The story of

My name is Joep Steijaert and I got the honour of writing a blog for OnbegrensdZeeuwsVlaanderen, which I do with great pleasure, because I am very fond of our beautiful region. My roots are in Graauw. After studying Geography, Planning and Environment in Nijmegen and Amsterdam, I was keen to apply the knowledge I had gained to our own province of Zeeland. That opportunity came to me at Juust, where I work on many beautiful projects concerning space and mobility. Also, I like to think about opportunities and there are plenty of those in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen.

Despite the fact that I am still living in Breda, I have a very strong connection with the region and especially with the people who give light to the region. That's why I can still be found in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen several times a week: for work, for Rootzz Zeeuws-Vlaanderen, as a regional shareholder of Grenspark Groot Saeftinghe or for ZVL Friet.

The last organisation mentioned, ZVL Friet, is interesting to highlight. Whereas on our farm at home we were left with a barn full of potatoes during the pandemic, my two younger brothers did not throw in the towel and set to work peeling and cutting the potatoes into chips. They set up the company ZVL Friet with the mission of putting this wonderful product from Zeeuws-Vlaanderen on the map. The shortest possible chain, from farmer to plate. This way, we are trying to contribute to the region and think about the future. This is also the case in Grenspark Groot Saeftinghe where, together with all the other regional stakeholders, we are tackling cross-border challenges. Resilience is the hallmark of people from Zeeuws-Vlaanderen. 

In my opinion, OnbegrensdZeeuwsVlaanderen is a wonderful initiative, because we must look across borders. I think the border is still too often seen as a barrier or sharp line. A simple exercise: turn the map of the province of Zeeland upside down and immediately a different spatial perspective arises. Suddenly Zeeuws-Vlaanderen is no longer a 'remote corner'. Now the province of Zeeland is right behind us and Zeeuws-Vlaanderen is the gateway to the entire hinterland of the Low Countries. Zeeuws-Vlaanderen brings together the best of both the province of Zeeland and Flanders. I am proud of Zeeuws-Vlaanderen!

#ZVL #Onbegrensdzeeuwsvlaanderen #Ruimte #Rootzz #GIS #Omdenken #Kansen #Veerkracht #Friet