. We realised that connected women are more influential and that companies with women in leadership generally perform better.

Unfortunately, we don’t see many women at the top where we work.

We wanted to set up a network where women come together to share experiences and advice in order to inspire each other to create opportunities for themselves.

What happens at a typical Mizbiz meeting?

We recently held our launch event in Antwerp. The speaker was an award-winning producer and board member of BBC Radio. She spoke about how to network, how to talk about yourself when you only have 30 seconds. It was very interactive and fun.

Usually there are about 80 projects running where you can get involved immediately ises in religion during the Habsburg period. She has been involved in the Jonge Academie from the beginning.

“Science communication as a concept remains vague, and too often it goes only in one direction: Scientists presenting their findings to an audience,” she says. “We were looking for a more interactive approach. It turned out that in other countries there are already a lot of scientific research projects with citizen participation. Flan-

Q&a

What barriers do women face when it comes to networking?

The biggest barrier, I would say, is that we feel we have to build a relationship when we network.

We don’t want to get down to business right away. Then when we’ve built a relationship, we’re embarrassed to bring in the transactional part! Men are quite different. They tend to jump straight to business, and perhaps build friendships after the initial transaction.

Also, the office culture can be very male-dominated. Many women feel they have to lose their femininity to fit in, which we would absolutely refute. Then there’s

Who can join Mizbiz?

To apply, you need to be a woman with at least five years’ professional experience. Our network is cross-sector, and it’s also very diverse in terms of seniority. We have people in their early 30s and those in their 60s who are start-

through a limited number of documents a year in the archives. By mobilising volunteers to browse through the archives, I could get a lot more information. So citizen involvement really helps advance science.”

Citizen science has a lot of potential benefits, but it is taking off slowly in Flanders. So the Jonge Academie has launched a call to promote the concept within research institutes and the government.

“In neighbouring countries, many more projects are being mapped out, but it is still in an experimental phase here,” says Soen. We need to kick-start citizen science, because there are many positive elements to it, but we also need to tackle ethical issues such as privacy and property rights.”

The enthusiasm for the public to participate in such projects is there, she believes, proven by the success of Jonge Academie’s portal site, which had to be adjusted after a year because of the large number of participants. Universities and research institutions are increasingly thinking about science communication, and communicating research results is emerging as a third pillar alongside education and research.

The Jonge Academie’s position paper also calls on the government to work towards a policy on citizen science. “We have already taken many steps with the Jonge Academie, and it’s now time the government provided a framework to answer the ethical questions. That would be a huge step forward for the development of citizen science.”

ing their own consulting firm or training company. Our members include dancers, psychologists, lawyers, project managers and engineers. We thrive on this diversity because it exposes us to new ideas we might not encounter in our own specific sectors.

Researchers cultivate extinct burbot

Researchers at the Waas campus of Odisee University College have cultivated the fish species burbot, which had become extinct in Belgium.

The purpose of the project, called LotaBEL, is to make it easier for local fish farms to compete with Asian imports.

The burbot, also known as the bubbot, is a cod-like freshwater fish that used to be present in Flemish rivers. The species can still be found in other parts of Europe and in North America. One of the advantages of the burbot is that it needs relatively little feed.

The species also scores well on culinary tests. Researchers hope the burbot will boost the local fish sector.

Award for clothes adapted to patients

The company INGA Wellbeing of Lubbeek, near Leuven, has won the second PRoF Award for best care project in Europe, for creating clothing adjusted to specific needs of patients. The company makes clothes with discreet openings or with parts that can easily be removed for medical examinations. This way, patients can have treatments or go through examinations without having to remove all their clothes. The award, worth €10,000, is an initiative of the care think-tank PRoF, which specialises in supporting the development of adapted patient rooms and residences. Last year, the award went to a retirement community in Mol, for developing an indoor bicycle with video screens.

Transport system for blood supplies

Red Cross Flanders has joined forces with Leuven University Hospital and Ghent University Hospital to develop a common transport of medical materials such as blood products and tissue samples. The initiative, called Inter Ziekenhuis Transport, is set to launch at the start of 2017, with all Flemish hospitals invited to participate. Red Cross Flanders currently makes daily deliveries of blood supplies to a large number of hospitals in the region. At the same time, many hospitals and other care institutions distribute blood and tissue samples among themselves. With the new initiative, each hospital will get daily deliveries from an outside transport service suited to the task, resulting in increased transport efficiency and quality, and lower costs. \ Andy Furniere

\ Interview by Ellie Mears

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\ eDuCATIOn

june 1, 2016

Long way home

Week in education

commissioner calls for changes to commute by special-needs pupils emma Portier davis More articles by emma \ flanderstoday.eu

C

ome rain or cold, a six-year-old boy gets up every morning to wait at the end of the driveway for his bus to school. There are times when he stands there for as long as 20 minutes. After climbing on to the bus, he struggles to keep his balance as the driver pulls away.

The boy has a serious handicap in his left leg.

Another child has autism and, after a two-hour bus ride with more than 20 other children, he needs as much as half an hour of special care at school before he is ready to start his day.

About 40,000 special-needs children in Flanders take a designated bus, which picks them up from home and takes them to school. Close to one-quarter of these children sit on the bus for more than two hours a day, according to the Flemish Office of the Children’s Rights Commissioner.

Until as recently as last year, these pupils were not allowed to drink water on the bus. Now the legislation has changed, but parents complain that some drivers are not aware of the change in law and still do not allow food or drink on this lengthy commute.

In 2015, a government concept note was agreed to address the conditions faced by these children on their commute. Two pilot projects were

Everyone acknowledges that the situation needs to be changed proposed to test and examine different solutions to the problem. One project has recently been selected and will conclude in mid-2017 when the ministers of education and transport will decide what the following steps should be.

“It is obviously our intention to reorganise the transport so that it serves the best interests of the children,” said Flanders’ minister for education, Hilde Crevits.

It’s not yet obvious what those next steps should

© CsP_soupstock/BelGA

be, as many solutions proposed so far do not address the needs of all children. To spur the debate, Flanders’ children’s rights commissioner, Bruno Vanobbergen, published advice last month, pointing to several shortcomings in the concept note and calling for these to be addressed in a debate.

