Biography

David Van Reybrouck (Bruges, 1971) read archaeology and philosophy at the universities of Leuven and Cambridge and holds a doctorate from Leiden. Digging and thinking remain his core activities. Research (through interviews, conversations or in archives) feeds his stories and plays a vital role in the shape they take. Through his books The Plague (2001) and Congo (2010) he established an excellent reputation as a literary non-fiction writer. His book Congo, a history was translated into Norwegian, Swedish, French, German, Danish and Finnish. An English translation is expected to appear in 2014.

Furthermore Van Reybrouck is an acclaimed playwright. Both his monologues  (Mission, The Soul of the Ant) were published together in French, Mission suivi de l’Âme des termites (Actes Sud).

He is the founder of the Brussels Poetry Collective (2007), a plurilingual, multicultural initiative that brings together Brussels-based poets from different ages, styles and backgrounds.

In 2011 Van Reybrouck launched the G1000, a citizens summit and organisation that by now functions as a Platform for democratic innovation in Belgium. In the same year he became president of PEN Vlaanderen.