The Centre of the Universe is our place on Earth.

The idea for its creation was born in 2020, during discussions about the need to connect different circles of the Polish community in Belgium and to create a shared space — a unique place where people, ideas and actions could come together.
On 15 February 2021, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, we entered for the first time the empty building of a former forge. Today, it bears no resemblance to what it was on the day of our first visit.

This is how the Centre of the Universe came into being — a building that brings together:

• a volunteer centre

• a library

• a cultural centre

• the organisation’s offices

• an online television studio

• a therapy room

It is precisely this multi-dimensional character that led us to name it the Centre of the Universe.

The space has already hosted prominent figures from social and cultural life, including:
Jerzy Owsiak (with a WOŚP mural designed especially for us), Anna Meller, Mariusz Szczygieł, Piotr Czaban, “Człowiek Lasu” (The Forest Man), Danuta Kuron, Michał Boni and Władysław Frasyniuk.
And this was only the beginning.

In 2022, the Centre of the Universe became the first point of aid for Ukraine in Brussels, welcoming, among others, the Ambassador of the Republic of Poland to Belgium, the Consul General of Ukraine in Belgium, and the Mayor of the Municipality of Etterbeek.
In 2023, the building hosted first aid training for volunteers, organised in cooperation with Pokojowy Patrol, and served as the main volunteer training centre for Polish Day in Brussels 2023.

The most important element of this place, however, remains the volunteers — and it is above all for them that the Centre of the Universe was created.

Today, it is:

• a Polish centre for culture and volunteerism

• a library

• an exhibition space (including the “Solidarity” exhibition of the European Solidarity Centre)

• a volunteer training centre for Polish Day in Brussels (2020–2026)

And this is still not everything.

We invite you to discover the story behind the creation of this unique place and to explore the opportunities to use the spaces and services of the Centre of the Universe.