In Belgium, as in the rest of the world, we are faced with major societal challenges: climate change, the economic recovery, industrial renewal, huge demographic developments and so on. All of these are complex, interlinked issues that determine our general well-being. A scientific approach is called for here. How does this work in practice? Johan Op de Beeck talks about it with Caroline Pauwels, rector of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) and Erwin Malcorps, managing director of Sweco Belgium. Two organisations that are already open to the essence of this challenge, namely knowledge sharing and lifelong learning.