Evenement
Night of the Lobbyist 2026
- Date
- Thursday 29 January 2026
- Time
- Address
- Nieuwe Kerk and Amare, The Hague
The Night of the Lobbyist is a public Dutch-language event on lobbying and democracy, held annually by Leiden University and the Public Affairs Academy.
Programme
Political journalist Tom-Jan Meeus (NRC) will open the fifth edition of The Night of the Lobbyist with an insightful keynote on current affairs.
This will be followed by ten parallel sessions addressing themes such as space for other voices in the Netherlands, the changing power of political language and the line between lobbying and activism. Prominent speakers from academia and civil society organisations – including Sarah de Lange (Leiden University), Sander Laban (Dutch Council for Refugees), Caelesta Braun (Leiden University), Ruud Wouters (Tilburg University), Jan Sonneveld (BySpeech), Nanja van Rijsse (Stichting Lobby Lokaal) and Marcel Hanegraaff (University of Amsterdam and MP) – will share their experiences and insights. Action painter Hein van Houten will translate the atmosphere of the evening into an artwork with splashes of colour, unexpected twists and powerful gestures. The night will end on a festive note with a DJ.
More information and tickets
Buy your ticket hereAbout the Night of the Lobbyist
The Night of the Lobbyist brings together lobbyists, policymakers, journalists, academics, students and more to share knowledge, exchange experiences and build new connections through interactive sessions and surprising perspectives.
See the Night of the Lobbyist site (in Dutch) for more information and impressions of the previous four editions, where 300 participants explored a wide range of topics — such as the power of theatre, children’s rights, fake news and the survival of the Dutch polder mode — and were inspired by keynote speakers including Joris Luyendijk, Renske Leijten and Eric van der Burg.