International relations as method.
Europe as the field.

Portrait de Nicolas Heynderickx
Nicolas Heynderickx
Brussels

About

Trained in international relations and European studies, I have made the Union’s policies my field. My work consists of connecting two worlds that speak too little to each other: that of European public decision-making and that of the organisations it affects. I analyse files upstream, assess their concrete impact for my clients, and support them in their dialogue with the institutions — fully independently, within a demanding and transparent framework.

The regulation of digital technology and artificial intelligence is my original specialty; I set it within a broader reading of the Union’s policies — from human rights to development cooperation, from geopolitics to sector-specific files. I work in advice, analysis, representation and training, with a single standard: rigour of reasoning and honesty of conclusions, without overselling.

Education

A multidisciplinary yet complementary background.

An education that gave me a comprehensive analytical viewpoint: grasping the different facets of a single question — legal, political, international and societal.

2023 – 2024

Advanced Master’s in Human Rights

Université Saint-Louis, Brussels — Great Distinction

2021 – 2022

Advanced Master’s in European Studies

Université Saint-Louis, Brussels — Distinction

2021 – 2022

Master’s in Sciences of Religion and Secularism

Université libre de Bruxelles — Great Distinction

2019 – 2021

Master’s in International Relations — Security, Peace and Conflict

Université libre de Bruxelles

2016 – 2019

Bachelor’s in Political Science

Université Saint-Louis, Brussels

Experience

From the institutions to the field.

European Commission, political cabinet, federal administration, non-profit sector — then independent consulting.

Since 2025

Independent European-affairs adviser

Brussels

Analysis, monitoring and training on public policy and digital regulation, for public and private organisations. Within this practice, I am also developing Euridium, a compliance platform covering EU digital law (AI Act, DORA, GDPR, DSA, NIS2).

2023 – 2025

Coordination & consulting (independent)

CEPIA asbl

Coordination of training programmes in the medical and academic sectors; set-up of an online learning platform; relations with medical, political and academic partners.

2023

Policy advisor · Office of the presidencyInternship

Mouvement Réformateur

Research and drafting of briefs on justice, migration and European affairs; preparation of documents supporting parliamentary debates; legislative monitoring.

2020

Junior policy officerInternship

European Commission · DG REGIO

Support to cross-border cooperation programmes (ENI CBC, Interreg NEXT) and to the organisation of the EUSAIR forums; external communication.

2019

Humanitarian aid (DGD)Internship

FPS Foreign Affairs (Belgium)

Contribution to the review of Belgium’s humanitarian strategy; meetings with humanitarian partners, including the ICRC and NGOs.

Selections & continuing education

  • Selected for the FARI accelerator — AI for the Common Good Institute (ULB/VUB), 2026 cohort.
  • Summer Academy for Global Privacy Law 2026 — Brussels Privacy Hub (VUB).

What drives me

At heart, what drives me is thinking about politics rather than practising it.

Born in Brussels and never having left, I grew up near the European institutions — those structures of steel, concrete and glass already made an impression on me as a child. From Europe Days to school visits, Europe intrigued me early on, then won me over: far more than a single currency and open borders, I see in it a cosmopolitan, open, forward-looking project.

After a few years in student associations and within a party, I realised that activism was not my ground: politics interests me as an object of study and understanding. My work is to help those who practise it analyse it better — to act better, for citizens and for Europe.

Brussels is at once my place of work, of life and of leisure. Beyond current affairs, I am interested in film, architecture and history; I run, I cycle and I practise Hyrox. A curious generalist.

Methodology

How I work.

A constant method, whatever the file — from the opening question to the deliverable.

01 Frame

Start from the real question

What you need to decide, rather than the volume of documents. Scope and deliverable are defined from the first conversation.

02 Analyse

Read the text and the context

What the law requires, what it does not, and where the decision actually happens — in Brussels as at national level. Without over-interpretation.

03 Deliver

An actionable deliverable

A note, an impact analysis, a position: a clear document you can use, without superfluous jargon.

04 Go the distance

Independence and follow-up

Transparency of mandates, no conflict of interest, no overselling — and follow-up on a regulatory framework that moves fast.

A particular context to discuss?

Get in touch