English proficiency makes Flanders more future proof.
This article was published in Dutch in De Standaard on the 21st of November 2025.
Authors: Devang Mehta, Morgane Jourdain, Gianluca Matteoli, Steven Verhelst, Dante Mantini, Valeria Pulignano, Giuseppe Granata, Cassandre Balosso-Bardin, Giovanni Lugaresi, Hervé Vanderschuren
The DS Onderzoekt series “Hoe futureproof is ons Nederlands” incorrectly argues that the growing use of English in Flemish academia threatens both the accessibility of research to the public and the hard-won position of Dutch in higher education. As representatives of international professors at KU Leuven, we would like to contribute a more informed perspective to this discussion and argue for a more pragmatic consideration of language in Flemish higher education.
Science significantly advances only when researchers can communicate and collaborate across borders. That is why the scientific lingua franca has always followed geopolitical power: Arabic from Spain to Central Asia under the Abbasids, Latin in Europe for centuries, German for physics and chemistry in the 19th century, and English after the rise of American dominance post-World War II. English is currently the world’s most spoken language, with 1.8 billion speakers in over 88 countries, making it the ideal choice for international collaboration, including in the sciences. This is also why most Flemish scientific research is published in English, including most PhD theses.
Using English in scholarly publications does not make Flemish science inaccessible to the public in any way. Academic articles and PhD theses are, by definition, specialized and opaque to non-experts, regardless of the language. What matters is translation and outreach, and Flanders excels there. Magazines such as Eos Wetenschap, initiatives like Dag van de Wetenschap and Kinderuniversiteit and festivals like Nerdland all communicate science to the public in Dutch. It is also important to stress that teaching is mostly carried out in Dutch, protecting students’ right to be educated in their own language.
It is crucial to highlight that the status of English as the scientific lingua franca is currently an advantage for Flanders. The Flemish are among the most proficient speakers of English in Europe, and Flanders thrives scientifically precisely because it participates fully in this international system. This linguistic strength also makes Flanders an attractive destination for international PhD students, scientists and professors, who now account for 17% of KU Leuven’s professoriate.
Their presence enriches students’ learning environment, by exposing them to new ideas and teaching styles, and strengthens their international profile. Rather than “anglicisation”, the real threat to Flemish scientific excellence comes from the strict and inflexible language rules and mandates imposed by our government on professors and the frequent rejection of proposed Master programs taught in English, which are often demanded by Flemish students themselves.
Moreover, openness to international talent not only strengthens research, it also drives economic growth. A broader pool of scientists fuels innovation, supports local industries, and helps create successful spin-offs. One only needs to think about the Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie (VIB), home to over 1,900 scientists with 78 nationalities, as well as IMEC with 6,000+ scientists and engineers from 100+ countries. Both international institutes use English as their operational language and deliver exceptional returns of €1 billion and €6.98 billion in Gross Value Added (GVA) respectively to the Flemish economy.
In a world defined by rapid technological change and geopolitical uncertainty, Flanders will not compete on the world stage by erecting mental or geographical borders, but by doubling down on knowledge that improves our quality of life, shrinks our environmental footprint, and expands our technical and scientific capabilities. Embracing English as a working lingua franca in research does not erase European, Belgian, or Flemish roots; it amplifies our reach, opening doors for collaboration, investment, and talent while ensuring that ideas born in Flanders travel, scale, and return value home. The alternative, clinging to insularity, would consign us to the margins of the global conversation and diminish the very future we want for our students, our economy, and our society.
The authors are professors at KU Leuven with expertise in sociology, linguistics, biomedicine, engineering, AI, and bioengineering. They are Steering Committee members of the OneWorldZAP Association, comprised of more than 200 professors at KU Leuven