MEET
BRUNO DE LILLE
Brussellover, husband, dad, LGBTI+, doer, cyclist, education, comic book lover, femanist, radio, West-Flemish, Greeter, fitness, superhero movies, Coke zero …
BRUNO DE LILLE
I’m a doer …
“I have a great sense of justice and I’m a doer. So when I see things that are not as they should be, I want to roll up my sleeves and get to work. Moreover, I think that you have to tackle the abuses in a structured way. Whether it comes to matters like discrimination, traffic safety, air pollution or young people dropping out of school, you shouldn’t help people in exchange for a little gratitude. You have to improve the system so that people no longer have to beg for things they are actually entitled to.
This is why I became a student representative on the school council at a young age, was active in LGBT youth movements, became involved in Brussels politics (Agalev/Groen), and am now the head of a large group of schools and kindergartens.
I was fortunate to be able to put my expertise, creativity and drive into it every time, which allowed me to do my work with full enthusiasm.
This is my story …
“When I was 18, I came to study in Brussels. I eventually fell in love with the city and made it my home. But it wasn’t blind love – my love for Brussels had to grow. In the beginning everything seems attractive and exciting, and there was so much going on here. Especially for a student who comes from the ever-quiet Wevelgem, it seems as if the city is always in motion, as if there is always something to do, always a party somewhere.
But after a while I also came in contact with the less pleasant aspects of Brussels. I was attacked once, and I was also hit in the face – just like that, for no reason at all. I started to feel unsafe here and when I got the chance to finish my studies in Antwerp, I moved to Antwerp.
“The strange thing was that I quickly became homesick in Antwerp. But I wasn’t pining for West Flanders; I was pining for Brussels. Was it because Brussels is much more of a real city, bigger and more cosmopolitan as well? Or because in the end I had the feeling that I was more welcome there and that I could help build the city? In Brussels, you get the impression that everyone comes from elsewhere, which means that no one can claim the city. It doesn’t belong to anyone, so it belongs to everyone. Whatever be the reason, I returned to Brussels after completing my studies. Maybe it didn’t make much sense at the time, because I was working in Kortrijk and could have just gone back to live in Wevelgem.
But I had found my love. And because it wasn’t a coup de foudre but a conscious choice, I don’t get so discouraged anymore. There are difficult moments in any relationship but if instead of running away you fight together to overcome them, the relationship often becomes even more worthwhile. Well, that is the feeling I have now when I choose Brussels. Will it last? You never know. But I feel very much at home here.
Opinions & Encounters
Opinion pieces, columns or chats with committed citizens … find it all right here.
Het is maar een uurtje …
Het werd het eigenlijk hoog tijd dat de discussie over de werklast en de werkomstandigheden van onze leerkrachten eens gevoerd werd. Het grootste deel van het onderwijzend personeel is daar ook vragende partij voor. Maar ze willen wel dat het een evenwichtige oefening is die rekening houdt met de reële werkdruk, die bekijkt in welke omstandigheden ze werkelijk moeten lesgeven en welke middelen ze daarvoor echt ter beschikking krijgen. De discussie voeren vanuit een besparingslogica of vanuit de houding “ze geven al zo weinig les, een uurtje kan er nog wel bij” toont aan dat de Vlaamse Regering de realiteit van die duizenden hardwerkende leraars niet kent. Of is dat de manier waarop ze jonge mensen warm willen maken om les te geven? Lees meer in dit opiniestuk.
Vlaanderen bespaart en Brussel zal het voelen
De Vlaamse regering kondigt aan dat ze op het totale Brusselbudget 10 procent zal besparen. Dat is meer dan het gemiddelde van de besparingen en dat is volgens mij geen toeval: het wordt meteen duidelijk hoe de Vlaamse Regering over Brussel denkt. Bovendien proberen Bourgeois en zijn ploeg hun beslissingen te verpakken als de enige keuze die ze konden maken. TINA dus, There Is No Alternative. Maar als je kijkt waar er bespaard wordt, dan zie je dat dit met TINA niets te maken heeft. Het gaat over puur ideologische keuzes. We kunnen er dus van uit gaan dat dit de eerste stap is naar het loslaten van Brussel.
