De Balie

How are the tech oligarchs shaping our democracies? In conversation with former EU-parliament member Marietje Schaake and journalist Ece Temelkuran.In his farewell speech, President Biden warned of a ‘tech-industrial complex’ and an ‘oligarchy of extreme wealth’ threatening democracy. His successor highlighted this very point by placing tech oligarchs like Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and Tim Cook in the front row during his inauguration speech.Once celebrated as visionary enterprises driving progress and innovation, tech companies have become questionable forces in our democracies. From data privacy scandals to monopolistic practices and spreading misinformation on a wide scale, Big Tech has undermined public trust while molding the very fabric of our democracies.Together with former EU-parliament member Marietje Schaake, author of The Tech Coup, and journalist Ece Temelkuran, author of How to Lose a Country, we investigate the position of tech companies in our democracies. How are the tech oligarchs shaping our democracies?About the speakers:Marietje Schaake (1978) is the director of international policy at the Cyber Policy Center at Stanford University. From 2009 to 2019, she was a member of the European Parliament for D66. In 2024, her book The Tech Coup: How to Save Democracy from Silicon Valley was published.Ece Temelkuran (1973) is a journalist and writer. In 2012, she was fired from the Turkish newspaper she was working for at the time, for writing critically about the Erdogan government. In 2019, she published How to Lose a Country: The Seven Steps from Democracy to Dictatorship.Moderator: Rosalie DielesenThe Techdenkers series is supported by Adyen. This edition is part of the Forum on European Culture 2025 in Amsterdam.Zie het privacybeleid op https://art19.com/privacy en de privacyverklaring van Californië op https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Pulitzer prize-winning author Anne Applebaum and Ukrainian philosopher Volodymyr Yermolenko engage in conversation about Ukraine’s past, present and future. With an introduction from Ukrainian writer Andrey Kurkov.‘The bad guys are winning’, Anne Applebaum wrote in an essay in The Atlantic in 2021. If the twentieth century was about the rise of liberal democracy, the twentieth-first sofar has been about the opposite. The fight for democracy is nowhere as pressing as in Ukraine. Anne Applebaum and Ukrainian philosopher and writer Volodymyr Yermolenko discuss Ukraine’s ongoing struggle for freedom, and the stakes for the future – not just for Ukraine, but also for democracy in Europe. About the speakers:Anne Applebaum (1964) is a historian and writer specializing in Eastern European and Soviet history. She has written several award-winning books, including Gulag: A History, which won the Pulitzer Prize, and her latest Autocracy, Inc. The Dictators Who Want to Run the World. Applebaum is also a staff writer at The Atlantic and a senior fellow at the AGORA Institute at Johns Hopkins University. Her work provides critical insight into the rise of authoritarianism and the fragility of democracy. Volodymyr Yermolenko (1980) is a Ukrainian philosopher, writer, and journalist. He is the editor-in-chief of UkraineWorld, a multimedia platform, and author of several books on Ukrainian identity and European philosophy. He is the current president of PEN Ukraine and he has been a powerful voice for Ukraine during the ongoing war, offering a nuanced understanding of the cultural and historical context behind the conflict.Programme maker: Ianthe MosselmanModerator: Yoeri AlbrechtThis programme is part of the Forum on European Culture 2025 in Amsterdam.Zie het privacybeleid op https://art19.com/privacy en de privacyverklaring van Californië op https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Brainwash Festival x De Balie x TivoliVredenburg - Historian, journalist, and Pulitzer Prize winner Anne Applebaum dissects modern dictatorship. What threat do the growing autocracies pose?When thinking of a dictator, one often imagines a malicious villain – someone we know from an action movie. Historian, journalist, and Pulitzer Prize winner Anne Applebaum challenges this image. In her latest book Autocracy, Inc., she describes how autocratic regimes are intertwined in intricate, international networks with the primary goal of self-enrichment. Autocrats are doing more business with each other than ever before, protecting each other and working together to destabilize the democratic order. What threat do