My name is Mauritius Wijffels

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So, how does someone trained in international law end up working in interculturality?

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The shift was gradual. My career began in the legal world, focusing on international deal-making and human rights. Mediation followed later.

 

This path took me to very different environments: law firms in Egypt and the Gulf, corporate and banking world across Europe, cross-border transactions in Latin America and the Caribbean, and interactions with professionals at many locations and levels.

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On paper, the issues were always legal. In reality, they were at least half cultural. And that is what triggered me.​​​​

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Over time, it became clear that successful contractual relations rarely revolve solely around the law. Rather, they are shaped by assumptions about authority, communication, time, loyalty, responsibility, or dignity.

 

The legal questions were always clearly on the table.
The cultural layer underneath? Not so much. 

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And managing this largely invisible, intercultural dimension developed into an essential part of my work. Law provides structure; mediation enhances listening. Yet working across borders uncovers both our own and everyone else's cultural blind spots: our unexplored cultural assumptions that define our patterns and steer our behaviours.  

 

This interculturality platform grew out of an urge to move beyond cultural coexistence by imagining shared spaces where cultures genuinely engage with one another. Shaping relationships that are balanced, reciprocal, and alive. ​How? 

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Interculturality is not just a trendy slogan 

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Interculturality is the art of remaining curious about others and about oneself, and acting on this curiosity to improve everyone's environment.

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​​​​​"Interculturality is the art of remaining curious 
about others and about oneself."
 

   - Mauritius Wijffels ​

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