Laurens Jan Brinkhorst (born 18 March 1937) is a retired Dutch politician and diplomat of the

Democrats 66 Democrats 66 (; abbreviated D66, ) is a social liberal political party in the Netherlands, which positions itself in the centre of the political spectrum. It is a member of the Liberal International (LI) and the Alliance of Liberals and Demo ...

(D66) party and jurist.

Early life and education

Laurens-Jan Brinkhorst was born in the city of

Zwolle Zwolle () is a city and municipality in the Northeastern Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of Overijssel and the province's second-largest municipality after Enschede with a population of 130,592 as of 1 December 2021. Zwolle is on ...

. His parents were Marius Jacobus Brinkhorst (1902 - 1943) and Françoise Laurence Wilhelmina Holboom (1901 - 1981). After getting his high school diploma (''gymnasium-B-diploma'' in Dutch) he studied law at the

University of Leiden Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; nl, Universiteit Leiden) is a public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. The university was founded as a Protestant university in 1575 by William, Prince of Orange, as a reward to the city of Le ...

(''Rijksuniversiteit Leiden'' in Dutch), where he obtained his

LL.M. A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mos ...

degree in 1959. He also received an M.A. degree in Public Law and Government from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Afterwards he worked at

Shearman & Sterling Shearman & Sterling LLP is a multinational law firm headquartered in New York City, United States. The firm's lawyers come from some 80 countries, speak more than 60 languages and practice US, English, EU, French, Spanish, German, Hong Kong, OH ...

. Brinkhorst attended the Christian Gymnasium Sorghvliet in

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital o ...

from June 1945 until June 1954 and applied at the

Leiden University Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; nl, Universiteit Leiden) is a public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. The university was founded as a Protestant university in 1575 by William, Prince of Orange, as a reward to the city o ...

in June 1954, majoring in Law. He obtained a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Ch ...

degree in June 1956 before graduating with an

Master of Laws A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mo ...

degree in July 1959. Brinkhorst applied at the

in August 1959 for a

postgraduate education Postgraduate or graduate education refers to academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor's) degree. The organization and st ...

Political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and ...

and obtained an Bachelor of Social Science degree before graduating with an

Master of Social Science A Master of Social Science (MSocSc, MSSc or MSS) is a master's degree which has a number of different meanings dependent upon the education system in question. Europe In Finland and Sweden, where the university degree nomenclatura is simply bas ...

in September 1961. Brinkhorst worked as a

paralegal A paralegal, also known as a legal assistant, or paralegal specialist is a professional who performs tasks that require knowledge of legal concepts but not the full expertise of a lawyer with a license to practice law. The market for paralegals i ...

from September 1961 until December 1962. Brinkhorst worked as a researcher at the Leiden University from December 1962 until January 1967 and as an associate professor of

International law International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...

at the Leiden University from April 1965 until January 1967 and as a professor of International law,

International relations International relations (IR), sometimes referred to as international studies and international affairs, is the scientific study of interactions between sovereign states. In a broader sense, it concerns all activities between states—such ...

and

European law European Union law is a system of rules operating within the member states of the European Union (EU). Since the founding of the European Coal and Steel Community following World War II, the EU has developed the aim to "promote peace, its valu ...

at the

University of Groningen The University of Groningen (abbreviated as UG; nl, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, abbreviated as RUG) is a public research university of more than 30,000 students in the city of Groningen in the Netherlands. Founded in 1614, the university is th ...

from January 1967 until 11 May 1973.

