Leo Apostel turns 100: “Growth is always painful”

On September 4, 2025, philosopher Leo Apostel would have turned one hundred. His legacy remains strikingly relevant — especially in an era where technology and artificial intelligence increasingly shape our lives. Apostel taught us that progress only has meaning when it is guided by justice and a human compass.

A philosopher of connection

Apostel was never a philosopher confined to abstractions. He built bridges between disciplines, between science and ethics, between analysis and engagement. His lifelong quest revolved around a “worldview that works” — an integrated vision of humanity and society that embraces complexity while offering direction for action.

Progress and justice

His reflections on automation — voiced decades ago — sound more urgent than ever in the age of artificial intelligence. Technology, he argued, can be liberating, but only if wealth and opportunity are fairly distributed. For Apostel, progress was never merely technical; it was, above all, moral and social.

Humanism as a guiding principle

Apostel was one of the founding figures of secular humanism in Flanders. He viewed this worldview as both rational and compassionate: grounded in knowledge, cooperation, and critical thought, yet also deeply social and future-oriented. In doing so, he gave lasting shape to a humanistic philosophy that invites people to take shared responsibility for one another and the world.

A lasting legacy

As a professor at the VUB and Ghent University, founder of the Centrum Leo Apostel, and public intellectual, Apostel left behind a rich intellectual heritage. His thinking continues to inspire us to resist cynicism and fatalism, and to take an active role in building a just, free, and meaningful society.

On his hundredth birthday, we honour a thinker far ahead of his time — one who continues to guide us even today.

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