Videos

Do you think we will be able to stop CO2 emissions by 2050? Because that's what we need to do to fight climate change. Worldwide, an estimated one million researchers are currently working on solutions for climate change. At Hasselt University, Talieh Rajabloo is mapping state-of-the-art climate research & technologies that can help energy-intensive industries such as the petrochemical and metal sectors reduce their CO2 emissions.

"The greenhouse gases we pump into the air throw a thick blanket over the entire planet. By putting these to good use, my work aims to help remove this blanket of carbon dioxide, leading to a cooler future for all of us." Watch Divyansh Khurana (Imec - KU Leuven) explains how he wants to achieve this.

Plants capture CO2 and, through photosynthesis, convert it into green leaves. Over the past 30 years, the increase in CO2 in the atmosphere has thus led to a widespread increase in the number of green leaves around the world. But recently, there has been a shift: the increase in the number of green leaves is slowing down even though CO2 levels are still rising. Vaidehi Narsingh (Imec - UAntwerp) explains why she is determined to find out what is happening.

Washing hands, we do it more than ever due to COVID. But did you know there's a dirty side to soap? Heavy metals and chemicals are used in its production. UGent researcher Goedele Luyten wants to make more environmentally friendly soap and for this, she relies on ... yeast. Watch the video 🎥

Did you ever hear of 'heat networks'? These are networks of underground pipelines carrying hot water from geothermal plants to houses & buildings. They offer an interesting and sustainable approach to heating. But the larger the network of houses to be heated becomes, the more complex it becomes to manually design an efficient heat network. That's where Yannick Wack's (VITO - KU Leuven - Energyville) research comes in...

Did you ever enjoy a nicely packed fruit salad with an easy-peel lid? It's a beautiful display of packaging technology: the packaging is strong enough to protect your food, yet at the same time very easy for you to open once you want to dive in. Bram Bamps (UHasselt) explains how he optimizes heat-sealing packaging to keep our food safe and to ensure long shelf life.

5 million Flemings do not live in a city centre, but in villages or city outskirts. This fragmentation creates a major challenge: how do you connect all these houses to the sewerage network and how do you ensure smooth and sustainable mobility? Does everyone have to move to the city? No, as architect and urban designer Sophie Leemans (KU Leuven) explains in this video.

You have no doubt come across it when opening your fridge: a packet of cheese full of mould or a pot of sauce with a suspiciously bulging lid. The culprits? Bacteria, yeasts and moulds. Food producers try to prevent this type of spoilage as much as possible, by ensuring that a product contains as few micro-organisms as possible when it leaves the factory. Bio-engineer Thijs Vackier is working on new cleaning agents that can better break down biofilms, protective mantles around micro-organisms, in food processing equipment.

How do we prevent power breaks when everyone starts driving electric vehicles? With smart grid pricing! Niels Govaerts (VITO - KU Leuven - EnergyVille) explains how this works.

Imagine that you could use the CO2 emissions of factories to feed animals! Two birds with one stone. Well, this is possible! in this video, Lotte Van Peteghem (Ghent University) explains how she would like to use the CO2 emissions of steel factory Arcelor Mittal to eventually feed about 150,000 pigs

What does a nutcracker have to do with tackling climate change? Well, Kristof Bal explains it to you in 150 seconds.

Our poo and pee are too precious to waste, says Angelou Papangelou. The phosphorus in our excrement and in animal manure can serve as the food of our food and shouldn't go to waste. That's why Anastasia Papangelou is mapping the nutrient stocks and flows in the country, so that we can put our poo and pee to good use!