Video online: Mayor Koen Schuiling interviews Max van den Berg in College Tour

On the 20th of April Honorary Professor at GSG, Max van den Berg was interviewed by Groningen Mayor Koen Schuiling.

Who is Max van den Berg?

Margrietus Johannes "Max" van den Berg (born 22 March 1946) is a Dutch politician and member of the Dutch Labour Party (PvdA). After his Sociology studies at the University of Groningen, Max van den Berg became an alderman for culture, conservation, traffic, public works, public transport, housing and urban development in Groningen (1970-1978). Max had a big influence on how the city planning in Groningen currently is and recently got recognition in the news for this. He also got praised as one of the main sponsors of the nomination of Groningen to healthiest city in The Netherlands. Between 1979 and 1986 he was the chairman of the party (ed. PvdA) and from 1999 to 2007 he was a Member of the European Parliament. Between these two experiences he has been the secretary-general of the non-governmental organisation Novib (1986-1999). After his experience at the European Parliament, he was nominated first Queen’s and then King's Commissioner for the province Groningen. Role which he fulfilled until 2016. In the same year he received the honorary citizenship of Groningen as well as becoming an Officer in the Order of Orange-Nassau. As King’s Commissioner he dedicated a lot of time and energy to the resolution of the earthquake case due to gas extraction in the Groningen province.

Koen Frank Schuiling (born February 1st 1959) is another Dutch politician. After finishing his law studies he took on a job as lecturer at the department of Administrative Law and Public Administration at the University of Groningen. During the same period, he became an active member of the People’s party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) in Groningen. In 1998 he became an alderman in Groningen, responsible for the economics of the municipality. From 2006 till 2010 he had several positions at TCN, after which he returned to politics by becoming a mayor in Den Helder in 2010. In September 2019, Koen Schuiling became the mayor of Groningen. Position that he currently still holds.