Dare To Think

The Ghent company Deliverect has become a ‘unicorn’ less than three years after its foundation. A term denoting exceptional, since this start-up is already worth more than a billion dollars. The secret to their overwhelming success, according to founders Jan Hollez and Zhong Xu? Timing and experience! And that experience all began at Ghent University.

Most students at university, at least at Ghent university, are female, but higher up the ladder men still dominate the academic world. The glass ceiling is still very real, but the cracks are starting to show. What obstacles do we need to tackle to create equal chances for everybody? We gather four women around the table to share their views: vice-rector Mieke Van Herreweghe, dean Gita Deneckere (Faculty of Arts and Philosophy), professor Lieve Van Hoof (Department of History) and Ghent University honorary doctor Dame Mary Beard, professor of Classics at the University of Cambridge.

The role of alumni within any university is not to be underestimated. “Our contact with ex-students is immensely important for so many reasons: research, education, reputation, talent management and more besides…. ,” maintains Emeritus Professor Kristiaan Versluys, who is responsible for the Alumni Relations at Ghent University. With the launch of the ‘Ghent University Alumnus of the Year’ award, the university now has a new way to honour its alumni.

Is the way you perceive the war in Ukraine determined by the government? Does the press shape your opinion about the conflict or is it the other way around? Or is something else going on? Two professors of Communication Sciences at Ghent University examine the press coverage of the war in Ukraine and shed light on the way the West perceives war.