One of Vanobbergen’s chief frustrations is with the lack of care for the children on the bus.

Although each bus has a leader, this person is responsible for administrative tasks such as ensuring that every child who should be on the bus has been picked up.

“If you have 25 children on the bus, it’s quite difficult to make sure the ride is comfortable for every one of them,” he says. “The leaders are not necessarily trained in taking care of kids with special needs. You can of course have some who are very involved, but it is an administrative and not a pedagogical job.”

What is needed, he continues, is better training for the bus drivers and for the leaders. “We are asking the government to pay more attention to the treatment of these children.”

Another area for improvement, according to Vanobbergen, is in the communication between the children, the parents and the drivers. The long waits for the bus, he says, could be eliminated. “The parents are asking to be notified when there is a serious delay, so the children can avoid waiting outside for a long time.”

Thirdly, Vanobbergen is petitioning the government and parliament to provide before- and after-school care for special-needs children.

This, he says, could easily be accomplished by regular schools. “There are not enough places for these children, but we do see some good examples where a family with two kids in regular education and one in a special school can have all three attend the same after-school club.”

The issue regarding transport and after-school care cannot be separated from the broader goal of creating more inclusive education in Flanders, says Vanobbergen, though he cautions that this will only solve the problem for children whose special needs can be catered for in regular schools. For the rest, it is obviously not a solution.

This is also true for a multimodal approach being explored in the pilot project. It involves options such as car-pooling and helping special needs children use public transport with some assistance. “This can be an answer,” Vanobbergen says, “but not all the parents have such a network of support.”

The good news is that progress is being made, Vanobbergen says, especially now that a project has been selected. “Since I started in my role as commissioner six years ago, I’ve noticed that the authorities do address the complaints. Everyone acknowledges that the situation needs to be changed.”

Vlerick Business School makes top 30 in world rankings vlericK.com

Vlerick Business School has moved up the Finan­ cial Times’ Executive Education rankings for both Europe and the world. Vlerick, with campuses in Ghent, Antwerp and Brussels, remains the top business school in the Benelux for the fifth year in a row.

Vlerick’s overall ranking was boosted two places in the European table to 16th, and the school gained five places in the international rankings to become 29th best business school in the world. “We’ve made impressive progress in the rankings, thanks to years of hard work developing the kinds of programmes that really make a difference for both managers and entrepreneurs,” said general director Patrick De Greve. “We’d like to thank all of our clients and alumni for choosing Vlerick and for providing us with positive feedback about the Vlerick learning experience.”

The FT also has rankings for both standard and custom programmes. For standard programmes,

Vlerick moved up three places to 29 in the world and remained at number 13 in Europe out of 75 schools.

For custom programmes, the school jumped 10

places to number 33 in the world. “Thanks to our continued commitment to internationalisation, we offered significantly more programmes abroad than in previous years,” explained De Greve. “Our approach to developing customised programmes has also evolved significantly over the past few years. We strive to better understand the specific educational needs of each of our clients. Using a variety of tools, we work with them to identify these needs. And we place a high priority on enriching the programmes with business-specific material to ensure they are highly relevant.”

Last year, more than 8,500 students completed programmes at Vlerick. Nearly 3,550 chose one of the 81 standard programmes. Vlerick also developed 138 customised programmes for 4,990 students at local and international companies, including Carrefour, KBC, Nestlé and Vesuvius.

CVOs criticise end of teacher training A group of 14 directors from adult education centres (CVOs) in Flanders have signed a letter asking education minister Hilde Crevits to reconsider the decision to limit teaching education to universities and universitycolleges in the region from 2019. About 9,000 people are currently following teaching courses at a CVO in Flanders. Most of them have jobs but are working towards a career change. According to the CVO directors, teaching programmes in their institutions are attracting more and more students every year, while the opposite is true of universities and colleges.

Crevits explained that teaching education needed to be upgraded to the level of Bachelor and Master’s degrees, and only universities and colleges can award these diplomas.

One in six principals also teaches

In the current school year, 432, or nearly 17% of principals in Flemish primary education took up an additional task, which entailed lessons or other pedagogical tasks that should normally be fulfilled by teachers. The phenomenon occurs most in Limburg province, where principals in more than 23% of the schools also take on other duties, and in West Flanders. It’s mostly in smaller schools that heads find they have to take on more work, “while these principals already have lower wages and less administrative support”, said MP Steve Vandenberghe (SP.A) who requested the figures from the education ministry.

Multilingual education in more schools

From 1 September, 19 more secondary schools in Flanders will provide certain courses in French, English or German as part of the Content and Language Integrated Learning (Clil) system, bringing the total number of Clil schools to 60. Since the beginning of the 2014-15 academic year, secondary schools in Flanders have been able to offer non-language courses in a language other than Dutch – specifically, in English French or German. History and geography are the most popular courses to be delivered in another language, with most of the schools opting for English. “A good knowledge of languages is important in our globalised society,” said education minister Hilde Crevits. \ Andy Furniere

\ Alan Hope

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\ lIVInG

Week in activities

Coudenberg Family Day

Held in conjunction with the exhibition A Renaissance Banquet, this event offers themed activities for everyone in the family, from historic games to creative workshops, plus food and beer tastings, crossbow shooting and dance workshops. 5 June 10.00-18.00, Coudenberg Museum, Kunstplein 7, Brussels; free with museum admission \ coudenberg.com

summer scavenger hunt Every summer, Flemish cultural organisation Davidsfonds organises a scavenger hunt. This year, it’s in Roeselare and Izegem in West Flanders. There’s a family version and a “classic” edition, for those who enjoy a challenge, and both can be done by car or bike. Buy a participant’s packet at the starting point.

