‘Je bent nooit alleen’ (You Are Never Alone): new Cosmogolem project brings together more than 1,500 children around connection and resilience in Diepenbeek (BE)
More than 1,500 children from Diepenbeek work together throughout the 2026–2027 school year to explore connection, mental resilience and their dreams for a better world. Under the motto Je bent nooit alleen (You Are Never Alone), artist Koen Vanmechelen, Kiwanis Vrijheerlijckheid Diepenbeek, Diepenbeek’s schools, the municipality and Huis van het Kind are launching a new project centred on the Cosmogolem.
Following a successful collaboration in 2018, the partners are bringing the initiative to life once again. Created by Vanmechelen, the Cosmogolem is a wooden giant that symbolises hope, imagination and children’s voices. With Cosmogolems in more than 40 locations worldwide, the artwork provides a starting point for a school year in which children can share their dreams, thoughts and ideas. Together, they will explore how they can support one another and how individual dreams can contribute to a better world.
The project builds on Never Alone, LABIOMISTA’s annual theme for 2026, which explores connection, encounter and care for one another. Through activities at school, lectures and shared initiatives, the project aims to strengthen children’s sense of belonging and mental resilience.
“The Cosmogolem starts from a simple belief: children not only have a voice in the world of tomorrow, they also have something to say today,” says Koen Vanmechelen. “The fact that all the schools in Diepenbeek are coming together around their Cosmogolem is particularly powerful. A better world begins with children’s imagination, but it only takes shape when we take responsibility together. Never Alone.”
The programme includes a series of lectures and shared activities. A central part of the project is the Cosmodroom, which invites every class to submit a dream for a better world: an idea that brings people together, inspires others or makes someone’s life better. Kiwanis has committed to bringing at least one dream from each school to life.
The project will culminate in a children’s festival on 29 June 2027 at Demerstrand in Diepenbeek, where children, schools and partners will celebrate a year of connection, resilience and hope.
Through this initiative, the Cosmogolem once again becomes a place where children are heard and where connection, imagination and a sense of belonging can grow. Dreams gain strength when they are shared, and no one should have to make them come true alone.
