International Polar Foundation
Sustained support for the International Polar Foundation
Since 2007, the InBev-Baillet Latour Fund has sponsored with great enthusiasm scientific research in the polar environment, where Belgium today plays a pioneering role with the inauguration in November 2008 of the Princess Elisabeth station in the Antarctic, at the initiative of the International Polar Foundation. This support is reflected both in the purchase of spearhead equipment and in scholarships in the field and in the communication of the work to the public. Founded by Alain Hubert, explorer and civil engineer, and professors emeriti André Berger, climatologist at the UCL, and Hugo Decleir, glaciologist at the VUB, the International Polar Foundation (IPF) is a private foundation of public utility, set up under Royal Statute. It aims to inform the wider public on the importance of polar research conducted in the Polar Regions and, in particular, its contribution to the understanding of climate change. To this end, it organises information, education and demonstration campaigns to address the issues posed by climate change and to provide answers in a context of sustainable development. The design and construction of the first "zero emission" research station in the Antarctic is one of its demonstrations. An example for the whole world! The InBev-Baillet Latour Fund supports the mission of the International Polar Foundation in various ways. First of all, it has financed the purchase of equipment used for laboratory operations in the field in the vicinity of the Station. An amount of € 500,000 has been allocated to this vital project. The support also includes the funding of the production of a general-interest film (26 minutes) accessible to the general public, retracing the story of the building of the station, the purpose being to draw on some of its elements to describe its special features, and its challenges. Another grant of € 150,000 was allocated to this particular project. In addition, the Fund has recently signed an agreement aimed to support and promote scientific research in the Antarctic. In this context, the Fund has created the Antarctic InBev-Baillet Latour Fellowship Award, a scholarship worth € 150,000, which is awarded annually.
Contact
International Polar Foundation Rue des Deux Gares 120a, 1070 Bruxelles Tel. 02 543 06 98 www.polarfoundation.org Links Read more about the "Antarctic InBev-Baillet Latour Fellowship Award"
"The International Polar Foundation operates at the interface between science and society. Within the framework of its missions, the support from the InBev-Baillet Latour Fund allows the IPF to provide polar scientists with certain means of study and research in the field of climate knowledge by granting scholarships or specific equipment. This support also helps the IPF to disseminate the acquired knowledge to the general public through different communication media and a future network of climate change observatories. By encouraging scientific and educational activities, the Fund subscribes to the objectives of the Lisbon Strategy
and thus contributes to a more sustainable development of our societies. * Born in 1953 and a civil engineer by training, Alain Hubert is well known for his exceptional sporting achievements in extreme conditions (expeditions to the North Pole, in the Antarctic and in the Himalayas). Co-founder and President of the International Polar Foundation, he initiated the construction of the Princess Elisabeth Station in the Antarctic, sponsored by the Federal Belgian Government.
