A Belgian national, Dirk Fransaer has a vast experience in the world of research and technology organisations, which he will bring to LIST. From April 2001 to May 2023, he was Chief Executive Director of VITO, the Flemish institute for technological research, Belgium's largest research institute in the field of sustainable production and clean technologies.

Before joining VITO, he worked as an assistant professor at Ghent University in the field of hydraulic research, with Baxter, a major US pharmaceutical company, on artificial organs, and for 13 years in the field of aerial and satellite remote sensing.

He is the author or co-author of more than 30 scientific articles published in national and international journals. Dirk Fransaer is Chairman of the Audit Committee of the University of Antwerp and a member of the Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium for Science and the Arts. His extensive professional experience also includes setting up research collaborations with industry, and interactions with decision-makers at the European Commission and connections at the UN-level around issues of sustainability and the Sustainable Development Goals.

Dirk Fransaer holds degrees in civil construction engineering from Ghent University (1980) and biomedical engineering from KU Leuven (1985), and has completed the Vlerick Advanced Management Program at the Vlerick School of Management in Leuven.