A new management team for the Asser Institute in 2024

Kasper Vrolijk will be starting as the Asser Institute's new managing director and member of the executive board on 1 February 2024. Together with Christophe Paulussen, the recently appointed acting academic director and chair of the executive board, Vrolijk will be responsible for managing the institute. The vacancy for academic director to guide the Institute's research focus and academic activities remains open till 3 January 2024.  

Kasper Vrolijk, who has a PhD in Economics (SOAS, University of London), an MSc in Public Policy (Maastricht University) and a Ba in Business Administration (NHTV University) offers a great balance of management experience and in-depth knowledge of academic research.

At the German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS) he has managed research on globalisation and climate change, leading various project teams, managing finances and risks, as well as driving funding and project acquisition. His management experience is complemented by research awards from amongst others the Royal Economic Society, Institute of New Economic Thinking, and STEG-CEPR.

Translating research
Vrolijk's new role as managing director of the Asser Institute will be to oversee the administrative, financial, and personnel management. As part of the Asser Institute's executive board, he will share the responsibility for the day-to-day management of the Institute with the academic director.

Chair of the Asser Institute’s supervisory board Liesbeth Lijnzaad is delighted with Vrolijk's appointment. Lijnzaad: “Kasper brings experience in managing educational programmes and valorisation of research, including translating research to policymakers and the broader public, which fits very closely with the Asser Institute’s core activities.”

Excellent work
The appointment of Kasper Vrolijk comes as the current managing director Gert Grift will retire on 1 March 2024. Forming a formidable team with former academic director and chair of the executive board Janne Nijman, Grift has helped establish the Asser Institute as a research institute that can compete with the best departments on international and European law at law faculties in the Netherlands.
Supervisory board chair Liesbeth Lijnzaad: “The supervisory board is very grateful for all the excellent work Gert has done, particularly in the last year and a half, while he took on the responsibilities of both the academic and managing director. Supported by the Institute's coordinators, Gert has fulfilled two demanding positions, while continuing to drive the Asser Institute's work forward. We wish Gert a great and well-deserved retirement.” 

A new academic director
The vacancy for an academic director that will provide visionary leadership and strategic direction to the institute is open to receive applications until 3 January 2024. The new academic director will assume responsibility for maintaining the quality of research activities, acquisition of newly funded projects, and the implementation of the Institute's strategic research agenda. Furthermore, the academic director will also be appointed professor at the Amsterdam Law School (University of Amsterdam). The faculty is one of the largest law faculties in the Netherlands, with over five thousand students and 550 staff.

About the Asser Institute
The Asser Institute's mission is to contribute to the development of international and European public and private law by conducting fundamental, policy-oriented and applied legal research. Established in 1965 as an inter-university institute, the T.M.C. Asser Instituut is an independent foundation, which is affiliated closely with the University of Amsterdam (UvA), particularly the Amsterdam Law School, and actively promotes collaboration with - and between Dutch Law schools.

Driven by the ambition to create knowledge and scientific solutions to societal problems and aiming for a just society, the Amsterdam Law School and the Asser Institute will intensify their cooperation in the coming years. A ten-year cooperation agreement forms the framework for increased collaboration between both organisations in research, education and in business operations.  

Guided by the principles of excellence and impact, our research encompasses a diverse array of legal fields, including international criminal law, international humanitarian law, public international law, European law, migration law and human rights law. At a time when law and public institutions are being challenged, the Asser Institute recognises that critical legal analysis and perspectives are essential to finding meaningful solutions.

Read the full biography of Kasper Vrolijk

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