prof. dr. René ten Bos

About René ten Bos

René ten Bos is a philosopher and professor at Radboud University in Nijmegen. He is also the father of two children, a football and chess enthusiast, a columnist for Het Financiële Dagblad, a poetry lover, author of far too many books, and a regular at his local pub. He attributes as much importance to all these matters as he does to philosophy and his professorship.

His work is often characterized by heavy themes that he approaches with humor and cheerfulness. He has written about the relationship between humans and animals, the ecological catastrophe known as humanity, the opaque transparency of water, as well as bureaucracy, gestures, and numerous other subjects. No matter how philosophical these texts are, he agrees with poet H.H. ter Balkt that the last sheaves left behind after threshing in a stubble field also have philosophical value. If philosophy is thinking, then this thinking must be something that resides in things as well. Or in plants or in animals. Nothing is more mistaken than thinking that thinking is solely a human activity.

René ten Bos was born in 1959 in Hengelo. He studied philosophy at Radboud University and earned his doctorate at what was then called the Catholic University of Tilburg. He worked for Business School Netherlands, Business School Caribbean, and Schouten & Nelissen, among others. Since 2000, he has been a professor of philosophy at the Faculty of Management Sciences, Radboud University in Nijmegen. Additionally, he is known as a speaker and lecturer. He regularly works for the Netherlands School of Public Administration (NSOB), Academy of Groningen (AOG), the Police Academy, Academy for Medical Specialists, and numerous other companies and organizations. Since April 2017, he has been the Thinker Laureate of the Netherlands.