The brexpat project

For the Brexpat project, English and Economics students of the Hogeschool-Universiteit Brussel (HUB) joined up with the British School of Brussels to uncover the mysteries of Belgium’s capital.

The purpose was to stimulate the integration of expatriates in the city of Brussels and to foster mutual communication between newcomers and inhabitants of Brussels. The project also met the request of many foreign students to have a better understanding of the complexity of the city they are studying in. Thanks to the support of the King Baudouin Foundation and the National Lottery, a tailor-made programme was developed.

The Brexpat project introduced university, college and high school students to typical products, arts, monuments, politicians and inhabitants of Brussels. At the start of the Brexpat Day, students discovered many cultural treasures hidden in the old quarter of Brussels by means of a quest.

How about food? Did international students already taste some local specialties (besides fries and chocolate)? During a workshop at one of the HUB campuses, students assisted in preparing their own typical Belgian lunch.

In the afternoon, the participants were introduced to two specific arts that are practised all over Brussels: comic strip drawing and politics.

2009 being the comic strip year in Brussels, the Ninth Art could not be forgotten. Together with cartoonist rAccou, students experienced it is not that easy to draw Tintin or Smurfs. Still, when you’re motivated, you can achieve a lot with some plain rules.

The last stop was the Parliament of the Brussels Capital-Region: students met the vice-chairman and MP Jan Beghin. Many of the participants prepared questions with regard to specific issues they are confronted with in the city: the different transport systems, urban poverty, effects of the economic crisis.