The People
Benno Baksteen
- expert aviation
- expert learning culture
Former Members
Max Drenth
Max Drenth studied Philosophy, Art History and Law. He was awarded a doctorate for a thesis on the problems surrounding academic specialization, and has since focused on administrative and societal developments with regard to ethics and law. He was member of the committee that designed the cultural canon of the Netherlands, as commissioned by the Minister of Education, Culture and Science.
After several appointments at Dutch universities he now works freelance as an essayist and a researcher; and has published essays on safety, globalization, citizenship and standards – and on literature and art.
Under his pen name Maxim Februari he wrote a column in the newspapers Volkskrant and NRC for 23 years. His debut novel, (De zonen van het uitzicht (The Sons of the View), was published in 1989. A recent novel, De literaire kring, has been translated in English (The Book Club, London: Quercus). In 2023 he published the essay Doe zelf normaal (Do Normal Yourself), about the unexpected effects of data-driven governance on democracy and the rule of law. In 2020 he was awarded the P.C. Hooft Prize for his literary oeuvre.