The Boekentoren turns red: the heritage world sounds the alarm

From Wednesday 7 to Monday 19 October, the Boekentoren’s heritage lighting will be illuminated in blood red. With this distress signal, the University Library is drawing attention to the consequences of the announced Flemish budget cuts, which are hitting the heritage world hard.

From January 2027, Flemish funding for nationally recognised heritage libraries, including the Boekentoren, will be completely withdrawn. These funds were intended to enable the library to catalogue and digitise its collections, manage vulnerable items to the highest quality standards, and make them accessible to a wider public than just the Ghent University community. These operations are now under pressure.

The heritage world is opposing the cuts under the slogan ‘Leave the lights on’. In the Boekentoren, the lights remain on, but they are now glowing blood-red.

Would you like to support this cause? Share a photo of the red Boekentoren, use the hashtag #LaatHetLichtAan and help us draw attention to our heritage and the people who preserve and share it.