these modern dictatorial networks pose?About the collaboration: This Brainwash Special with Anne Applebaum is a collaboration between De Balie, TivoliVredenburg, and Brainwash Festival, and is part of the Forum on European Culture 2025 in Amsterdam.About Anne Applebaum: Anne Applebaum (1964) is a historian and writer specializing in Eastern European and Soviet history. She has written several award-winning books, including Gulag: A History, which won the Pulitzer Prize, and her latest Autocracy, Inc. The Dictators Who Want to Run the World. Applebaum is also a staff writer at The Atlantic and a senior fellow at the Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University. Her work provides critical insight into the rise of authoritarianism and the fragility of democracy.Moderator: Merlijn GeurtsZie het privacybeleid op https://art19.com/privacy en de privacyverklaring van Californië op https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

How does movement, across borders and social class, shape one’s sense of belonging? A conversation with writers Tash Aw and Radna Fabias about social change, generational gaps and the legacy of colonialism.In his new book The South, Aw explores the radical political and societal changes that swept through Asia in the 1990s, as seen through the eyes of a Malaysian family. He delves into themes such as class, economic instability, and the search for (queer) identity. Aw captures the painful transformation of post-colonial societies, marked by the tension between tradition and modernity, and the conflict between personal desire and collective duty. How do cultural expectations shape the journey toward personal identity in a rapidly changing society?Tash Aw (1971) is a writer and essayist. He grew up in Malaysia, left for England in his teens to study law and is currently lives in Paris. He is the author of six books, including The Harmony Silk Factory (2005) and Five Star Billionaire (2013) which were longlisted for the Man Booker Prize and earned him international recognition. His works often examine themes such as colonialism, immigration, class dynamics and cultural displacement, offering nuanced portrayals of life in Southeast Asia and beyond. Translated into multiple languages, Aw’s texts established him as a vital significant voice in contemporary literature.Radna Fabias (1983) was born and raised in Curaçao. debuted as a poet with the poetry collection Habitus (2018) which won all major poetry awards in the Netherlands & Belgium, amongst which the Herman de Coninck prize and the Grote Poëzieprijs. Fabias’ style is characterized by a great variety, both in terms of content and style. According to Dutch Magazine De Groene, “Fabias dares to use every nook and cranny of poetry as an art form, the poems are short and lyrical, sometimes narrative and long, sometimes clear and accessible and sometimes hermetic and experimental.” Habitus has been translated into English, French, Spanish, Arabic and German. Fabias also translates poetry herself. She is the Dutch translator of both Warsan Shire and Nobel Prize winner Louise Glück.About Forum on European Culture: Who’s afraid of art? Now that tyrants are on the roll and more and more people in the West seem to be falling for the autocratic alternative, Forum on European Culture 2025 (June 25 – June 29) brings together international artists, writers, and thinkers to celebrate the subversive power of art and literature.Zie het privacybeleid op https://art19.com/privacy en de privacyverklaring van Californië op https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Een meerderheid van de Nederlanders – 58 procent – vindt dat we de plicht hebben om ‘echte vluchtelingen’ op te vangen. Maar die stemmen klinken minder luid in een gepolariseerd debat. Hoe ben je solidair, wanneer de politiek het laat afweten?Wereldwijd escaleren oorlogen steeds verder – zoals in Soedan, Gaza en de Democratische Republiek Congo – waardoor mensen gedwongen worden op de vlucht te slaan, als dat al lukt. Door ondermijning van de internationale rechtsorde lijken vrede en rechtvaardigheid verder uit zicht te raken, en wereldwijd bezuinigen overheden op internationale ontwikkelingsorganisaties. Dit alles zorgt ervoor dat er de komende jaren alleen maar meer vluchtelingen komen. Toch wordt het moeilijker, in plaats van makkelijker om asiel aan te vragen in Nederland en andere westerse landen.Wat moet er gebeuren nu de politieke steun voor humanitaire hulp wegvalt? En wat betekent het om solidair te zijn met mensen op de vlucht in