STEM Neteland and Aurubis join forces to prepare the STEM heroes of the future

STEM Neteland, multi-metal producer Aurubis (with sites in Beerse and Olen), Johnson & Johnson, Nike, Klimaatlink (University of Antwerp) Thomas More and WiWeTer are joining forces to get secondary school students excited about STEM. Through collaboration between education, government, and industry, they are inspiring the STEM heroes of the future and preparing them for the business world. The project was presented this afternoon at the Aurubis Olen production site.

"For five years now, STEM Neteland has been connecting schools, companies, leisure partners, and local governments with one goal: to get young people excited about STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). We do this in a particularly powerful way and are seen as an example in the Flemish STEM landscape," says Lieven Janssens, chairman of STEM Neteland. Through all kinds of workshops, events, and collaborations, STEM Neteland brings science and technology to life.

What started a few years ago as a project with 12 workshops for primary school pupils has now grown into an additional project with workshops for young people in secondary education. "By combining the knowledge and experience of the business community with the curiosity of young people, we want to go a step further and take those enthusiastic primary school pupils into secondary school, in order to make a lasting impact on their study choices and future prospects," concludes Janssens.

Multimetal producer Aurubis is closely involved in the STEM Neteland story as a permanent strategic partner. "This project is part of our social engagement strategy 'together we care'. At Aurubis, we believe in the power of collaboration to get young people excited about technology and sustainability. Our colleagues developed two workshops on the circular economy, in which we share our many years of expertise in recycling and metals. In this way, we give young people in secondary school the best possible opportunity to discover their talents and experience what a future in the non-ferrous industry has to offer in terms of jobs and development opportunities," says Ingrid Waghemans, HR & Communications Director at Aurubis Beerse and Aurubis Olen.

When rolling out the STEM packages in primary education, STEM Neteland achieved a spectacular reach of 71% of all theoretically eligible young people. In the current project—for which STEM Neteland receives support from the Flemish government (Flemish Agency for Innovation and Entrepreneurship—VLAIO)—nine packages are being developed in co-creation by knowledge institutions (including the teacher training program at Thomas More University College in Vorselaar) and companies from the region, including Aurubis. These workshops for third grade secondary school students are proving popular, with a unique approach tailored to the target group. What's more, the project is also proving to be a real lever for the future, as three additional workshops will soon be developed for secondary schools (in collaboration with MTECH+ and VIVES University).

Finally, STEM Neteland is working with Aurubis and 12 other companies to build V-BOT: a brand-new platform that will bring together interests, talents, study choices, and suitable professions for secondary school students. One thing is certain: the future looks promising with STEM!

Two Aurubis sites in the Kempen region

Aurubis has two sites in the Kempen region: in Beerse and in Olen. The sites belong to the Aurubis Group, a leading global supplier of non-ferrous metals and one of the largest copper recycling companies in the world.

As a high-performance metal recycling plant in the Aurubis smelting network, Aurubis Olen processes blister, copper, and multi-metal recycling materials. The company has over 700 employees and uses electro-refining to produce copper cathodes, copper wire (Rod), oxygen-free copper wire (Foxrod), and busbars and profiles (Bars & Profiles). The Beerse site also operates an electrowinning department and processes complex recycling materials, ranging from the most complex residues to high-quality scrap types. From these, the company produces metals, metal products, and minerals. Aurubis Beerse employs over 500 people.

About Neteland 

Neteland is a powerful partnership between the five municipalities of Grobbendonk, Herentals, Herenthout, Olen, and Vorselaar. What began as a shared police zone has now grown into an intensive collaboration on no fewer than 44 different themes. These themes are divided into five major areas: leisure, integrated security, welfare & care, space & environment, and strategy & organization.

Neteland is not limited to the administrative sphere. The partnership actively promotes cooperation with various local and regional players. For example, there is a close relationship with VOKA/Unizo, a school platform in which all school boards are represented, a zonal mobility council, and an innovative STEM partnership. Through this broad collaboration, Neteland succeeds in bringing together local forces and working together to build a future-oriented region where innovation, safety, well-being, and education go hand in hand.