4 June to 18 September, Paterskerk, Delaerestraat 33, Roeselare; €30 (includes guide book to Leie region) \ davidsfonds.be

Open Churches Day Churches across Flanders and Brussels open their doors to the public during this annual weekend event. The theme for 2016 is Sounds and Silence, and many churches will be offering special concerts, guided tours and activities. Visit the new Teseum treasury and museum of the Basilica in Tongeren. 4-5 June; free \ openkerken.be

Three-Province bike ride Choose one of the six starting points in Limburg, Flemish Brabant or Antwerp province, and a distance between 35 and 63km. Enjoy entertainment and regional dishes at each starting point along the route (Beringen, Ham, Tessenderlo, Meerhout, Laakdal and Diest). Registration includes a free beer and regional dish. 5 June, start between 8.00 and 15.00; across Flanders; €4 \ drieprovincienroute.be

world Press Photo Less than two weeks left to see this traveling exhibition.

Every year, the World Press Photo Foundation holds a prestigious competition for the best photojournalism in the world. The winning entries then travel the world, to be seen by millions. Until 12 June 10.00-19.00, CC Scharpoord, Maxim Willemspad 1, Knokke-Heist; free \ worldpressphoto.org

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Kitchen sync

sustainable food truck breathes new life into leftovers and wasteland alan Hope More articles by Alan \ flanderstoday.eu

recuPKitcHen.Be

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he Josaphat goods station in Schaarbeek, named after the adjacent park, was closed in 1994. Since then, the 25-hectare site has been empty, while the owner, rail authority NMBS, cleaned the soil, and vague plans were drawn up for a new quarter featuring homes, shops and businesses.

Before the grasses took hold in the wake of the bulldozers, it became a desert, dust drifting across the Brussels-Vilvoorde railway line that divides the site in two.

But now the grasses – and a whole lot more – have moved in. A circus troupe has built a camp for its vehicles and equipment. A group of people have created a communal vegetable garden using containers (because the ground has not been cleaned to the level required for growing food). And now a mobile kitchen promises cheap and cheerful food made of products the supermarkets give away.

Recup’Kitchen is run by volunteers and aims to recover the results of the “over-estimation” of food, explains Hanne Van Reusel, a doctoral student in architecture at the University of Leuven, one of the main movers behind the project. “We give new life to fruit and vegetables that would otherwise be thrown away.”

The project is built on three pillars, she explains. “Sustainability and the fight against food waste. Solidarity – meals available at whatever price you can afford, allowing everyone to benefit. And the social aspect: cooking together and eating together, creating a moment when people can come together in a public space.”

The food comes from leftovers

© Anna schröder

Recup’kitchen offers vegetarian food made from supermarket leftovers, cooked by volunteers and sold at democratic prices

from market stalls, supermarkets and corner shops. It’s all vegetarian not only by principle but out of concern for food safety. But aren’t people put off by the idea of eating

of recovered food is free to go and eat elsewhere.”

The kitchen is a converted caravan, obtained through crowdfunding. “The idea for the project came

We give a new life to fruit and vegetables that would otherwise be thrown away what would otherwise be waste?

“We’ve had no negative reactions so far,” Van Reusel says. “Of course we select food that’s still good, but which simply can’t be sold because of sell-by dates. In fact, we’ve had a lot of compliments about how tasty it all is. And it’s a free world: Anyone who doesn’t like the sound

up more than a year ago, and we turned to crowdfunding to buy the wagon and equipment, but also for insurance and formalities of all sorts,” she explains.

That appeal ran from November to February. “It was great to see how much support we received. We asked for €7,000, and we got more

than €7,500 in the end. More than 125 people contributed.”

Starting any business involving food is a nightmare of paperwork, but using volunteers – and untrained ones at that – adds to the complex procedures. “Right now we’re a non-profit, but we’ll have to see what structure we need to set up,” Van Reusel says. “We’re currently parked on the Josaphat site, but the idea is to travel out to other sites for events, and at that point we’ll need to apply for permits from whatever municipality is concerned. But we’ve had no obstacles put in our way so far.”

Recup’Kitchen serves food on the first Sunday of every month from noon, and drinks every third Sunday. For more events, see the website

bite Belgian only: new shop boosts local economy and food awareness

BelgomarKt.Be

Being so successful your shop sells out on the opening day: It’s what every entrepreneur dreams of. You could even suspect it’s a marketing stunt to attract more customers.

But the team behind BelgoMarkt, a new food shop in the Matongé neighbourhood of Brussels offering only products made in Belgium, could really only guess how much stock they would need.

After refilling the shelves of their store when everything sold on opening day last week, they just urged their producers to deliver the next supply a bit earlier.

BelgoMarkt is the brainchild of three young Belgians – Stéphanie Deblo, Mélanie Mikiels and Tresor Stevens – with one common goal: to transform the global economy with its long and opaque food chain into a more local, transparent and human one. They want the food on your plate to be traceable.

“You have to take into account that the founders don’t have a background in retail and are learning every day,” says Alexandre Hervens, one of some

25 co-operatives supporting the shop. He says the contact between food producers and their customers is fundamental.

This becomes obvious in the store itself, where all products are accompanied by the name of the company and a picture of the local farmer or manufacturer. “What’s more, the suppliers use the same entrance as the clients, encouraging mutual feedback,” Hervens says.

Aside from a focus on organic – as 60% of the food here is – there is an ample choice of bulk goods.

Big cardboard barrels, hessian sacks, glass bowls and tap bottles are filled with flour, nuts, pasta, coffee, oil and even laundry detergent. This way BelgoMarkt tackles two main concerns: food waste and packaging.

“It’s another step away from what the big chains do: Customers just take what they need here,” says Hervens, adding that they will also organise workshops to raise awareness.

The good news for customers is that by keeping the food chain short, with a maximum of one intermediary, BelgoMarkt can keep prices down.

So, among the more exotic local vegetables, such as chard and kohlrabi, you can buy cheap potatoes and lettuce.

