Students and the City of Brussels: the weKONEKT.week

For the fifth time in a row, students, academic staff and partners in Brussels are joining forces during the weKONEKT.week. This year, from Monday 28 March to Friday 1 April 2022, students from the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), l’Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB) and the Erasmushogeschool Brussel (EhB) will be going into the city en masse, with and for Brussels. Together, the university communities put topics on the agenda and get to know the city and its citizens better. Together with partner organizations, the students develop projects and organize activities for the general public. The program also includes a series of guest lectures within the framework of various courses.

Student initiatives

For their Hackathon, the VUB Green Team will head to Be-Here, a sustainable business center in the old Byrrh halls in the Canal Zone. During the Hackathon, students tackle four ecological challenges: mobility, travel, food and ecological handprinting. Together with partner organizations they identify the challenges and formulate solutions. Students of Bru:tecture also exhibit their works from the Architectuurweek, in which Climate was the central theme. During the weKONEKT.week there is not only a cross-pollination between students and Brussels, but also between VUB student groups.

WeDecolonize VUB and Décolonisons-nous (ULB) are focusing on discrimination and racism in technology. During this evening, researchers and artists come together in the form of a panel and workshop, to share their experience and expertise. In collaboration with FARI (AI Institute for the Common Good), they will organise their event at BeCentral (Central Station), the start-up hub that focusses on the digital developments, on Tuesday 29 March 2022.

Wellbeing

In collaboration with Pilar, we are organizing the second edition of the weKONEKT.wellbeing tables. Various groups of students will dine together and discuss themes such as stress, perfectionism, racism and discrimination, creative ways of dealing with well-being and more. Under the guidance of VUB student psychologists, they get the chance to share their experiences, as well as concrete tips and tricks.  All this with a delicious sustainable dinner by EAT vzw and with artistic interventions by slam poet, musician and artist Lisette Ma Neza. On top of that, Bram Van de Velde, radio presenter at Bruzz, will guide participants through the evening as MC.

Sport also plays a crucial role in our well-being and social life. On Wednesday 30 March 2022, VUB BXL Living Vechtsportlab and Risicovechtsportplatform Vlaanderen will bring together experts during Fighting Spirits, at Kinograph. Ismail Abdoul (Touché vzw), Ish Ait Hamou, Fran Vanderstukken (Risicovechtsportplatform Vlaanderen) and Jolan Kegelaers (SPMB) will have a dialogue about martial arts, with Hebe Schaillée as moderator. The panel will be followed by a screening of Jonas Baeckeland's Cool Abdoul, nominated for 10 awards.

KBR as central hub of the Brussels City Campus

Since the start of 2022, the VUB and ULB can count on the Royal Library of Belgium (KBR) as the new permanent hub of the Brussels City Campus. The beautiful Krantenzaal, with a view on Mont des Arts, welcomes hundreds of students and researchers throughout the semester. During the weKONEKT.week 2022, KBR welcomes, among others, the students of Enga-je for the launch of their new media platform Latitudes, Professor Frederik Dhondt for the course History of Law, the Brussels Assembly for Brussels 2030 and the VUB students of Communication Sciences from Medialab.

Discover the full program of the weKONEKT.week 2022 at weKONEKT.brussels.

weKONEKT.brussels and the weKONEKT.week is made possible with the support of Innoviris, the Humanistisch Verbond and the Flemish Community Commission.

Contact

Lynn Tytgat, coordinator weKONEKT.brussels

[email protected]

0485 11 19 29