Xavier Hennekinne (born 1973) is a French Australian writer, publisher and international aid and development professional.

Early life and education

Born in 1973 in

Meulan Meulan-en-Yvelines (; formerly just ''Meulan'') is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It hosted part of the sailing events for the 1900 Summer Olympics held in neighboring Paris, and would d ...

, France, Hennekinne grew up in the Parisian suburb of Achères and in Villiers-en-Désoeuvre in Normandy. Hennekinne attended a ''classe préparatoire aux grandes écoles'' in Caen before studying business administration at the Institut de Management International de Paris. He graduated from the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

with a Master of Arts in Peace and Conflict Studies in 2007.

Career

Since 2005, Hennekinne has worked in the international aid and development sector. Between 2007 and 2012, he managed the global human resources services of the

International Organization for Migration The International Organization for Migration (IOM) is a United Nations agency that provides services and advice concerning migration to governments and migrants, including internally displaced persons, refugees, and migrant workers. The IOM was ...

(IOM) at the Manila centre and acted as advisor at headquarters in Geneva. During his time at IOM, Hennekinne completed missions in many countries, most notably in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake, and in South Sudan. In 2012, he settled in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, Australia. Hennekinne is a co-founder of Sydney-based publisher Gazebo Books, which has been publishing works of literary fiction and non-fiction since 2018. Hennekinne is the author of ''Lost Words'' (2019). In a review in ''

The Saturday Paper ''The Saturday Paper'' is an Australian weekly newspaper, launched on 1 March 2014 in hard copy, as an online newspaper and in mobile news format. The paper is circulated throughout Australian capital cities and major regional centres. Since i ...

'', his writing style is described as "direct, witty, evocative and engaging". He has also published essays and short stories in the ''

Griffith Review ''Griffith Review'' is a quarterly publication featuring essays, reportage, memoir, fiction, poetry and artwork from established and emerging writers and artists. Each edition focuses on a contemporary theme, enabling pertinent issues to be aired ...

'', '' Kyoto Journal'' and ''Courant d'Ombres''. In an interview with Kate Holden for ''The Saturday Paper'' in January 2023, Hennekinne talks about the influence French philosopher

Michel Serres Michel Serres (; 1 September 1930 – 1 June 2019) was a French philosopher, theorist and writer. His works explore themes of science, time and death, and later incorporated prose. Life and career The son of a bargeman, Serres entered France's ...

has had on his work.Kate Holden
"Xavier Hennekinne"
''The Saturday Paper'', 27 January 2023.

References

External links

Xavier Hennekinne
at Gazebo.
Xavier Hennekinne
at ''Griffith Review'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Hennekinne, Xavier 1973 births Australian people of French descent Australian publishers (people) Australian writers French publishers (people) French writers Living people People from Eure People from Meulan-en-Yvelines University of Sydney alumni Writers from Sydney