The shelves are filled with fresh products daily, allowing you to reduce your ecological footprint, and there’s enough to enjoy the Burgundian lifestyle: a wide selection of cheese and sausages from across the country, Hageland wine, organic Gageleer beer from Turnhout and Ordal lemonade from Ranst. \ Tom Peeters

june 1, 2016

Ahead of his time

Peter sioen on moving to london and making the most of his cultural differences sally tipper More articles by sally \ flanderstoday.eu

Petersioen.com

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s a young psychologist, Peter Sioen worked with homeless people in Brussels. Since moving from Flanders to London 12 years ago, he’s carved out a niche at the other end of the economy, coaching ambitious professionals in the City.

But lessons from those early days still inform his work. “It was fascinating to be in such a hands-on role,” he says of that first job, “but I began to feel slightly marginalised.”

He became involved in a European Commission project looking into health care and poverty, before moving to the railway operator NMBS, where he worked with management and unions to tackle stress and harassment among employees.

Then, with his British partner, he moved to London. “I went without a job, which was maybe not very clever,” he recalls.

And the Brits were rather confused by his CV. “I was proud of all my experiences and the versatility I had and wanted to continue working with conflict resolution, harassment and bullying,” he says. “But the UK professional world wasn’t really ready for it in the way other European countries were.”

Not readily finding a job, he set up a coaching service within his partner’s company, offering support for ambitious individuals working in the City who felt stuck in a rut as a result of poor management, competition or discrimination.

He later set up his own company, providing psychological coaching and mediation services, and has written books about his experiences on the streets and in high finance.

Sioen is from Ghent and lived in Brussels for 15 years, but even as

© Courtesy Peter sioen

Peter sioen coaches ambitious londoners who feel stuck in a rut

a child, he dreamed of living in London. Having made the move, he took what was initially a stum-

highlight the differences and turn them into strengths to make my business case. It’s something I

People living in the London bubble can easily become blind to what happens in the world bling block and turned it into a selling point.

“I definitely presented myself as a Belgian in London, as a token to show that my approach is different,” he says. “I didn’t shy away from pointing out that I come from another culture. I had to learn to

share with my clients: I try to find what makes them unique and original, what makes them stand out.”

Over the course of 25 years, he’s gone from working with young people living on the streets to a very different arena – supporting rich, ambitious professionals at

the opposite end of the spectrum.

“I do feel that it’s part of the uniqueness I hope I bring to the table,” he says. “I’ve witnessed the other side of the economy, and that was partly what made me curious to go into this particular field. I really wanted to see the other extreme.”

Having worked with people who have absolutely nothing keeps him grounded, and helps him keep his clients grounded, too. “We talk about the bigger picture,” he says. “People living in the London bubble can easily become blind to what happens in the world, to the people sitting next to them on the Tube who have nothing.

“I have these memories of working with people who sleep rough, who shoot heroin, who prostitute themselves; they stay with me, and

50 weekends in Flanders: Weekend by the sea in Zeebrugge Flanders Today has launched an e-book with ideas for how to spend a year’s worth of weekends. Visit our website to get your copy of 50 Weekends in Flanders. We’ll also print one of our suggestions every week here, too.

The enormous container port dominates the coastline at Zeebrugge, and you can wander around the old harbour quarter, where shops sell fresh fish and restaurants offer seafood for lunch. \ brugge.be/zeebrugge

Climb the PORT OBSERVATION PLATFORM The busy seaport of Zeebrugge has built a striking red metal cabin with a view of the modern docks.

You can climb up to the roof when the weather is good to watch

massive Chinese car carriers and cruise ships slowly move through the port. Zweedse Kaai Crawl through a submarine at SEAFRONT The huge industrial sheds in Zeebrugge where fish used to be auctioned have been turned into a maritime theme park. The main attraction is a former Soviet submarine from the Cold War era moored in the harbour. Here you can crawl through claustrophobic spaces while hidden speakers play patriotic Russian songs. \ seafront.be

Buy fish at WESTHINDER This outstanding fishmonger is located opposite the old fish market. It isrun byafriendly couple who visit the new fish market on

they live on in the conversations I have with my clients. It makes it worthwhile, and it gives me a sense of purpose.”

In a way, he says, “I’m still doing it for the people I met 25 years ago in Brussels. It’s the same economy, and it’s about trying to make the economy better for everyone.”

Twelve years ago, when he arrived in the UK, the country wasn’t ready for what was often seen as a “woolly” approach to conflict in business. Britain can be slow at catching up on trends, and there are various reasons, Sioen explains.

“They speak only English, and these new trends very often develop in Scandinavia, the Netherlands and France,” he says. “When you speak various languages you’re open to all these influences. And Britain is a very independent country and doesn’t rely on influences from abroad.”

Has that mentality changed? Sioen has certainly seen the growth of the coaching market, dealing with stress in the workplace, and the atmosphere has noticeably shifted since the financial crisis of 2008.

More and more companies are coming to realise the benefits of early-stage conflict resolution.

“I work with private individuals,” he says. “The typical client is between 28 and 38; they’re talented people who’ve done very well in education and have been mentored through an exciting job at major companies, always being looked after.”

But now, he says, their mentors are retiring and they no longer have the same advantages they’d got used to. “They have to start fending for themselves, and they find it difficult to fight those battles.”

tinyurl.com/50weeKends

kroketten (shrimp croquettes). It’s currently closed for renovations, but back open on 1 July. Werfkaai 29

© westtoer

the other side of the harbour to pick up fresh sole, skate and plaice, along with little shrimps, cockles and whelks. Vismijnstraat 20 Drink at ’T WERFJE Mike and Herlinde run what

they say is the oldest cafe on the Zeebrugge coast. Around for more than a century, it’s a plain, friendly place with wood-panelling and mirrors, where fishermen drop by for a beer, a bowl of fish soup or Herlinde’s famous garnaal­

Eat at MARTINS VISRESTAURANT Next to the tram stop near Zeebrugge harbour, this restaurant is decorated in maritime style, with white tablecloths and little model ships. Wendy welcomes you at the door, while her husband, Christophe, cooks the food.

Together they have created one of the best fish restaurants on the coast, where you can eat delicious fried sole and Norwegian Arctic cod. \ martinsvisrestaurant.be

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Your guide to life in Belgium Th Thee spring issue of Th Thee Bulletin Newcomer is your guide to making the most of life in Belgium. It mixes practical efforts information with features on community eff orts to clean up Brussels, planning for retirement, family activities around the country and other lifestyle topics.

