Inflight Magazine of Brussels Airlines

In person

Interview Chloë Greenbank

Ignace Schops

Ignace Schops is rapidly rising to the forefront of Belgium’s green scene. The 44-year-old environmentalist led the effort to establish Belgium’s first National Park, creating a new model for land conservation in the EU and beyond. Earlier this year Schops, who is also the Director of Regionaal Landschap kempen en Maasland vzw (RLKM), was awarded the prestigious Goldman Environmental prize in recognition of his work

01 Where do you live and why?

I live with my wife and 17-year-old daughter in a town called HeusdenZolder in Limburg, a Belgian province in the East of Flanders on the Dutch border. It’s where I was born and raised.

02 What inspired you to create a National Park?

I have always been interested in nature conservation and biodiversity. Even as a teenager I was particularly interested in herpetology – the study of amphibians and reptiles. I really wanted to get more people connected to nature by making it exciting for them, and the concept of a National Park (which was actually the brainchild of myself and a group of friends after several Belgian beers), seemed a good way of doing that.

03 Why did you decide to open the park in Limburg?

Limburg is Belgium’s greenest province in terms of landscape and the 6,000 hectares of land that is now the National Park was formerly owned by the Flemish government and was being used as a nature reserve, but no-one was really doing anything with it. So we created a campaign and started to lobby regional and EU governments and in March 2006 Hoge Kempen was officially classified as a National Park.

04 Can you sum up in one sentence what the response to the park has been?

It’s very much been one of ‘nimby to pimby’ – which means from ‘not in my backyard to please in my backyard’ – basically we have made the area attractive and appealing to a huge number of visitors. In 2007 we had 700,000 visitors and we honestly weren’t expecting that many people to come. We’ve had a great reception and the park’s future looks blooming.

05 In a nutshell what is the Goldman Environmental Prize?

The prize is all about honouring grassroots environmentalists. As well as being awarded a statuette, I received a prize of $150,000 (€102,000), which I donated to other biodiversity projects.

06 Where do you go from here?

My mantra for my working life is ‘think globally, act locally and change personally’ and my work at Hoge Kempen is by no means finished. But I am also collaborating with other projects like the Brecon Beacons National Park in Wales, as well as schemes in the Netherlands and in Latvia and Lithuania.

07 Where else in Belgium would you recommend visitors go to get away from it all?

Honestly I think the province of Limburg is really unexplored – it’s only an hour from Brussels and it has something for everyone, whether you want nature or culture. But there’s also the Ardennes region, which boasts a really beautiful landscape and plenty to see and do even if you don’t like being outdoors.

08 Which is your favourite Belgian city and why?

Brussels definitely. It has its fair share of green spaces and it’s a really multicultural city. But the real reason I am so fond of it is because I used to spend lots of weekends there when I was younger, drinking beer and generally having a good time.

09 Where do you like to go when you are in Brussels?

I love the Musical Instruments Museum (2 rue Montagne de la Cour). It’s a beautiful building and the exhibits inside are well worth seeing, too. Plus at the top there’s a great little restaurant where you can enjoy good food and a beer or two with panoramic views of the city. There’s also A la Mort Subite (7 rue Montagne-aux-Herbes-Potagères) one of the oldest café/bar’s in Brussels. It’s totally unpretentious and atmospheric inside with original 19th-century fittings and a great selection of Belgian beers.

10 Where else in Europe would you recommend visitors go to appreciate the outdoors?

The Baltic states. I was in Riga recently, which is a beautiful city. Latvia is one of my favourite places to visit; the connection with nature is so authentic; it’s on their doorstep so it’s easy to make the most of the outdoors.

11 What are your tips for making the most of the outdoors during winter?

So many people visiting Belgium and wanting to explore beyond Brussels head for cities like Ghent and Bruges. Both are lovely but, seriously, Limburg is the hot new destination. Everyone after something a little bit different should come here.

12 Who would be at the top of your guest list if you were to have a garden party?

It would have to be Al Gore. But in fact I am going to meet him next year, at the 20th anniversary celebrations for the Goldman Prize, which I am really looking forward to. I know exactly what I want to ask him – but you’ll have to wait and see…

13 What is your motto for life?

There’s a Belgian song that says ‘I want to lay a stone in the river, because a river never flows the same way’. So that’s what I want to do – I want to make a difference for biodiversity and conservation.

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