Jacob is the founder and CEO of BOSAQ.
He founded BOSAQ and Water Heroes to provide sustainable water solutions to the world, right after coming back from one of the most extreme places on earth, Antarctica.
As a kid, he already wanted to have a positive impact on the world by inventing new things. The idea to design a concept with innovative technologies and creating systems that could be the solution to global water challenges and reshape people’s lives soon became a reality. Reaching this objective was no easy task and he had to overcome many obstacles.
Starting with high school, Jacob faced difficulties during fourth grade and failed mathematics but that did not stop him from graduating high school a year later than his fellow students. After getting his high school degree, he decided to take an enriching volunteering experience in Costa Rica. According to Jacob, spending a year volunteering in Costa Rica had been one of the most enriching experiences of his life. It made him a more passionate person, eager to help those in need.
After Costa Rica, Jacob returned to his home country, Belgium, and decided to study industrial engineering. The situation at home forced him to take full responsibility, and he started working as a bouncer in the nightlife of Ghent and Bruges to pay for his studies. After successfully graduating, he started working as a researcher at VITO while still working long shifts in the nightlife. During this period, he was able to save money to start another degree in engineering at UGent. He successfully graduated in 2011.
The journey of BOSAQ began with Jacob’s first job after graduating, when he had the opportunity to travel to Antarctica as a water expedition engineer for the first time in November 2011 (summer season). After coming back, he started working for Dow Chemical Company but quickly went back to Antarctica for another season and then would return during the next 3 seasons. During this period, he worked alternatively at the Princess Elisabeth Station, Antarctica, and the chemical industry (Jacobs Engineering, BASF) before he came back to Belgium to start his project, BOSAQ, and Water Heroes.
