OffshoreWind4Kids is a Belgian non-profit that has been aiming to gets children and young people excited about offshore wind power since 2021. It’s never too early to learn, after all! But why is it so important to teach children more about renewable energy? Which workshops can you take at OffshoreWind4Kids? And what’s the deal with their world-famous Floating Wind Challenge? We spoke to founder William Beuckelaers to get the answers.

Hi William, OffshoreWind4Kids has been around for five years now. Why exactly did you set up this non-profit?

William: “OffshoreWind4Kids has three objectives. First of all, we want to get children excited about STEM subjects and renewable energy from as young an age as possible. We need lots of engineers, especially when you consider how fast the market for offshore wind power is growing. As we’re currently faced with a major shortage of female engineers, we also want to get as many girls on board as boys. In fact, that’s exactly why we decided on a girl wearing an engineer’s helmet for our logo. You need to inspire children as early as possible.

Secondly, we want to keep driving innovation in the offshore wind sector through OffshoreWind4Kids. Working toward new developments together with the industry: that’s our ambition. Finally, we are working to inform audiences and build broad awareness of offshore wind energy. So far, we’ve been active in over 20 countries.”

That’s impressive! How did you manage to do that?

William: “With support from the industry. Over the years, we’ve been able to build strong partnerships with pretty much every country that has already built offshore wind turbines or has plans to do so. On top of that, we can count on the support of over 200 volunteers, spread all over the world. That network of local helpers allows us to explain things to Danish children, say, in their mother tongue. Our Advisory Committee has also proven to be an essential cornerstone for our growth.”

“Getting children excited about technology and renewable energy from the youngest possible age matters if we want to have enough engineers in the future. Not just male engineers, but female engineers too.” – William Beuckelaers, OffshoreWind4Kids founder

What types of workshops do you offer?

William: “We offer a range of workshops. During our public demo days, families get the chance to build their own wind turbine and install it on the seabed in 45 minutes. On top of that, we offer a range of interactive formats that we take to trade fairs. For schools, we offer indoor and outdoor workshops, depending on the weather. Businesses can turn to us for professional team-building exercises. And finally, we organise our annual Floating Wind Challenge for students.”

Can you tell us a bit more about that Floating Wind Challenge? What’s the objective of that competition?

William: “Sure! The Floating Wind Challenge is the biggest international student competition in offshore wind. Around twenty teams from all over the world take part every year. Their task is to build a floating wind turbine, focusing specifically on the foundations and installation method. They then get to present the end result to a jury consisting of representatives from the big offshore wind companies. It always gets pretty exciting towards the end! Last year, a team from KU Leuven claimed one of the main prizes.”

Which OffshoreWind4Kids achievement are you most proud of?

William: “After my master’s degree in civil engineering at KU Leuven, I obtained a PhD from Oxford University on offshore foundations. Given that academic background, the one thing I’m particularly proud of is our Floating Wind Challenge. It is the biggest offshore student competition in the world, and has now taken on more or less the same proportions as the World Solar Challenge for solar power. It’s our pride and joy, and I’m really looking forward to the fifth edition in 2026!”

“The Floating Wind Challenge is the biggest international student competition in offshore wind and has now taken on more or less the same proportions as the World Solar Challenge. It’s our true pride and joy.” – William Beuckelaers, OffshoreWind4Kids founder

Congratulations! How do you envisage the future? What are your ambitions for OffshoreWind4Kids?

William: “When we launched our project in 2021, there was a genuine sense of optimism in the market. In 2025, lots of these ambitions were scaled back, making for a more challenging year. But today, we’re starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel once again. In England, for example, 8.4 GW of new wind projects have recently been auctioned off. As such, I hope that we can keep building on what we have at OffshoreWind4Kids over the coming years and strengthen our ties with the industry. Becoming the go-to reference for offshore development projects for children: that’s my dream.”

Thanks for this fascinating interview, William. We wish you all the best with OffshoreWind4Kids!

Did you know that you can buy all kinds of interesting stuff from the OffshoreWind4Kids website? From scale models and flat-pack sets to a card game about offshore wind farms: there’s plenty of choice for both individuals and businesses. Be sure to take a look!

Explore the OffshoreWind4Kids online store >>

Photos: (c) OffshoreWind4Kids