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Lukas Pairon (°1958) studied philosophy at a private university in Lugano, Switserland, and later obtained a Master in educational science (specialisation 'politique de l'éducation) at the University of Paris VIII. He worked for several years as a researcher in the field of adult education and literacy programmes at Unesco in Paris and at the Ministry of Culture of the Frenchspeaking Community of Belgium in Brussels. 

But at the age of 27, he changed his profession by becoming the artistic director of the contemporary music and dance programmes of the Flanders Festival. He left this festival two years later to create Walpurgis, (a production house for contemporary opera, and thereby got closer to his first interests as a young boy: opera, theatre and music. 

It is in that period that he got acquainted with many of the musicians who would later create Ictus, since they were engaged as soloists to create the new music theatre pieces which Walpurgis produced. When Ictus was founded in 1994, Lukas was there and became its first director. 

Since 2005 he also co-founded and directs the organisation Music Fund (www.musicfund.eu) which gives support to music schools in the Middle East and Africa through donations of music instruments and training programs for technicians able to repair such instruments. 

And in 2009, he co-founded 3rdParty, a 3-year program creating bridges between youngsters in Belgium and peace- and human rights activists in the Middle East. 

From 2013 on, Lukas will start a PhD study at the University of Ghent (UGent) and at EHESS in Paris, on the topic: "Practices in Culture and Development - a comparative study of the role of music in development projects,  with a specific interest in music and conflict".