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Your dailY news Sign up now for our daily and weekly newsletters with local headlines, events and features, tailor-made for expats in Belgium

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june 1, 2016

Free spirits

Week in aRts & cultuRe exhibition by Christophe Coppens opens in lA

artists go their own way at repurposed factory in ghent toon lambrechts More articles by Toon \ flanderstoday.eu

019-gHentorg.weBHosting.Be

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he transformation of old sites from its industrial past into new urban initiatives has given Ghent the opportunity to experiment with the temporary use of empty buildings. One such project is 019, located in the former electro-mechanics factory at Handelsdok, where a group of artists has found its home.

In the 019 workshop, Tim Bryon tinkers around with some tools. In the next-door hall, a wooden structure divides the room into four spaces, and a large mechanical crane hangs over the whole.

The site has retained its industrial look.

“That’s the idea,” says Bryon. “In the beginning we considered creating a traditional white cube for exhibitions, but soon it became clear that we couldn’t work against the spirit of the building.

It’s a real workshop with its rawness and dirty sides, and that’s also in keeping with the identity of our project.”

In a former life, the building was part of ACEC, a major manufacturer of electrical and industrial equipment, which ceased operation in 1989. Now it’s part of the wider urban development project Oude Dokken on Dok Noord, part of the city’s ring road. The city issued a call for a temporary use; Smoke & Dust, the artists collective behind 019, responded.

“We have been given the freedom to do what we want,” Bryon says. “In return, we don’t receive any support or subsidies. It was a brave choice by the city, I think.” They’re now in their third year, with the project expected to run until 2018.

“Since 2008, Smoke & Dust have been engaged in producing and releasing artistic materials,” Bryon explains. “First as a record label, and later the label grew into a platform for other artists.

We couldn’t find our place in the usual circuit of exhibition spaces and concert halls. We wanted to write our own story.”

They began to specialise in “challenging locations,” he says, to host their activities, “such

kazerne Dossin info now in German

© Courtesy smoke & Dust

Musicians, artists and photographers have found a shared home at 019 in Ghent

as building sites, a church, industrial wastelands... All our projects have a number, and this is number 019.”

After years of travelling around Ghent, Smoke & Dust have found a home to bring all their projects together. That leads to interesting crossovers.

“There is a band rehearsing here who release their work through our record label,” Bryon says. “The screen printing workshop produces posters for their concerts, and their clips are produced in our video studio. All those people from these various initiatives work as volunteers at our public activities. A type of internal economy has developed here that we didn’t

have before when everyone worked at their own location.”

As well as a record label, a video and photography studio and a screen printing workshop, 019 houses a carpentry workshop, and the central hall is used for events.

“019 is an artist-run space, and we have deliberately chosen not to make a clear split between a workshop and exhibition space. So everything is possible,” says Bryon. “And the events we host are very diverse: from a rock concert for a niche audience and the Night of Experimental Film to an art book fair. They all have a home here. It’s exactly this ambiguity that makes 019 so interesting.”

Bruegel the Elder meets Google at Brussels’ Fine Arts Museum fine-arts-museum.Be

I’m tempted to say that the best place to see Bruegel: Unseen Masterpieces is on the internet rather than at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts in Brussels. But then something would be missing.

“Nothing corresponds to experiencing the original works,” says Isabelle Vanhoonacker, head of public services at the museum. “But the technology permits us to have a new dialogue with the work, and to see other things in the paintings.”

This new digital approach to the work of Pieter Bruegel the Elder begins with high-resolution digital photographs of his paintings, such as the museum’s own “Fall of the Rebel Angels” and “Census at Bethlehem”. These images, embedded in narratives about the 16th-century painter’s life and work, can be explored on large touchscreens throughout the museum’s Old Masters section.

This ability to present more detail is one of the museum’s main goals. “Through the technology, we can offer more information than we could ever fit on the little label next to the painting,” says Vanhoonacker.

It also speaks to the increasing number of digital natives in the museum’s public. “It’s important to bring them to the original work through technology they know.”

The narratives are very informative, such as

The new exhibition 50 Masks Made in America by the Flemish artist and fashion designer Christophe Coppens, has opened in Los Angeles at the gallery of the Please Do Not Enter concept boutique. Coppens, who was born in Sint-Niklaas and studied both theatre and music until he turned to fashion – in particular hatmaking – has lived in Los Angeles for the last three years. “Masks have played a major role in rituals, religion and the dramatic arts for 1,000 years,” said Coppens, 47. “Disturbing or grotesque, pretty or intriguing – masks can be used to express yourself.” The 50 masks in the exhibition, which runs until 16 July, are based on Coppens’ observations living in the United States’ second-largest city.

explaining that Bruegel’s imagery in “The Rebel Angels” was not simply the product of a fervid imagination but reflected recent discoveries from the Americas. Plumes and butterfly wings sported by his demons are exact copies from contemporary cabinets of curiosity.

But there is also a great deal of pleasure to be had from simply zooming into the digital images and looking at the extraordinary detail of the paintings, down to individual brush strokes.

Three of the digital images are also projected on to the walls of a room – dubbed the Bruegel Box – so that standing in the middle plunges you into the paintings. In addition to “The Rebel Angels”, the box covers “Netherlandish Proverbs” and “The Sermon of John the Baptist” from museums in Berlin and Budapest, respectively.

A further version of this immersive experience comes via Google Cardboard (pictured), a box that turns your smartphone into a virtual reality headset. Currently on offer only to guided tours, the boxes will arrive in the museum shop in the coming months. Expect to part with €10 for the privilege.

If you have your own Cardboard you can enjoy the experience at home, and the digital images and narratives are all online thanks to a collaboration with the Google Cultural Institute. Importantly for the museum, this means the material

© Courtesy D-sidegroup, 2016

is freely available to schools and other educational institutions.

