Eberhard van der Laan

Eberhard van der Laanis former Mayor of Amsterdam. He was born in 1955 in Leiden. In 1983 he graduated from the University of Amsterdam gaining a Law degree. He worked as an attorney until 1992. That same year he co-founded a law firm in which he worked as a partner until 2008. His political career began as an assistant to the alderman of Amsterdam. In 2010 he was elected mayor of the Dutch Capital. In his capital development program the main point is the transformation of the city into a European capital with a focus on the development of the metropolitan area. This is based on four key points: reinforcing Amsterdam's position of a European business hub, introducing innovation, developing the urban area, and active public participation.