On Wednesday, 1. June, Paderborn University’s Belgium Centre (BELZ) staged its 6th Belgium Day event. Everyone was invited to take part in the varied all-day programme with the motto “Focus on Flanders”, which took place at the university, in the city centre and at the Deelenhaus. Various discussion rounds, an original Flemish chippy, Flemish literature and music offered visitors an opportunity to encounter the diversity of Flanders. The full programme can be found on the BELZ information platform BelgienNet. The Belgium Day event was part of Paderborn University’s anniversary celebrations, with the particular support of the Flemish diplomatic representation in Germany. Other organisations that sponsored the Belgium Day programme were Visit Flanders and the cultural institutions Taalunie and Vlaams-Nederlands Huis deBuren.
The event was officially opened at 9.30 a.m. in Room Q0.101 of the Campus by Prof. Dr. Birgitt Riegraf, President of Paderborn University and Prof. Dr. Sabine Schmitz, Chief Executive of the Belgium Centre, in the company of the Belgian ambassador in Germany Geert Muylle, the General Delegate of the government of Flanders Nic Van der Marliere, and the Head of the Representation of Wallonia, the Federation Wallonia-Brussels and East Belgium Alexander Homann. In three rounds of discussions, various experts spoke about the position of Flanders in Europe. “Situated in the heart of the Benelux region, Flanders has close economic, cultural, educational and security ties with Germany, especially North Rhine-Westphalia. We would like to examine this ongoing process of interconnection from various angles,” said Schmitz. The team that won the schools’ competition “Action! – A look at Belgium’s cinematic culture”, which was organised by the Belgium Centre, also received its prize at the event. Everyone who was interested could follow the morning’s programme on site or watch the free Livestream on the BelgienNet website.
Paderborn city centre was completely dedicated to Flanders at around 1 p.m. People in Rathausplatz, Neuer Platz and the Gymnasium Theodorianum school were invited to enjoy the cuisine and culture of the Flanders region. An atmosphere of Flemish flair was brought to the city by a snack bar serving Belgian chips in return for a donation to the City and District of Paderborn’s refugee aid charity “Flüchtlingshilfe Ukraine/Przemyśl”, and some street theatre performances. Visitors to the playground of the Theodorianum school could enjoy a poetry slam event with Flemish authors, information stands, an exhibition devoted to Belgian, and especially Flemish, comic-book culture, and a big-band concert.
Readings by Flemish novelist Sien Volders and her translator Bettina Bach followed in the Deelenhaus at 7.30 p.m. The readings were accompanied by music from the Flemish group Cabaretti and chaired by Prof. Dr. Norbert Eke, Professor for Modern German Literature at Paderborn University.
