ABOUT LEUVEN

Leuven, (French: Louvain [luˈvɛ̃], German: Löwen) is the capital of the Flemish Brabant province of Belgium.

The largest and most important university in Belgium, the Catholic University of Leuven, was founded in this city in the 15th century.

In the 18th century, the rapidly developing brewing industry in the city revitalized the economy. The factories and headquarters of Interbrew (recently renamed InBev), one of the world's most important brewers, are located in this city.

The university library was destroyed twice during the world wars in the 20th century. After World War I, the library was rebuilt with German war reparations and US aid. It was destroyed again in World War II and had to be rebuilt.

Given the presence of the KU Leuven, Europe's most innovative university according to Reuters, much of the local economy is concentrated on spin-offs from academic research. In addition, the Leuven-based research center, IMEC, is a research center in the field of nano-electronics and digital technologies. As a result, dozens of companies in high technological fields such as biotech, robotics, additive manufacturing and IT, are located near these research institutes on the Arenberg Science Park and Haasrode Research-Park.