ET Flanders launched and federal parliament unanimously supports telescope

At the administrative level in Belgium, two separate steps have been taken towards the Einstein Telescope in the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion. The Flemish Council of Ministers has launched ET Flanders, which will be the driving force behind all Flemish activities to bring the Einstein Telescope to this Euroregion and, of course, to ensure that Flanders also benefits from it. And for Belgium as a whole, the Federal Parliament has unanimously backed the candidacy for the Einstein Telescope through a resolution.

ET Flanders

With ET Flanders, Flanders is consolidating the activities that have been running for some time under the leadership of the Research Foundation and expanding them further. The Flemish strategy focuses on international strategy and economic valorisation. With its focus on these goals, Flanders aims to position itself at the forefront of the international scientific community and to intensify and strengthen the ecosystem in which technological companies and research institutions in Flanders and the surrounding regions and countries collaborate.

Leadership

Hans Plets has been appointed CEO of ET Flanders. This means that he is stepping down from the management of the Einstein Telescope EMR Project Office, which is investigating the feasibility of the project. Gerjan van de Walle will serve as Director of Valorisation and Business Development.

The renewed project team has also opened vacancies for a Director of International Strategy & Flemish Coordination and a Community & Office Manager.

The Flemish government has allocated 2.5 million euros to enable ET Flanders to operate until the end of 2027.

Federal Parliament

The Belgian Federal Parliament has unanimously adopted a resolution to signal that Belgium fully supports the candidacy for the Einstein Telescope. The resolution supports the diplomatic efforts to ultimately secure the construction contract. That decision will ultimately be made at government level by the European countries that have rallied behind the Einstein Telescope, regardless of whether it is built in our EMR region, in Saxony or in Sardinia. This will be done on the recommendation and advice of the Board of Governmental Representatives (BGR).