The Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development (IMDO) at the University of Antwerp is organising the Lecture SEAries for the first time, together with the Society for Environmental Awareness (SEA).
Across four evening lectures, science, policy, governance and storytelling come together around the question of how we respond to a rapidly changing planet.
All lectures take place from 19:00 to 21:00 at the University of Antwerp, City Campus Rodestraat 14, 2000 Antwerp, Building R, Rooms 213 and 224.
Each lecture is followed by an optional workshop, creating space for dialogue, reflection and new perspectives.
Programme
Wednesday 14 October
Christian Clauwers — “The Fragile Frontlines of a Warming World”
In this first lecture of the SEAries series, Christian Clauwers takes the audience on a visual journey to the front lines of a changing planet. Drawing on fifteen years of expeditions to the polar regions, the world’s oceans, and vulnerable island communities, he weaves together personal stories and photography with scientific insights into climate change, biodiversity loss, and the evolving relationship between humans and nature. He also highlights his recent work aboard the Belgian research vessel R/V BELGICA, where he was appointed by Belgium to handle visual science communication, public outreach, and the dissemination of Belgian and European marine research. The lecture therefore serves as a broad introduction to the topics that will be explored in greater depth in the subsequent lectures.
Christian Clauwers is a Belgian documentary photographer, explorer, author, and public speaker working at the intersection of science, policy, and society. For more than a decade, he has documented environmental change in the polar regions, on remote islands, and across the world’s oceans, with a strong focus on climate change, biodiversity loss, and the relationship between people and nature. He collaborates with scientists, universities, and research institutions, translating complex research into accessible visual stories. He was appointed by BELSPO to document and communicate scientific missions aboard the Belgian research vessel R/V BELGICA.
Wednesday 4 November
Gudrun De Boeck — “When the Ocean loses its breath- the failing safety net against climate change”
Oceans cover 70% of our planet, produce 50% of our oxygen, and have been a great buffer against climate change. Since the pre-industrial era, oceans absorbed 25-30% of the CO2 emitted by anthropogenic activities and a stunning 90% of the heat produced by global warming. However, their protective function is declining ocean acidification threatens calcifying organisms and reduces CO2 absorbance, and marine heatwaves not only reduce the amount of heat oceans can still absorb, but they also reduce the amount of dissolved oxygen and oxygen production itself. Yet, when protected, marine environments show to be more resilient then expected, giving hope that not all is lost.
Prof. dr. Gudrun De Boeck is a biologist studying the effects of changing environmental conditions on freshwater and marine fish. She studies how fish cope with changes caused by humans (climate change, pollution…) but also how they have managed to adapt to the most extreme conditions, from Kenian alkaline soda lakes to acidic Amazonian water, from tropical reefs to polar oceans. She is heading the ECOSPHERE research group at the University of Antwerp, is chair of the Institute for Environment and Sustainable Development, and president of the Society for Experimental Biology.
Wednesday 25 November
Hans Bruyninckx — “Climate Governance in Turbulent Times”
We are living in turbulent times. Security concerns, failing global governance, economic challenges, and, yes, also the increasingly visible impacts of climate change. All of these issues are demanding strong governance, exactly at a time when this seems to be missing. In addition, environmental and climate concerns are pushed down on the political agenda. In this talk, Hans Bruyninckx will reflect on the systemic causes and risks of climate change, how we can think of solutions given the difficult political context and how actionable knowledge can be a lever for policy and for personal action.
Hans Bruyninckx is the regional Director for Europe of the World Resources Institute. He was a professor at the KULeuven, the Wageningen University and Antwerp University. Between 2013 and 2023 he was the Executive Director of the European Environment Agency. His focus is on systemic solutions and functional governance for complex challenges related to climate change, biodiversity loss and the social and economic impacts of the current crisis in Earth Systems. He has worked with International and European institutions, with national governments, civil society organisations and economic actors as he believes that solutions are only possible through joint action.
Wednesday 16 December
Ivan Janssens — “Carbon Sinks in Terrestrial Ecosystems”
Terrestrial ecosystems play a crucial role in the global carbon cycle by absorbing and storing large amounts of carbon dioxide. In this lecture, Prof. Dr. Ivan Janssens explores how forests, soils, and other ecosystems function as carbon sinks, how climate change affects their capacity to store carbon, and why this matters for future climate stability. Drawing on current research, he will also discuss the limits, uncertainties, and potential of nature-based solutions in mitigating climate change.
Ivan Janssens is a professor in the Department of Biology at the University of Antwerp, where he teaches courses in earth sciences, soil science, and “coping with global change.” Ivan heads the “Global Change Ecology” Center of Excellence and the Belgian component of ICOS, the European network that measures greenhouse gas concentrations and uptake. His research focuses on how terrestrial ecosystems function in a changing world, and he believes it is important to communicate this information.
Optional workshop (free of charge)
After each lecture, there will be time for a short, interactive workshop, organized by Olivier Torfs (Changemakers Unite, and team member of SEA). We’ll take the time to let the content sink in and explore how the lecture makes us feel. What thoughts, feelings, or questions linger? Through a guided exercise and discussion with others, we’ll create space to process the content on a personal level, discover different perspectives, and reflect on what this might set in motion.
The lectures run alongside the open-air exhibition Polar Regions and Oceans: Mirror of a Changing Planet in Hof van Liere (City Campus, Prinsstraat 13). Sixteen monumental photographs by documentary photographer Christian Clauwers show both the beauty and the fragility of the polar regions and oceans. The exhibition runs from 1 September 2026 to 26 March 2027 and is free to visit.