In the longer term, the project is a test case for the Bruegel House, a building in Brussels’ Marollen neighbourhood where the painter is thought to have lived, and which the museum is developing into an attraction. Bruegel’s paintings are too fragile to move, so proxies have to be considered.

“It’s interesting to see how you can give a very vivid representation of the work without transporting it,” says Vanhoonacker. \ Ian Mundell

until 2020 Royal Museums of Fine Arts

Along with Dutch, French and English, the Kazerne Dossin Memorial, Museum and Documentation Centre on Holocaust and Human Rights is now offering all information in German. That includes wall texts, guided tours, audio guides and educational materials. Next January, the museum plans a series of activities for schools from the the East Cantons – the German-speaking region of Belgium – Luxembourg and the North Rhine-Westphalia state in Germany.

new Dog of Flanders statue planned

The City of Antwerp is acceptingdesignproposalsforanew statue dedicated to the characters from the book A Dog of Flanders. The story of the young Nello, who rescues the faithful dog Patasche from a cruel master, is a cultural phenomenon in East Asia but has been famously ignored in Flanders. The 1872 book by Marie Louise de la Ramée of England was inspired by a trip to Antwerp, where she was outraged to see large dogs pulling wagons full of goods. There are 300 editions of the book in Japan, and a 1970s animated series was seen by 30 million people.

But Flanders has little to offer Japanese tourists expecting the same attention for the story here as in their homeland. The new statue is planned for Handschoenmarkt, near Antwerp Cathedral, and proposals are due by 4 July. \ beroepsbelg

Regentschapsstraat 3, Brussels

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The summer of ’76

flemish journalist’s memoir is a tale of common people with uncommon stories rebecca Benoot More articles by Rebecca \ flanderstoday.eu

Knack journalist Stijn Tormans has put together stories of people whose only apparent connection is memories of a bygone season.

A few years later, Tormans came across the man’s obituary. “That’s when I started looking into his past; it turned out that he had had an intriguing life,” he says. “The tipping point occurred one fateful summer, so it fit perfectly into my book.”

Some stories in the collection made headlines, others would otherwise be forgotten, but all of them are poignant and represent a kind of prosaic poetry.

Tormans, for instance, included a story about a window display of shells in Ostend that he frequently passed in his youth.

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tijn Tormans was born in 1976, and every time this popped up in conversation, people would tell him stories about that year’s long, hot, wonderful summer. He was so intrigued by the outflow of positive memories that he decided to delve into some archives.

“I started looking through some old newspapers and discovered that the summer of 1976 was anything but great,” he says.

“There was a shortage of water, a big train crash, and there was a fire in the heath in Kalmthout. I was really baffled by the fact that people remembered it very differently.”

De zomer van 1976 is a collection of intimate portraits and memories of a time now long forgotten.

It is also a metaphor.

Tormans, who works as a journalist for Flemish magazine Knack, believes that everyone will at one point experience a summer so significant that it changes them, or at least stays with them forever.

“And my book,” he says, “is about people who are all experiencing their own summer of ’76.”

Some of these stories were written for Knack, others are new. “I’ve been playing with the ideas behind the book for six years,” Tormans says. “Every time I encountered a story that would fit perfectly into the collection, I put it aside. I just happened to meet people who fit the bill.”

how Belgium has changed since the 1970s, usually through things that don’t make headlines, like changes in our daily lives. “That being said,” he adds, “I did not write a nostalgic book, because a lot of things have changed for the better.”

He admits, however, to being slightly sentimental, especially when it comes to his collaboration with photographer Saskia Vanderstichele, who has created breath-taking photographs to accompany each story.

“I have worked with Saskia for 15 years, and we really complement

My book is about people who are all experiencing their own summer of ’76

© Courtesy stijn Tormans

Tormans writes predominantly about people and society and is known for his intricate and heartfelt portraits of common people who lead uncommon lives. “I

met a man on the bus who was a drifter,” he says. “He sat down next to me, and I didn’t like it at first because he smelled awful. In the end, we talked for the entire ride.”

“You couldn’t go in; it was more of a display,” he says. When he heard it was going to disappear, he decided to write a story about it. “It turned out that two elderly people were living there, and, for the past 15 years, they had just been staring back at the passersby who would stop to look at their shells,” he says. “They were heartbroken that they had to move, but a real estate agency was taking over the building.”

It’s a small story, but there’s also a second one lurking underneath: a powerful statement on how we perceive the elderly and our heritage.

The stories also show social evolution. You get a glimpse of

each other,” he says. “She’s more rational, and I’m more emotional.

I often had the feeling that I couldn’t capture certain emotions in words, while she could do it effortlessly with an image.”

De zomer van 1976 is a beautiful collection of stories and portraits that capture the essence of a period that lingers in the minds of those who experienced it. It offers fleeting moments in the lives of ordinary people that have helped shape them into who they are – and who we are as a society. ) is De Zomer van 1976 ( published in Dutch by Uitgeverij Polis

moRe neW books this month Zeik en het lijk op de dijk (Zeik and the Body on the dyke) Herman Brusselmans • Prometheus Flemish author Herman Brusselmans’ beloved sleuth Zeik returns with a new case involving a body that has been eaten by birds.

The homicide squad is on the case and desperate to find the latest criminal mastermind, who roams the streets of 1970s Ghent. Zeik en het lijk op de dijk is packed with literary references, tongue-incheek humour and larger-than-life characters, poking fun at a genre that takes itself far too seriously.

Although the story is flimsy, Brusselmans is wonderful at creating colourful characters and snappy, albeit absurd, dialogue.

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import Pieter Aspe • Manteau If summer is approaching, so is a new novel by Flanders’ most popular crime writer, Pieter Aspe. This time, a body washes ashore in Zeebrugge. A gambler calls it in to the police and is murdered shortly afterwards, along with his neighbours, by cold-blooded Russian criminals. Inspector Van In is baffled, but help comes from a Syrian refugee. They’re a great team, but the clock is ticking when terrorists plant a bomb nearby.

What if nothing is what it seems?

