In the late 1960s, Raoul Termote, director of the Bekaert Levensschool, went looking for a new way to train young people. After a few detours, he ended up at Outward Bound in the Netherlands. Pleasantly surprised by the positive results, the idea grew to start Outward Bound in Belgium too.
He looked for partnerships and knocked on the door of KU Leuven, which was willing to carry out scientific research into the effect of an Outward Bound program. The research was co-sponsored by BLOSO, which freed up a budget to have 10 OB facilitators trained by Outward Bound Netherlands.
The band of 10 ambitious young trainers started their training in 1974. Three years later their enthusiasm was still just as great and Outward Bound Belgium was officially founded. The organisation soon received government support too, and subsidies were granted by the Ministry of National Education and Culture.
As for many start-up organisations, the pioneering years were not easy, but the satisfaction of working with groups was all the greater. Inspiring (young) people and making them more resolute in facing the challenges ahead of them. Besides the programs for Bekaert, young people and people from difficult social situations also found their way to Outward Bound in those early years: socially vulnerable young people, prisoners, people with addiction problems, community institutions, and so on. We offered them all lasting experiences from which they could draw energy and self-confidence for the future...
And gradually the business world also showed more and more interest in our approach. The demand to make people more resilient for the challenges of tomorrow grew, and Outward Bound grew with it.
But however big we may ever become, deep down we are still that enthusiastic band of old. With a bit more knowledge, more experience, a more beautiful location and better equipment. With the aim of continuing to do it well. Good for you and your team. Good for a wide range of people and groups who can grow by setting out on a journey together (with us). That is Outward Bound.