These past 2 months, we have been silent on our blog and Linkedin. A bit because of being fed up with pictures of people working at home, a bit because of being curious and astonished of this digital cocktail of group feeling, sudden (over?)enthusiasm for the health sector, group panic and emotional carousel of personal opinions on what somebody else should do or have done.

We have continued  working on our projects with our partners. That word does get back its real meaning when collaborating in this crisis, thanks for that !

We had our worries for our parents, family and friends but, I must admit, I enjoyed the extra time at home with my sons. Although they mentioned the idea of opening a help line for children with annoying fathers. And riding my new race bike.

Our heart goes out to people who suffered personal loss.

It’s a time of feeling the need to be connected, also in the working environment. Therefore we want to announce the membership of our young company HAEDES of 3 important organisations :

• the “Blauwe Cluster” (www.blauwecluster.be/leden) focusing on stimulating blue economy in Flanders,
• the Belgian – Portuguese Chamber of Commerce (www.ccb-portugal.be) as HAEDES is the engineering bridge between Belgium and Portugal,
• and finally VOKA (www.voka.be/nieuws/nieuwe-leden-de-kijker-april), the leading organization in Flanders representing all entrepreneurs. We need you today more than ever !

We keep focusing on the positive elements. New business ideas, a more balanced way of working together in a clever combination of digital possibilities and fostering personal contact. A renewed appreciation for nature & silence. A weird combination of trying to live more local (all of a sudden these last weeks, people started responding when you say “hello” during a walk in the streets …) and feeling connected worldwide in this global crisis.

Let’s transform that positivism into operational modus !  Our way of doing that, is pointing your attention to our latest vacancy.

Renaat

Founder – Chief Efficiency & External Officer – CEO

Did you also thought that as experienced (coastal) engineer you could live your (professional) life thrilled and successful based on what you have learned in the past? You thought you used the correct skills to provide answers to the challenges you were confronted with? You have underestimated yourself! You are much more than an experienced engineer. Your skillset is broader and richer. You have a soul and intuition that you can use on top of your expertise. What a relief! But a struggle, isn’t it?

As an engineer you’ve trained yourself and got experienced to be analytic, oriented to “problem solving”. You used linear thinking to tackle the chaotic, multi-dimensional and complex problems. You studied the physics, mathematics, statistics and methodologies to design. You learned to use numbers, formulas, guidelines, … You learned how to simplify the reality, since you were trained to fit reality into human-made simplified models.

During your career you focused on deepening your engineer skills. So did I. I repeated my solutions, because it was easy, it was comfortable and the world was supposed predictable, understood and slowly changing. I pushed myself to focus on efficiency, to be more “productive”, to apply existing standards and methods. But, I forgot to combine my engineering mindset with a completely different way of thinking. I forgot to feel and use my soul. I underestimated the strength of connecting with others coming from, at first sight, very distant disciplines. I forgot to be inspired by citizens, children, music and beauty. I forgot to connect with Nature. Consequently, the solutions I came with where not good enough for what we need today. And what about you? Do you find suitable solutions?

We should give ourselves the space and time to reflect and be creative. Therefore, I chose to enter the jungle, to embrace change as philosophy, to pioneer and to connect with others also enjoying the jungle. It is a journey where we will work in co-creation with people that don’t know anything about engineering, but know about eco-systems, human brain & neurosciences, music and the innovative strength Nature. I opened my mind and heart: we need a shift to holistic and system thinking. Are you ready to make that shift?

Todays’ biggest challenge is not climate change. Today’s challenges are related to the dramatically decreasing biodiversity, reduced human wellbeing and societal and economical models that are not supporting a happy life Nature is able to sustain. Everything on Earth is interconnected and interdependent. Everything. I learned that Nature takes care of the patterns by itself and by learning from its own design lessons to reinvent and regenerate. The disturbance humans have introduced the past decades can still be repaired. Hereto design lessons from Nature and system thinking are an inspiration. But change starts by exploring new insights and apply them in the projects you are working on.