een tijd van politieke verharding?In dit programma onderzoeken we wat mensen beweegt om op te staan voor onbekenden. Zijn we ook bereid om solidaire gevoelens om te zetten in daden, nu die solidariteit vanuit de politiek steeds verder te zoeken is? En hoe ver willen – of durven – we daarin te gaan?Wereldvluchtelingendag is een internationale dag die door de Verenigde Naties in het leven is geroepen om vluchtelingen over de hele wereld te eren. Het valt elk jaar op 20 juni en viert de kracht en moed van mensen die gedwongen zijn hun thuisland te ontvluchten om te ontsnappen aan conflicten of vervolging.In samenwerking met UNHCR Nederland.Programmamaker: Veronica BaasZie het privacybeleid op https://art19.com/privacy en de privacyverklaring van Californië op https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Nadia de Vries groeide op in dorpen in de IJmond en keek vanuit haar kinderkamer uit op de torens van de hoogovens. Deze dorpen en haar bewoners vormen het decor van haar nieuwe roman Overgave op commando. Programmamaker Katarina Schul gaat in gesprek met De Vries. Wat kenmerkt haar als schrijver? Wie zijn de personen waar ze over schrijft? En hoe ontworstel je je van de klassenverschillen?Nadia de Vries (Heemskerk 1991) is schrijver, dichter en cultuurwetenschapper. Haar debuutroman De bakvis (2022) stond op de longlist van de Libris Literatuur Prijs en de Boekenbon Literatuurprijs. Eerder schreef ze het autobiografische Kleinzeer (2019) en Engelstalige poëziebundels. In 2020 werd ze door NRC uitgroepen tot een van literaire talenten van dat jaar. In datzelfde jaar promoveerde ze aan de Universiteit van Amsterdam als cultuurwetenschapper.In deze wekelijkse talkshow van De Balie interviewen programmamakers de makers die hen inspireren. Van cabaretiers tot schrijvers en van theatermakers tot kunstenaars.Interview door programmamaker Katarina Schul. De podcast wordt geïntroduceerd door programmamaker Kees Foekema.Zie het privacybeleid op https://art19.com/privacy en de privacyverklaring van Californië op https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jewher Ilham advocates for the end of Uyghur forced labour, carried out in camps like the one where her father is detained. How to encourage governments, companies and individuals to be aware of the origin of their products? With human rights activist Jewher Ilham, Political secretary of Dutch Uyghur Human Rights Foundation (DUHRF) Ahmedjan Kasim, journalist with Follow the Money Yara van Heugten and researcher for SOMO David Ollivier de Leth.‘Did my imprisoned father, cousin or uncle make this shirt?’ This is a question Jewher Ilham often asks herself when holding a piece of clothing. Jewher Ilham saw her father for the last time on 2 February 2013 at Beijing International Airport. Right before they would take a flight to the United States. Ilham Tohti was arrested in 2014 and has since been sentenced to life in prison. Jewher hasn’t heard of her father since 2017 and doesn’t even know if he is still alive.Almost one fifth of all cotton comes from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, often handpicked with forced labour by Uyghurs. Jewher Ilham advocates for the end of Uyghur labor exploitation and calls on international brands to remove all materials produced in Xinjiang from their supply chains.In 2024, the EU passed a Forced Labour Regulaton that requires companies to prove that their products are free from forced labour. Member states need to incorporate this in their national legislation by 2027. Now, however, the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), which is a fundamental piece of legislation that will work in tandem with the forced labour ban, is under attack with the new omnibus proposal. How to motivate brands to end using materials from Xinjiang? And how to encourage governments and individuals to be aware of the origin of their products? Jewher Ilham (1995) is a Uyghur human rights activist based in the United States. She works for the Workers Rights Consortium and is a spokesperson for the Coalition to End Forced Labour in the Uyghur Region. As the daughter of Ilham Tohti, an economist, writer and outspoken activist for the Uyghurs who was imprisoned for life, Jewher Ilham continues to carry the torch of her father’s advocacy.Programme editor and moderator: Mirthe FreseIn collaboration with Amnesty International NLSupported by VfondsZie het privacybeleid op https://art19.com/privacy en de privacyverklaring van Californië op https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Meet