Jacques Vandermeiren is CEO of Port of Antwerp since 2017. He is an active board member of the digital platform NxtPort, Kunsthuis Opera Ballet Vlaanderen and the Belgian coffee brand Vascobelo. He is also cofounder and Chairman of the sustainability platform The Shift.
Annick De Ridder is chair of the board of directors of the Antwerp Port Authority. Furthermore she is vice mayor for the port, urban development and for spatial planning of the city of Antwerp.
In a rapidly changing world, with long-term disruptive evolutions, innovation is a powerful response. The ambition of Port of Antwerp is to be the world’s first port that reconciles economy, people and climate. We believe in innovation as a lever towards a sustainable future.
That is why the focus on innovation with a purpose is embedded in our three strategic priorities. As the gateway to the European continent, our aim is to guarantee sustainable growth so that our port can continue to play its role as a world port and a driving force for the economy of Flanders and Belgium. Sustainability also means a safe and secure port for port users and the environment.
As a world port, we can and must play a pioneering role in transition. We see ourselves as ‘the spark that ignites change’ and use innovation to turn today’s major challenges such as energy transition, digitisation and mobility into opportunities.
Together with committed partners, we invest in projects in the field of sustainable energy, industry and shipping. Projects that will be game changers and will make our port a green port and a port of the future.
We open up the port area as an open innovation platform where ideas can be safely demonstrated in a real industrial environment. Through this platform we can accelerate technological innovation and be a driving force behind inventing and realising solutions for the challenges of tomorrow.
This permanent innovation is also the lever we need for resilience, our third priority. It enables us to continuously improve ourselves.
“Innovation with a purpose. It is key for being future proof. As a port, we walk the talk. We pioneer, we experiment, and we show the direction.“
Jacques Vandermeiren
Welcome to the port of the future.
