David Van Reybrouck
Belgium

Biography 

David Van Reybrouck is an author, historian and archaeologist. As one of Belgium’s and Europe’s leading intellectuals, he is committed to promoting democratic resilience and a comprehensive understanding of history. Van Reybrouck studied philosophy and archaeology at the KU Leuven and at Cambridge and completed his doctorate at the University of Leiden. 

In 2010, he published his multi-award-winning book Congo: The Epic History of a People. For Revolusi: Indonesia and the Birth of the Modern World (2022), Van Reybrouck was awarded the Geschwister Scholl Prize in 2023, among other honours. Using archival material, many interviews with contemporary witnesses and personal observations, he conveys knowledge about local histories and perspectives that otherwise receive little attention in Europe, exposing the violent history of European colonialism, which is still largely repressed.  

In 2011, Van Reybrouck founded the G1000 initiative, a platform for democratic innovation, civic engagement and participation. His work Against Elections: The Case for Democracy (2016), in which he outlines how deliberative democracy can be further developed, attracted worldwide attention. His proposal to convene citizens’ assemblies chosen by lot met with great interest and triggered a wave of citizens’ assemblies in several European countries. In Germany, the concept of citizens’ assemblies was first tested at the federal level in 2024 with the Bürgerrat Ernährung (Citizens’ Assembly on Nutrition). Van Reybrouck was involved in shaping the world’s first permanent citizens’ assemblies in the German-speaking community of Belgium, in Paris and in Brussels.  

David Van Reybrouck was a DAAD scholarship holder in Berlin from 2016 to 2017. He is Honorary President of PEN Vlaanderen and, in this role, is particularly committed to supporting authors who are persecuted in their home countries. In 2025, Van Reybrouck was named Philosopher Laureate of the Netherlands and Flanders (Denker der Nederlanden). This honorary title is awarded every two years to individuals who enrich social debate in the Netherlands and Flanders through essays, opinion pieces, lectures or interviews.  

Justification of the award 

David Van Reybrouck advocates for the renewal of democratic processes with his controversial pleas for alternative electoral procedures and the establishment of citizens’ assemblies. His extensively researched books on South Africa, the Congo and Indonesia reveal perspectives that are often ignored by Western-dominated historiography. The interdisciplinary approach of his books and their focus on marginalised voices combine a clear literary style with an emotional approach. For this reason, they are among the most significant contributions to contemporary political discourse.