Bastiaan Rijpkema elected as a member of the KHMW
On 9 February 2026, Bastiaan Rijpkema, Professor of Jurisprudence, was elected as a member of the Royal Holland Society of Sciences and Humanities (KHMW).
The KHMW is the oldest learned society in the Netherlands and since its establishment in 1752, it has been committed to building bridges between science and society at large. The society is comprised of representatives from the wider community with a strong interest in science, as well as leading academics. For its members and other interested audiences, the KHMW organises lectures and debates on scientific and societal themes. In addition, the organisation awards several prizes, including the KHMW Dissertation Prize for Interdisciplinarity.
Rijpkema is also Academic Director at the Institute for the Interdisciplinary Study of the Law and Endowed Professor of Tolerance at the Faculty of Humanities.
Resilient democracy
‘Naturally, I’m deeply honoured to be elected to such a venerable society as the KHMW,’ Rijpkema says. ‘The KHMW’s mission to strengthen the relationship between science and society aligns closely with my research and teaching on current societal issues such as resilient democracy and tolerance. I look forward to contributing to the KHMW’.
Besides Rijpkema, Sarah de Rijcke (Rector Magnificus and Professor of Science, Technology & Innovation Studies), Jet Bussemaker (Professor of Policy, Science and Societal Impact), Sense Jan van der Molen (Professor of Condensed Matter), Antje Wessels (Professor of Latin Language and Literature) and Gilles van Wezel (Professor of Molecular Biotechnology) have also been elected as members of the KHMW.