Herwig Leirs will start as the new rector at the University of Antwerp on September 1. He succeeds Herman Van Goethem. “We are going to highlight the impact of the University of Antwerp even more.”
Herwig Leirs (60) can call himself the new rector of the University of Antwerp from September 1. In a battle with professor Koen Augustyns, he came out on top. The biologist received just under 68 percent of the votes during the rector elections. Augustyns received 29 percent of the votes. 3.16 percent of voters voted blank.
One of the most striking program points was the introduction of basic financing. “We will introduce this to reduce internal competition and workload,” says Leirs. In addition, the new rector wants to further highlight the impact of the university, “locally and internationally”, and better market innovations. “We want people to enjoy working and studying at the University of Antwerp, and encourage a vibrant Antwerp student life.”
The programs of both candidates were very close to each other. “That means that we can quickly move forward as a united university,” says Leirs. “We want to prepare the University of Antwerp for the future, where we see challenges such as globalization, sustainability, digitalization and artificial intelligence primarily as opportunities for education, research, social engagement and in our daily operations.”
Antwerp Zoo
Leirs has been chairman of the Board of Directors of the University of Antwerp for the past seven years. Previously he was dean of the Faculty of Science. Leirs heads the Evolutionary Ecology research group, a team that conducts research into rodents (such as mice) that transmit infections.
Leirs’ most public mandate is chairman of the Board of Directors of, among others, the Antwerp Zoo and Planckendael. He is also a director at the Institute of Tropical Medicine and involved in Apopo, the organization that trains African hamster rats to detect land mines. Leirs, together with professors Nathalie Dens, Chris Van Ginneken, Steven Van Passel and Maarten Weyn, went to the voters.
