Pintra (EN) Blog
On Friday 8 August, Antwerp once again turned every shade of the rainbow during the Antwerp Pride Parade. The University of Antwerp was there, hand in hand with KdG, AP and AMA under the joint AUHA UNITED flag. On the AUHA parade float, we spoke with students and staff about visibility, inclusion and the meaning of this year’s theme, ‘Fearless’.
We increasingly work digitally: we communicate via Teams or chat and collaborate in shared documents. It’s efficient, but it also makes collaboration feel more distant. You know what your colleagues are working on, but less about who they are. The spontaneous chats disappear and it’s no longer a given you can put a face to a name. However, it’s precisely those informal connections that make the difference and create genuine connection. Meeting in person isn’t about nostalgia, it’s an investment in collaboration. Pintra spoke to a range of teams, from library staff and researchers to administrative teams. Everywhere, the message was the same: seeing each other pays off.
On Saturday 9 August 2025, UAntwerp participated in Antwerp Pride, as per yearly tradition. This time, the personalised float was shared with AP University of Applied Sciences and Arts Antwerp, Antwerp Maritime Academy (HZS) and KdG University of Applied Sciences and Arts.
How can you respond as a witness to inappropriate behaviour without putting yourself in a difficult position? That question is at the heart of a new bystander training programme now available at UAntwerp. The initiative is timely, as Lien Smets, training officer at HR (DP&O), explains why the training is more important than ever.