Martin Bútora is a sociologist, writer and translator, who is based in Bratislava. He began his career as a journalist in the 1960s and, after becoming a persona non grata following the Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia, worked as a sociologist and a therapist at a detox centre. In 1989, he co-founded Verejnosť proti násiliu [Citizens Against Violence], the movement that spearheaded Slovakia’s Velvet Revolution, later becoming an adviser to President Václav Havel. He has worked as a university lecturer and also co-founded the Slovakian Institute for Public Affairs, which he directed and where he now serves as an honorary chairperson. He is currently an adviser to Slovakia’s President Andrej Kiska. Bútora’s most recent books of essays are Odklínanie [Breaking the Spell], Druhý dych [Second Breath] and Takmer na polceste [Almost Halfway There].
Information valid as of winter 2014.