GLAM/Newsletter/October 2025/Contents/Belgium report

This Month in GLAM – Volume XV, Issue X, October 2025

Belgium report

From a small language to Wikipedia's Biggest, Share Your Story with the Industry Museum and War Diaries

How did a small language like Dutch become one of Wikipedia’s biggest?

Dutch ranks surprisingly high on the global Wikipedia list — sixth place, with nearly two million articles. In the VRT Radio 1 program Zijn er nog vragen? (“Any more questions?”), Geert Van Pamel, chair of Wikimedia Belgium, explained why.

A small language, a big community

The Dutch-language Wikipedia thrives thanks to an active volunteer base, the fact that Dutch is spoken across several countries (the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname), and a focus on “breadth over depth” — many short articles covering a wide range of topics.

Volunteers with passion

Worldwide, about 260,000 people contribute to Wikipedia purely on a voluntary basis. Some write new articles, others improve or fact-check existing ones. Paid editing is rare and must always be disclosed transparently.

Quality and control

Every edit and article is monitored in real time. Volunteers and automated scripts work together to safeguard accuracy, structure, and reliability. Artificial intelligence increasingly supports this process.

A living network of knowledge

Wikipedia is a collective effort — it belongs to everyone, but never to any one person.

Read the full article or listen to the full interview (in Dutch) here.

Computers Meetup – Share Your Story with the Industry Museum

From punch cards to personal computers, from humming servers to handheld devices — computers have reshaped the world as we know it. But behind every machine lies a human story. Industry Museum in Ghent wants to bring those stories to life.

On Sunday, November 16, 2025, the museum invites everyone with a connection to the rise of computer technology to join a special Computers Meetup — an afternoon of memories, encounters, and shared experiences. Whether you worked in IT, programmed early systems, sold the first PCs, or simply remember your first floppy disk, your story matters.

☕ Meet & Share

Enjoy coffee and cake while chatting with fellow enthusiasts. In the museum’s Chat Lounge, visitors are invited to tell their personal computer story:

What was it like to work with early computers?
Which machines do you remember most fondly?
How did technology change your work or daily life?

🏛️ Discover the Museum

Before the meetup, participants can take part in a guided introductory tour through the museum’s halls — from roaring looms to rattling printing presses — ending with the exhibition On People and Machines.

💡 A Glimpse into the Future

This event offers a sneak preview of the museum’s upcoming temporary exhibition on computers, opening in 2026. The exhibition will explore the history and future of information technology, shining a spotlight on Belgian pioneers and forgotten innovations.

📅 When: Sunday, November 16, 2025, 2–5 PM
📍 Where: Industry Museum, Ghent
💸 Admission: Free
🧾 Register by: November 9 via info@industriemuseum.be , 09 323 65 00, or the online form

Can’t make it in person? You can still contribute! Share your story online through the submission form on the museum’s website.

👉 Read all the details and register here

War Diaries: Forgotten Voices from WWII

🕰️ Between faded pages lie the voices of those who lived through war — stories of fear in air-raid shelters, secret crushes under bombardments, and the small acts of courage that kept hope alive. These personal diaries from the Second World War reveal not just what happened, but how it felt to live through it.

Yet time is running out. Every day, more of these precious testimonies are lost — hidden away in attics, drawers, or boxes, or even discarded without realizing their value. That’s why Archiefpunt is launching War Diaries: a call to everyone in Flanders to look for diaries, letters, or notes from the war years.

"What may seem like just an old notebook today could tomorrow be the key to understanding our past," - Janna Aerts, Archiefpunt

These diaries capture stories that official records can’t — from the shopkeeper facing empty shelves to the young mother shielding her children, or the teenager who met his first German soldier. Each voice adds a deeply human layer to the history we thought we knew.

Archiefpunt, together with several partners, aims to collect, register, and preserve these documents, making them accessible for research, education, and creative projects.

📖 Do you or your family have a diary, letter, or notebook from the war years? Get in touch and help save these forgotten voices. Together, we can ensure that these stories find a lasting place in our shared memory — because preserving the past means protecting the future.

Do you want to read more news from Wikimedia Belgium? Read the full newsletter here

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