Career in politics and academia

Brinkhorst served on the Provincial-Council of

Groningen Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen (province), Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of t ...

from July 1970 until August 1971. After the election of 1972 Brinkhorst was appointed as State Secretary for Foreign Affairs in the Cabinet Den Uyl, taking office on 19 December 1977. The Cabinet Den Uyl fell on 22 March 1977 after four years of tensions in the coalition and continued to serve in a demissionary capacity. Brinkhorst was elected as a Member of the House of Representatives after the election of 1977, taking office on 8 June 1977 but he was still serving in the cabinet and because of dualism customs in the constitutional convention of Dutch politics he couldn't serve a

dual mandate A dual mandate is the practice in which elected officials serve in more than one elected or other public position simultaneously. This practice is sometimes known as double jobbing in Britain and ''cumul des mandats'' in France; not to be confused ...

he subsequently resigned as State Secretary on 8 September 1977. In 1977 he was again a member of the Second Chamber of the Dutch parliament for D66 and in 1981 became the leader of his party in parliament. From 1983-1987 he was Ambassador of the European Community in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

. After the election of 1981 the Leader of the Democrats 66 and

Parliamentary leader A parliamentary leader is a political title or a descriptive term used in various countries to designate the person leading a parliamentary group or caucus in a legislative body, whether it be a national or sub-national legislature. They are their ...

of the Democrats 66 in the House of Representatives Jan Terlouw was appointed as

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...

and Minister of Economic Affairs in the Cabinet Van Agt II and Brinkhorst was selected as his successor as Parliamentary leader in the House of Representatives on 11 September 1981. After the Leader of the Democrats 66 Terlouw announced that he was stepping down as Leader following a big loss in the election of 1982 the Democrats 66 leadership appointed Brinkhorst as his successor on 8 September 1982. In October 1982 Brinkhorst was nominated as Ambassador of the European Union to Japan, he resigned as Leader and as Parliamentary leader and as a Member of the House of Representatives on 11 November 1982 and was installed as Ambassador, taking office on 1 December 1982. In December 1986 Brinkhorst was nominated as Director-General of the Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety of the

European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...

, he resigned as Ambassador the same day he was installed as Director-General, serving from 1 January 1987 until his resignation 19 July 1994. Brinkhorst was elected as a

Member of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...

after the European Parliamentary election of 1994, taking office on 19 July 1994. Brinkhorst was appointed as Minister of Agriculture, Nature and Fisheries in the Cabinet Kok II following the resignation of

Haijo Apotheker Harm Haijo Apotheker (born 5 June 1950, Loppersum) is a Dutch politician for the Democraten 66 party. He was mayor of several Dutch townships, including Leeuwarden. From 1998 to 1999 Apotheker was Minister of Agriculture in the Second Kok cabi ...

, taking office on 9 June 1999. In February 2002 Brinkhorst announced that he wouldn't stand for the election of 2002. The Cabinet Kok II resigned on 16 April 2002 following the conclusions of the NIOD report into the

Srebrenica massacre The Srebrenica massacre ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Masakr u Srebrenici, Масакр у Сребреници), also known as the Srebrenica genocide ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Genocid u Srebrenici, Геноцид у Сребрен ...

during the

Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( sh, Rat u Bosni i Hercegovini / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. The war is commonly seen as having started ...

and continued to serve in a demissionary capacity. The Cabinet Kok II was replaced by the Cabinet Balkenende I following the cabinet formation of 2002 on 22 July 2002. Brinkhorst semi-retired from active politics and became active in the

private sector The private sector is the part of the economy, sometimes referred to as the citizen sector, which is owned by private groups, usually as a means of establishment for profit or non profit, rather than being owned by the government. Employment The ...

and

public sector The public sector, also called the state sector, is the part of the economy composed of both public services and public enterprises. Public sectors include the public goods and governmental services such as the military, law enforcement, inf ...

and worked as a senior legal advisor at '' NautaDutilh'' in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

from August 2002 until May 2003 and served as a distinguished professor of Governmental Studies and International relations at the

Tilburg University Tilburg University is a public research university specializing in the social and behavioral sciences, economics, law, business sciences, theology and humanities, located in Tilburg in the southern part of the Netherlands. Tilburg University h ...

from 1 December 2002 until 27 May 2003. In 1987 he became a correspondent of the

Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences ( nl, Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen, abbreviated: KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed ...

