Wim Van Opstal

Wim Van Opstal holds degrees in economics and commercial sciences and brings over 20 years of experience in applied research at the intersection of entrepreneurship, social policy analysis, and sustainable development. As a senior researcher at VITO, he contributes to the advancement of circular business models and their enabling ecosystems. His work spans projects on circular social entrepreneurship, just circular transitions, cooperative models in housing and smart grids, and circular strategies for solar photovoltaics, textiles, and reversible bonding techniques. Wim also supports companies through coaching trajectories, involving business case analysis, backcasting, survey-based research, and value chain mapping. He is an experienced speaker and facilitator, regularly delivering keynote lectures, workshops, bootcamps, and company coaching. In addition to his role at VITO, Wim is affiliated with the Maastricht Sustainability Institute (Maastricht University) and he serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Circular Economy.