What if the enemy is closer than he thinks? Import combines drama, suspense and mild entertainment.

wat voorafging (what Happened Before) Diane Broeckhoven • Vrijdag Antwerp author Diane Broeckhoven recently turned 70 and is celebrating with a candid biography based on her relationship with her mother, who died two years ago. It is a subtle, loving portrait of two women who desperately wanted to know each other but simply couldn’t connect. Broeckhoven, a former journalist, realised at a young age that she had different needs than her older sister and younger brother. It so annoyed her mother that she kept pushing her away, unable to grasp her daughter’s wandering spirit – a spirit that simply longed to come home.

Kopvoeter (stick figure) Kristof de Muynck • Polis Man-of-all-trades Kristof de Muynck – who after studying at Antwerp’s fashion department has designed theatre costumes, run bars and done interior decorating – has gone ahead and written a novel. Erwin moves to the country and stays on a farm, where he meets the hard-working Alma.

He’s surrounded by quirky characters, even though that is what he was trying to escape. The most intriguing of all is Modest, a man who died three months ago but is still very much alive in Erwin’s head. Kopvoeter is an original and whimsical family chronicle, with a touch of the fantastic, as the past and the present cross paths.

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june 1, 2016

Making eye contact with the past

Ravel until 25 june

conceRt Bruges

oPeraBallet.Be

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world premiere by Antwerp choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui has always been an anticipated event, and we’re just lucky there are more of them now than before, with his appointment last year as the artistic director of Royal Ballet Flanders.

To end its successful season – which is looking to break records – the ballet is presenting a triptych of performances linked by the music of turnof-the-20th-century French composer Maurice Ravel. Cherkaoui’s premiere of Exhibition starts the show.

“For me, there are no different genres of art, there’s just one,” Ravel once said. This most intriguing statement was never more put to the test than in his Pictures at an Exhibition, an orchestral piece he arranged in 1922 based on 19th-century Russian composer Modest Mussorgsky’s piano suite.

Mussorgsky was inspired to write the piece after

visiting an exhibition of work by his friend, artist Viktor Hartmann. Cherkaoui is adding another layer to the art. “There is a beautiful kind of timelessness in this project,” he says. “Mussorgsky found it important to create sounds for Hartmann’s paintings, Ravel followed with an orchestral work based on Mussorgsky’s music and now comes a choreographic interpretation of Ravel’s work. Time and art flow into one another.”

The piece finds some 20 dancers springing in and out of frames, like paintings jumping from the wall. Cherkaoui is playing with our obsession with viewing works that often reflect very simple, everyday activities – making eye contact with the past.

The other two pieces on the bill are Ma mère l’Oye (Mother Goose) by Flemish choreographer Jeroen Verbruggen, a Ballet Flanders’ alumnus currently choreographing for Les Ballets de Monte Carlo.

festival

event

uncanny valley

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8-11 june Ghent’s newest music festival explores the history of experimental music through exhibitions, talks, film screenings and, of course, plenty of concerts. The guests of honour are seminal American music collective The Los Angeles Free Music Society, who formed in the 1970s to challenge a stagnant, overly cerebral

Across Ghent vooruit.Be

West Coast arts scene. Inspired by the real-world interventions of Dadaism, the band injected their art with street life and pop culture.

Above all, theirs was an antiinstitutional, DIY kind of art. The festival features appearances by several Free Music Society founding members as well as younger artists. \ Georgio Valentino

activity

Despite the prevalence of industrial agriculture around the world, a sustainability revolution is well underway. This regional open house of eco-friendly gardens is the proof.

With 190 participating locations throughout Flanders and the Netherlands, chances are there’s one near you. You’ll discover Flanders’ many sustainable orchards, vegetable patches, ornamental gardens, family nurseries and city parks.

The event is organised by DutchFlemish association Velt, which counts some 16,000 members and has been promoting sustainability in agriculture and horticulture for over 40 years. Velt’s current project aims to ban harmful pesticides in Belgium by 2020. \ GV

\ cactusmusic.be

Brussels

© FilipVanRoe

His inspiration for the new piece is unexpected: the romance between the late King Boudewijn and Queen Fabiola.

The third piece needs no introduction: the late French choreographer Maurice Béjart’s legendary Boléro, here danced alternately by two leads, one male and one female. \ Lisa Bradshaw

Park spoor noord, Antwerp

11-12 june, 19.00

antwerP-fasHion.Be

Ever since the Antwerp Six splashed onto the European fashion scene in the 1980s, Antwerp has been the spiritual home of Belgian couture, and the Six’s alma mater – the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp – has been its seminary. The annual SHOW is a kind of final exam for students in the Academy’s hallowed fashion programme. Not only is it a catwalk extravaganza featuring original work by tomorrow’s bigname designers, it’s also a behindthe-scenes look at how fashion is made. The event also boasts a walking tour of fashion-oriented installations in public spaces. \ GV

conceRt

velt eco-tuindagen 4-5 june

Marissa Nadler: The American folk singer-songwriter known for her ethereal sound and dreamy goth-pop performs with a full band.

4 June 20.00, Cactus Club, Magdalenastraat 27

Across Flanders

get tic k

velt.Be/ecotuindagen

3 october Electropop singer MØ (born Karen Marie Ørsted) paid her dues in the Danish punk scene before signing to Sony in 2014. Her major label debut No Mythologies to Follow and subsequent, high-profile collaborations with Major Lazer and Iggy Azalea cemented her status as rookie of the year in 2015. She

\ soundsjazzclub.be

festival Brussels Milieufestival: This edition of the free festival for the environment has a sustainable food theme and features two days of activities, including BEL Movie Day, a competition for films about the environment, and a “village” of environmental organisations in the park. 3 & 5 June, Tour&Taxis & Jubelpark \ leefmilieu.brussels

Peruvian Cultural Day: Celebration of Peru’s rich culture and traditions, featuring food, music, dance and pisco brandy, as well as a photo exhibition and story corner for children, with proceeds going to support rural communities in the Andes. 4 June 13.00­22.00, Pianofabriek, Fortstraat 35 \ ayni-viru.be

ets no w

mØ

Across Flanders

Giacomo Lariccia: The Brussels-based Italian singer-guitarist performs original chansons in his typical upbeat style. 4 June 22.00, Sounds Jazz Club, Tulpstraat 28

Ancienne Belgique, Brussels aBconcerts.Be

is also lauded for her cool, Scandinavian fashion sense. This year Sony is making the release of MØ’s sophomore album a real event.