. Between 1987 and 1994 Brinkhorst continued his service at the European Commission as Director-General for Environmental Affairs and Nuclear Safety. In 1994 Brinkhorst became a member of the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the Legislature, legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven Institutions of the European Union, institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and in ...

, serving there until 1999. Brinkhorst was also a member of the ''Provinciale Staten'' (the provincial parliament) of the province of

for D66, a member of the board of advice of the World Resources Institute in

Washington DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, a member of the board of governors of the ''Nederlands Economisch Instituut'' (Dutch Economical Institute), a professor by special appointment of international environmental law at the University of Leiden, a member of the Board of Directors of the Salzburg Seminar, a member of the Board of Directors of the International Institute of Sustainable Development, and a professor (on a temporary basis) of international

environmental law Environmental law is a collective term encompassing aspects of the law that provide protection to the environment. A related but distinct set of regulatory regimes, now strongly influenced by environmental Legal doctrine, legal principles, focu ...

at the University of

Lausanne , neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR ...

. On 8 June 1999 he became the minister of agriculture, environmental control and fishery in the cabinet Kok-II. Afterwards (2002) he became an Adviser of European Affairs at NautaDulith in

and was awarded a professorship in transnational and European Governance at the University of

Tilburg Tilburg () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, in the southern province of North Brabant. With a population of 222,601 (1 July 2021), it is the second-largest city or municipality in North Brabant after Eindhoven and the seventh-larg ...

. After the election of 2003 Brinkhorst was appointed as Minister of Economic Affairs in the Cabinet Balkenende II, taking office on 27 May 2003. Brinkhorst was also appointed as

following the resignation of

Thom de Graaf Thomas Carolus "Thom" de Graaf (;''Thomas'' in isolation: . born 11 June 1957) is a Dutch politician of the Democrats 66 (D66) party and jurist. He is the Vice-President of the Council of State since 1 November 2018. De Graaf attended the C ...

, taking office on 31 March 2005. The Cabinet Balkenende II fell on 30 June 2006 after the Democrats 66 had lost confidence in the functioning of Minister of Integration and Asylum Affairs Rita Verdonk and continued to serve in a demissionary capacity until the Democrats 66 cabinet members resigned on 3 July 2006. Shortly thereafter Brinkhorst announced his retirement from national politics and that he wouldn't stand for the election of 2006. After the electoral defeat of D66 he became a minister of economic affairs in the second Balkenende cabinet. Brinkhorst, as well as Alexander Pechtold, resigned from his minister post after the second Balkenende

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

lost the confidence of parliament on 29 June 2006. The next day, Balkenende offered the resignation of the full cabinet to the Dutch Queen. He is a Senior Network Member at the

European Leadership Network European Leadership Network (ELN) is a pan-European think-tank focusing on European foreign, defence and security issues based in London, United Kingdom. The ELN's Director is Sir Adam Thomson, former UK Permanent Representative to NATO. Histo ...

(ELN).

Personal life

On 26 August 1960, Brinkhorst married Jantien Heringa (born 2 February 1935 in

Voorburg Voorburg is a town and former municipality in the west part of the province of South Holland, Netherlands. Together with Leidschendam and Stompwijk, it makes up the municipality Leidschendam-Voorburg. It has a population of about 39,000 peopl ...

), daughter of Ewardus Heringa (

, 14 November 1904 -

, 30 November 1988) and wife (m.

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Net ...

, 4 August 1930) Petronela Johanna Roskam (

, 20 August 1905 -

, 19 December 1991). Brinkhorst and Heringa are the parents of Marius Brinkhorst (born 9 February 1964) and the Dutch princess Laurentien Brinkhorst (born 25 May 1966), who married Prince Constantijn in 2001.Geneall
/ref> Brinkhorst retired after spending 33 years in national politics and became active in the public sector and occupied numerous seats as a nonprofit director on several boards of directors and supervisory boards ( Institute of International Relations Clingendael, Energy Research Centre, Netherlands Atlantic Association,

Nuclear Research and Consultancy Group Nuclear Research and Consultancy Group (NRG) is a Dutch institute that performs nuclear research for the government and private companies. It is the most important producer of radionuclides, such as molybdenum-99, lutetium-177 and iridium-192, in ...

