Practical
Monday, 18 November, 2024 up to and including Tuesday, 19 November, 2024
- 12:00 until 19:00
Free of charge, but it's best to register in advance for most activities.
Programme
Monday 18 November
- 12:00 - 14:00: Open Lecture on Compassionate Communities (NL)
📍Building P2, Room 0.04, VUB Main Campus
An open lecture exploring the importance of Compassionate Communities and how these initiatives aim to make illness, grief, and loss more discussable. Led by Professor Liesbeth De Donder.
- 12:00 - 15:00: Compassionate Cards
📍Esplanade (in front of Crazy Copy Center), VUB Main Campus
Write a card for someone you miss or want to support. You can also leave a ribbon in our “tree of comfort.” Cards and postage are free of charge.
- 12:00 - 13:30: Creative Workshop with SmallStories
📍Building B, Room B.3.217, Active Learning Studio, VUB Main Campus
Create a unique pop-up card and write your own haiku, guided by Karen Maenhout (SmallStories).
[Register here]
- 12:00 - 13:30: Caregiving Session for Staff (NL)
📍VUB Main Campus
Especially for staff members who balance work with caregiving responsibilities. We share insights and discuss what a ‘compassionate workplace’ could look like.
[Register here]
- 17:00 - 18:30: Voices of Compassion (NL/EN)
📍Pilar
This evening is dedicated to mourning and healing through poems, stories, and music. Poet Paul Stephenson will conclude with a reading from his latest collection Hard Drive. Would you like to share something (music, story, poem) or have someone else read your text? Fill in this form.
[Register here]
- 12:00 - 13:00 (EN) & 15:00 - 16:00 (NL): Caring Together Workshop for Students
📍Online
A workshop where students learn how to support each other. Discover more about mental health, learn to recognise signs of distress, and create a positive, supportive environment.
Tuesday 19 November
- 12:00 - 15:00: Compassionate Cards
📍Esplanade (in front of Crazy Copy Center), VUB Main Campus
Another opportunity to write and send comforting cards.
- 14:00 - 15:30: Webinar on Grief Literacy (EN)
📍Online
Explore what a grief-literate world looks like through original vignettes and their applications. Presented by Susan Cadell, an expert in grief and loss.
[Register here]
- 17:00 - 18:00: Moment of Comfort
📍Monument of Comfort, VUB Main Campus
Each year, VUB students and staff gather around the Monument of Comfort to remember those from the VUB community who have passed away. This reflective moment is accompanied by readings, music, and the laying of flowers.
- 18:00 - 19:00: Compassionate Café (NL/EN)
📍Bar Pilar
An evening of informal conversations on illness, grief, and loss, with a heartwarming concert by Lost&Co. Don’t miss this cosy night of music and connection.
[Register here]
- 12:00 - 13:00: Caring Together Workshop for Students (NL)
📍Study Guidance, Building F, Seminar Room 2, VUB Main Campus
Discover practical tools to better support each other and foster a positive atmosphere on campus. Learn about mental health and self-care.
Closing event
Moment of Comfort on 19 November
Suffering and loss are an inevitable part of life, and our community is not spared from it. Since 2019, VUB has annually commemorated colleagues and students we have had to say goodbye to. This is done through a solemn ceremony during the Moment of Comfort at the Monument of Comfort, a sculpture by artist Philip Aguirre y Otegui. This year's Moment of Comfort will take place on Tuesday, 19 November, at 5 p.m. During this brief and reflective ceremony, we will listen to short speeches, accompanied by music. Flowers will be laid, and we will honour those who have passed by hanging cards with their names on a tree.
This week is an initiative by Compassionate University.