society
The Top 7 Society Stories of the Year
Join us in bidding goodbye to 2022 with seven of the finest stories we published this year about Dutch and Flemish society that are worth re-reading or listening to again.
Humour in Flanders and the Netherlands
© Bert Kruismans / Jaap Reedijk
Is there such a thing as typical Dutch or Flemish humour? Does a Flemish audience react differently than a Dutch audience? And are there subjects that can be best avoided? We asked these questions to Katinka Polderman and Bert Kruismans. She is a Dutch cabaret artist; he is a Flemish stand-up comedian who is also successful in French-speaking Belgium.
Football Can Save the World (A Little Bit)
© Younited
Football is unquestionably big business, but many clubs and organisations also use their popularity to engage in community service projects. Many in the Low Countries might argue that this is just window dressing, but the truth is that it’s quite a bit more than that.
Ypres Marches On
© Visit Ieper / photo by Jan D'Hondt
On his Tour of Flanders, British journalist Derek Blyth pays a visit to the city of Ypres. He discovers a museum dedicated to the horror of war, a beer brewed in an underground fortification and a nightly ceremony that might go on for ever.
Striving for a World Without Bars
© Wikimedia Commons
All over the world, increasing numbers of people are spending increasingly long periods in prison. But excessive use of prison as a punishment does not lead to a better society, argues writer and professor Peter Vermeersch, but merely to an excessively large prison industry. How can it be changed?
Between Muck Heap and Tractor
Ⓒ KRO NCRV
The image of farmers and the countryside has been teetering between positive and negative for decades – some consider them authentic, while others find them to be conservative. What’s the reason behind this constant swinging of opinion? And how much wiggle room do farmers have today?
Cubes and Pyramids
In this podcast, we get out the drawing board, put on a hard hat and clamber up a scaffold of creative construction, so that we may cast our view on a few of the most striking, unique or just plain weird buildings that can be found in Belgium and the Netherlands.
Sinners and Saints
In this episode of The Low Countries Radio, we take a closer look at the growth and development of religion in Flanders and the Netherlands. From pagan tribalism and the whirlwind of the Reformation to the institution of a Calvinist doctrine in the North and a continued Catholic tradition in the South.
Remember these series?
Tour of Flanders
You may know the beautiful art cities Bruges, Antwerp, Ghent and Brussels. But Flanders also has many other places that are well worth a visit. In this series, British journalist Derek Blyth crosses through the provinces and discovers the communities, traditions and sights of smaller towns.
Battle for Laughter
There is much more to jokes and witticisms than just getting a laugh. How does humour relate to power? Can activists laugh at themselves? Is there a difference between humour in Belgium and the Netherlands? Why do we joke so much about current affairs? And when is a pun successful?
Great Goals
Following the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar, we presented you with surprising stories about football in the Low Countries.
© OST Collective
Brussels Lab
In this series, we explore the capital of Belgium and Europe as a breeding ground for new artistic, political and societal developments.
The L-Spot
You think you know Flanders and the Netherlands. But take it from us, you haven’t seen anything yet. British journalist Derek Blyth takes you on adventures to L-Spots, hidden and exciting places in the Low Countries.
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