, Organisation for Scientific Research,

Institute for Advanced Study The Institute for Advanced Study (IAS), located in Princeton, New Jersey, in the United States, is an independent center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. It has served as the academic home of internationally preeminent schola ...

and the Society for Statistics and Operations Research) and served as an diplomat and lobbyist for several economic delegations on behalf of the government and as an advocate and activist for

Human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

European integration European integration is the process of industrial, economic, political, legal, social, and cultural integration of states wholly or partially in Europe or nearby. European integration has primarily come about through the European Union and its ...

Environmentalism Environmentalism or environmental rights is a broad Philosophy of life, philosophy, ideology, and social movement regarding concerns for environmental protection and improvement of the health of the environment (biophysical), environment, par ...

Sustainable development Sustainable development is an organizing principle for meeting human development goals while also sustaining the ability of natural systems to provide the natural resources and ecosystem services on which the economy and society depend. The ...

and

Climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...

. Brinkhorst also served as a distinguished professor of Governmental studies, International relations, International law and European law at the Leiden University from 1 November 2006 until 1 November 2011 and a distinguished visiting professor of International relations and

Environmental law Environmental law is a collective term encompassing aspects of the law that provide protection to the environment. A related but distinct set of regulatory regimes, now strongly influenced by environmental Legal doctrine, legal principles, focu ...

at the

University of Lausanne The University of Lausanne (UNIL; french: links=no, Université de Lausanne) in Lausanne, Switzerland was founded in 1537 as a school of Protestant theology, before being made a university in 1890. The university is the second oldest in Switzer ...

from 1 February 2007 until 1 February 2008.

Decorations

Honorary degrees

References

External links

;Official *
Mr. L.J. (Laurens Jan) Brinkhorst
Parlement & Politiek {{DEFAULTSORT:Brinkhorst, Laurens Jan 1937 births Living people Ambassadors of the European Union to Japan Climate activists Columbia University alumni Commanders by Number of the Order of Isabella the Catholic Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Commanders of the Order of Polonia Restituta Democrats 66 MEPs Democrats 66 politicians Deputy Prime Ministers of the Netherlands Dutch environmentalists Dutch expatriates in Belgium Dutch expatriates in Japan Dutch expatriates in Switzerland Dutch expatriates in the United States Dutch human rights activists Dutch legal scholars Dutch legal writers Dutch officials of the European Union Dutch people of Indonesian descent Dutch political activists Dutch political writers Environmental studies scholars European Union lobbyists Foreign policy writers Hybrid electric vehicle advocates International law scholars International relations scholars Grand Cordons of the Order of the Rising Sun Grand Crosses of the Order of the Dannebrog Grand Officers of the Order of Orange-Nassau Governmental studies academics Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic Knights of the Order of the Netherlands Lion Leaders of the Democrats 66 Leiden University alumni Leiden University faculty Ministers of Agriculture of the Netherlands Ministers of Economic Affairs of the Netherlands Members of the House of Representatives (Netherlands) Members of the Provincial Council of Groningen Members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences MEPs for the Netherlands 1994–1999 Officiers of the Légion d'honneur People from Zwolle People from Leiden People associated with Shearman & Sterling Recipients of the Grand Cross of the Order of Leopold II Recipients of the Grand Decoration for Services to the Republic of Austria State Secretaries for Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands Sustainability advocates Tilburg University faculty University of Groningen faculty University of Lausanne faculty Writers about globalization 20th-century Dutch civil servants 20th-century Dutch diplomats 20th-century Dutch educators 20th-century Dutch lawyers 20th-century Dutch jurists 20th-century Dutch male writers 20th-century Dutch politicians 21st-century Dutch diplomats 21st-century Dutch educators 21st-century Dutch jurists 21st-century Dutch male writers 21st-century Dutch politicians