No official release date has been disclosed, but two singles have already hit the airwaves. The latest is cryptically titled “Final Song”. \ GV

TradFest Belgium 2016: The second annual music festival hosted by the Embassy of Ireland featuring traditional Irish music, dance and the Gaelic language, with 80 participants from five countries performing in more than 15 venues, particularly in the Irish pubs near Schuman. 7­12 June, across Brus­ sels \ irishclub.be

food&dRink wetteren BBQ Championship: Grill masters compete for the title of best barbecue chef of East Flanders during this free event with tastings, a cosy bar area and entertainment for all ages. 5 June 11.00­18.00, Doe het zelf Safti, Massemses­ teenweg 60 \ dhzsafti.be

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june 1, 2016

Talking Dutch we need to talk about enzo

In response to: School bans ripped jeans Kana Ng: Bummer. My Sarah can’t keep from ripping her jeans or pants. She plays HARD. We don’t even bother designating ‘play clothes’.

derek Blyth More articles by Derek \ flanderstoday.eu

T

he internet is blamed for many things. It makes us stupid. It makes us angry. And, if you’re Flemish, it makes you Dutch.

This emerged recently in a newspaper story about internet viewing habits in Flanders. Heel wat Vlaamse jongeren zijn geabonneerd op YouTube­kanalen van vlotte babbelaars – A lot of Flemish teenagers subscribe to YouTube channels hosted by smooth talkers. Vaak zijn dat Nederlanders met een eigen taalgebruik – They are often Dutch people who have their own way of speaking.

The article went on to point the finger at one very popular Dutch channel. Hebt u al van Enzo Knol gehoord? – Have you heard of Enzo Knol yet? Als u ouder bent dan twintig – If you’re over 20, is die kans vrij klein – then it’s very unlikely.

Maar ruim een miljoen Nederlandse en Vlaamse jongeren volgen dagelijks de avonturen van de jonge Nederlander op YouTube – But about a million Dutch and Flemish kids youngsters follow the young Dutchman’s adventures on YouTube.

The secret of Knol’s success is immediately clear when you click on one of the videos he broadcasts every day. Hij is spontaan – He is outspoken en weet aan heel dagelijkse dingen – and is knowledeable about daily life. Van kippenburgers eten – From eating chicken burgers tot een dag in een tropisch zwemparadijs – to spending the day at a tropical water park.

Innocent stuff, you might think. But not everyone agrees. Elke dag na school kijken ze naar zijn vlog – They watch his vlog every day after school, said one Flemish mother of two. Mijn oudste zoon heeft zijn haarsnit zelfs veranderd om meer op hem te lijken – My oldest

voices of flandeRs today

In response to: Talking Dutch: We need to talk about Enzo Laura Nadia Andrian: Well, parents could be a little bit more open minded. They were probably shocking their own parents in their time.

son has even gone and changed his hair style to look more like him.

Knol introduceert niet alleen alledaagse en moeilijke thema’s in Vlaamse huiskamers – Knol hasn’t just introduced all sorts of everyday and difficult topics into Flemish homes, maar ook zijn typische ‘Hollandse’ tongval – he’s also introduced his typical Dutch way of speaking.

Soms hoor ik mijn zonen ineens “hou je bek” zeggen – Sometimes I hear my sons saying “shut your face”. Zij bedoelen dat heel normal – They think it sounds normal, maar voor ons klinkt dat cru – but to us it sounds rude.

Dat sluipt binnen in hun taal – It sounds perfectly fine in their language, en zij voelen niet aan hoe grof dat overkomt – and they don’t realise how rought it comes across.

Vlaamse ouders zitten met de handen in het haar – Flemish parents are pulling their hair out: hoe voorkom ik dat mijn zoon of dochter praat – en vloekt – zoals een Ollander? – how do I prevent my son or daughter talking – and swearing – like a Dutchie?

You can’t just say hou je bek.

PHoto of tHe weeK

In response to: Youth in Antwerp were planning attack, says pros­ ecutor Vanessa Goncalves: It’s such a lovely city I’d hate for something to happen there.

Ilane Hernández @ilanehm A toast to the friendship of Mexico and Flanders “Felix cumpleaños”

Lottie @nonolottie Every single person in Ghent rides a bike, there are bikes everywhere.

Marius Hollenga MariusHollenga Oh man, Leuven is beautiful. Have a good time. :)

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the last WoRd difference of opinion “The function of a tree has always been to be felled. A tree can’t stand for eternity.”

Environmental organisations are none too pleased with Flemish environment minister Joke Schauvliege’s defence of selective deforestation

old boy’s network

© Bas Bogaerts/ Belga handout

in focus Ghent photographer Bas Bogaerts has won the nikon Press Photo Award for this image taken during a house search in the Brussels district of Molenbeek following the Paris terrorist attacks

“Dear M, Let me say that you do indeed have the perfect profile, with the exception of your age.

Sorry to be so frank, but it’s perhaps better for you to know why I’m not inviting you to an interview.”

Dovy Keukens have been ordered to pay €25,000 damages to 59-year-old M, who was turned down for a job as he was, in the opinion of 64-year-old owner Donald Muyle, too old

market forces

“The price differences are completely illogical. We are calling for uniform fees. A passport, say, ought to be issued everywhere for the cost of production.”

Simon November of consumer protection agency Test-Aankoop, responding to a survey revealing differences in fees of more than €30 for a passport and €35 for a driving licence, depending on where you live in Belgium

tricky proposition

“Getting it wrong is not an option; that only makes the sorrow worse. If something goes wrong with a fox, then you might say there are hundreds more foxes.

But there’s only one Fifi.”

Aalst taxidermist Cathy Vertongen on why more and more of her colleagues are refusing to take on pets

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