Haroon Sheikh studied public administration, political science and philosophy in Leiden and Oxford. He obtained his PhD in philosophy with a thesis on the influence of ancient traditions on modern societies, supervised by, amongst others, the German philosopher Peter Sloterdijk. As a lead researcher specialising in emerging markets, he worked for the investment firms Cyrte and Dasym. From 2015 to 2018, he led Freedomlab Thinktank, a think tank focusing on the impact of new technology and shifting global relations.
Sheikh has published the books The Rise of the East: Eurasia and the New World Order, Embedding Technopolis and Hydropolitics. He is a regular columnist for NRC Handelsblad. As a professor at VU University Amsterdam, he is affiliated with the Politics, Philosophy and Economics (PPE) programme and the Philosophy of Culture and Governance programme.