De wake-up call van IS (Knack.be)
Filmpjes van IS-strijders met een West-Vlaams of een Antwerps accent, we kijken er al lang niet vreemd meer van op. Als je kijkt waar de buitenlandse IS-strijders vandaan komen, dan spant België namelijk de kroon. Wat is er met onze samenleving aan de hand dat zovele...
Are you already following Bruno on Facebook & Twitter?
On this website you will get to know Bruno and find out all about his vision. Read up on opinion pieces, columns or texts by and about Bruno De Lille.
Want to hear his views in detail? Follow him on Facebook or Twitter. You are just a click away from an interesting conversation…
Biography
Bruno De Lille was born in 1973 in Kortrijk, West Flanders, but after spending time in Brussels as a student, he fell in love with the city and decided to live and work there.
Bruno started his professional life in the late ‘90s as an editor and later as a presenter/producer at Radio 2.
In 1998 he became a member of Agalev (later renamed as Groen). Two years later, thanks to the municipal elections of 8th October 2000, he became Brussels’ Deputy Mayor for Flemish Affairs, Equal Opportunities and International Solidarity.
After the municipal elections at the end of 2006, the Greens ceased to be a part of the Brussels City board. Bruno was re-elected in 2006 and 2012, and served as a municipal councillor until he handed over the torch at the end of March 2013.
Thanks to an intense campaign for the regional elections in June 2009 with Bruno De Lille as the leader of the list, Groen doubled its seats in the Parliament of the Brussels-Capital Region. Groen joined the Brussels government and the VGC-college and Bruno De Lille was nominated by the party as Secretary of State for Mobility, Public Service, Equal Opportunities & Administrative Simplification. As a board member of the Flemish Community Commission (VGC), Bruno De Lille took charge of Culture, Youth, Sports & Civil Service.
In the elections of May 2014, Groen increased its share of votes from 11% to almost 18% on the Dutch-speaking side. Once again, a new seat was added, as a result of which the party now had no less than 3 Members of Parliament in Brussels. However, the government was ultimately formed as a coalition of mainly losing parties, and Groen ended up in the opposition. As leader of the Green Group, Bruno De Lille gave the opposition an intense but constructive voice.
In October 2018, from the last place on the Ecolo-Green list, Bruno was again directly elected in the Brussels municipal council. Ecolo-Groen is now part of the local majority and enters the City Board.
With the elections of May 2019, Bruno De Lille has bid adieu to active politics as a list pusher for the Parliament of the Brussels-Capital Region.
Since 1 September 2020, he has been General Director of the non-profit association Sint Goedele Brussel, which at the time included 11 kindergartens, 17 primary schools, 4 secondary schools and an adult education centre.
This is my story …
“When I was 18, I came to study in Brussels. I eventually fell in love with the city and made it my home. But it wasn’t blind love – my love for Brussels had to grow. In the beginning everything seems attractive and exciting, and there was so much going on here. Especially for a student who comes from the ever-quiet Wevelgem, it seems as if the city is always in motion, as if there is always something to do, always a party somewhere.
But after a while I also came in contact with the less pleasant aspects of Brussels. I was attacked once, and I was also hit in the face – just like that, for no reason at all. I started to feel unsafe here and when I got the chance to finish my studies in Antwerp, I moved to Antwerp.
“The strange thing was that I quickly became homesick in Antwerp. But I wasn’t pining for West Flanders; I was pining for Brussels. Was it because Brussels is much more of a real city, bigger and more cosmopolitan as well? Or because in the end I had the feeling that I was more welcome there and that I could help build the city? In Brussels, you get the impression that everyone comes from elsewhere, which means that no one can claim the city. It doesn’t belong to anyone, so it belongs to everyone. Whatever be the reason, I returned to Brussels after completing my studies. Maybe it didn’t make much sense at the time, because I was working in Kortrijk and could have just gone back to live in Wevelgem.
But I had found my love. And because it wasn’t a coup de foudre but a conscious choice, I don’t get so discouraged anymore. There are difficult moments in any relationship but if instead of running away you fight together to overcome them, the relationship often becomes even more worthwhile. Well, that is the feeling I have now when I choose Brussels. Will it last? You never know. But I feel very much at home here.
A heart for Brussels …
I am the General Director of Sint Goedele Brussels, a non-profit organisation covering 11 kindergartens, 17 primary schools, 4 secondary schools and an adult education centre.
