Speakers & moderators

Françoise Nyssen was born on June 9, 1951 in Brussels and later gains the French citizenship.

Her dual training as an urban planner and biologist led her to a career in publishing. In 1980, she joined the Paradou publishing house, then in 1987 became president of Actes Sud, the famous publishing house based in Arles and created by her father, Hubert Nyssen.

Under her direction, Actes Sud grew and enriched its catalog. The runaway success of the Millennium series revived the finances of the cultural company, of which she acquired 95% of the share capital. In 2015, it achieved a double strike: Svetlana Alexievitch, Nobel Prize winner, and Mathias Enard, Goncourt Prize winner, were both distributed by Actes Sud. But Françoise Nyssen, who defines herself as the equivalent of a literary conductor, multiplies her activities. Owner of bookstores, she is also a theater producer and a member of the Screenplay Support Commission.

On May 17, 2017, Françoise Nyssen was appointed Minister of Culture in the first government formed by President of the Republic Emmanuel Macron. On October 16, 2018, she left the government following the ministerial reshuffle.

On the private side, her blended family includes seven children and stepchildren. After the suicide of her son Antoine in 2012, she founded Domaine du possible, a school dedicated to precocious children excluded from the conventional school system in 2014.