Trajall Harrell, an American groundbreaking choreographer, and this year’s Holland Festival associate artist. By combining and adapting postmodern dance, voguing, the Japanese dance-theatre form butoh, runaway fashion and visuals arts, Harrell has created a one-of-a-kind oeuvre over the last 20 years. Looking at sources of inspiration and his own work, moderator Maarten van Hinte will speak with Trajall Harrell about pushing the boundaries of modern dance traditions, taking risks as a renowned artist, and building new connections with your audience."I always try and apply to my work something that Toni Morrison once said: If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it." - Trajal HarellTrajall Harrell (Douglas, Georgia, 1973) is one of the major contemporary choreographer interntionally. With universal human emotions and themes like interconnection, tragedy, tenderness and vulnerability, Harrell’s pieces often move audiences on a deeply personal level. Harrell became internationally known from 2009 with his Twenty Looks or Paris is Burning at The Judson Church, a series of works in which voguing − a dance style that came out of Harlem’s ballroom scene of the 1980s – and early postmodern dance form the basis. In his recent work Harrell weaves theoretical elements from voguing with movements and ideas from early modern dance and butoh, a minimalist and socially engaged form of dance from post-war Japan that was developed by Japanese dancer and choreographer Tatsumi Hijikata (1928-1996) in the late 1950s.Trajal Harrell is the associate artist for the 78th edition of the Holland Festival in June 2025.Zie het privacybeleid op https://art19.com/privacy en de privacyverklaring van Californië op https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Stijgend water blijkt niet alleen een bedreiging, maar ook een kans voor landschappelijke vernieuwing. Boeren kunnen bondgenoten worden in het herstel van de natuur. Vergrijzing biedt ruimte biedt voor een nieuwe manier van samen leven en samen wonen.Van wijk tot waterkering, van Culemborg tot Holwerd, van dijk tot veld, van akker tot huis: wat krijgen de pioniers voor elkaar? En waar komen we uit als we van hen leren? Welk nieuw land doemt er vanavond voor onze ogen op? We ontmoeten journalist en geograaf Floor Milikowski, filosoof en historicus Philipp Blom, oprichter van Agricycling Pieter van der Valk, wethouder van Culemborg Monica Wichger, Projectleider Maaspark Ooijen Wanssum Keesjan van den Herik en Architect en directeur van Zijdekwartier Architecten Ianthe Mantingh. Met moderator Kees Foekema.In haar nieuwste boek De contouren van een nieuw land gaat Floor Milikowski op zoek naar de verhalen van vernieuwers die afwijken van de gebaande paden en met lef een richting inslaan. Wat blijkt? Het voorwerk voor een nieuw land ligt er al. De verandering is volop gaande.Zie het privacybeleid op https://art19.com/privacy en de privacyverklaring van Californië op https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Maurits de Bruijn ontvangt een uitnodiging van een ngo om af te reizen naar Israël en Palestina. Hij aarzelt – ooit nam hij zich voor nooit meer voet op Israëlische bodem te zetten. Toch besluit hij de confrontatie aan te gaan, vastberaden om de werkelijkheid van dichtbij te ervaren in plaats van via schermen, zoals sinds 7 oktober 2023 het geval is geweest.Wat betekent het voor hem, als Joodse man, om terug te keren naar Israël en daarover te schrijven? Wat ontdekt hij over zijn eigen geschiedenis, en hoe verhoudt hij zich tot het verleden van zijn Joodse grootouders, die in Sobibor werden vermoord? Geweten borduurt voor op De Bruijns eerdere boek Ook mijn Holocaust (2020), en stelt de vraag: hoe schrijf je over iets dat zo allesomvattend is, en hoe breng je het terug tot menselijke proporties?Maurits de Bruijn (1984) is redacteur bij kunsttijdschrift Mister Motley en maakte samen met Randy Vermeulen de podcast En niemand bleef onaangeraakt. Eerder schreef hij onder andere de roman Man maakt stuk (2024), genomineerd voor de Libris Literatuur Prijs, en het non-fictieboek Ook mijn Holocaust (2020).In deze wekelijkse talkshow van De Balie interviewen programmamakers de makers die hen inspireren. Van cabaretiers tot schrijvers en van theatermakers tot kunstenaars.Interview door programmamaker Rosalie Dielesen. De podcast wordt geïntroduceerd door programmamaker Kees Foekema.Zie het privacybeleid op https://art19.com/privacy en de privacyverklaring van Californië op https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.