For the first 20 years of my career, I mainly helped shape Brussels as a City Councillor, Member of Parliament, Deputy Mayor and Secretary of State. I took up each of these roles with enthusiasm and energy. And no matter how difficult it was, I was always happy to do it – because in politics you have an impact and can potentially improve the lives of a lot of people.
But after 20 years of serving Brussels, it was time for me to pass the torch. And so I’m devoting my expertise, my creativity and my drive to that wonderful Brussels educational network.
In my spare time I am an active LGBTI+ activist. If you want me as a speaker or panel member, or if you just want to debate about Equal Opportunities / Rights for LGBTI+ persons, I will be happy to start the conversation.
Opinions & Encounters
Opinion pieces, columns or chats with committed citizens … find it all right here.
Geert te Boveldt: “Brussel heeft alle voordelen van een metropool”
Zondag was het de Dag van de Trage Weg. Ook in Brussel vieren we dat! In 2011 kreeg het Brussels Gewest immers een voetgangersplan. Een primeur voor België want tot nu toe was dat nog niet gebeurd. Nochtans gebeuren nu al 37% van de verplaatsingen in ons gewest te...
Steven De Borger: "Brussel geeft zijn schoonheid maar beetje bij beetje prijs"
De Koninklijke Commissie voor Monumenten en Landschappen (KCML) is geregeld het onderwerp van verhitte discussies. Voor de ene is ze noodzakelijk om de ongebreidelde vernielzucht van politiek en projectontwikkelaars een halt toe te roepen, voor de andere is ze een...
Johan Reyniers: "Er is niets mis met culturen die naast elkaar bestaan"
Johan Reyniers houdt van taal in al haar gedaanten. Hij is hoofdredacteur van het theatertijdschrift Etcetera, redacteur van DW B, maakte een fotoroman over het leven rond de Dansaertstraat, schreef een theatertekst, was 10 jaar lang artistiek leider van het...
Dirk De Clippeleir: "We moeten ons focussen op het positieve in Brussel”
Sinds 2011 is Dirk De Clippeleir algemeen directeur van de Ancienne Belgique. Hij begon ooit als promotiemanager bij De Standaard, werkte daarna als topman voor een aantal platenfirma’s (EMI & Universal) en begon uiteindelijk een eigen firma waarmee hij managers...
Biography
Bruno De Lille was born in 1973 in Kortrijk, West Flanders, but after spending time in Brussels as a student, he fell in love with the city and decided to live and work there.
Bruno started his professional life in the late ‘90s as an editor and later as a presenter/producer at Radio 2.
In 1998 he became a member of Agalev (later renamed as Groen). Two years later, thanks to the municipal elections of 8th October 2000, he became Brussels’ Deputy Mayor for Flemish Affairs, Equal Opportunities and International Solidarity.
After the municipal elections at the end of 2006, the Greens ceased to be a part of the Brussels City board. Bruno was re-elected in 2006 and 2012, and served as a municipal councillor until he handed over the torch at the end of March 2013.
Thanks to an intense campaign for the regional elections in June 2009 with Bruno De Lille as the leader of the list, Groen doubled its seats in the Parliament of the Brussels-Capital Region. Groen joined the Brussels government and the VGC-college and Bruno De Lille was nominated by the party as Secretary of State for Mobility, Public Service, Equal Opportunities & Administrative Simplification. As a board member of the Flemish Community Commission (VGC), Bruno De Lille took charge of Culture, Youth, Sports & Civil Service.
In the elections of May 2014, Groen increased its share of votes from 11% to almost 18% on the Dutch-speaking side. Once again, a new seat was added, as a result of which the party now had no less than 3 Members of Parliament in Brussels. However, the government was ultimately formed as a coalition of mainly losing parties, and Groen ended up in the opposition. As leader of the Green Group, Bruno De Lille gave the opposition an intense but constructive voice.
In October 2018, from the last place on the Ecolo-Green list, Bruno was again directly elected in the Brussels municipal council. Ecolo-Groen is now part of the local majority and enters the City Board.
With the elections of May 2019, Bruno De Lille has bid adieu to active politics as a list pusher for the Parliament of the Brussels-Capital Region.
Since 1 September 2020, he has been General Director of the non-profit association Sint Goedele Brussel, which at the time included 11 kindergartens, 17 primary schools, 4 secondary schools and an adult education centre.