About me

Hi there!

My name is Maria Groot, and I’m an independent journalist based in Dublin.

At age 15, I spent a month asking elderly people at my bus stop what it’s like to be old and what advise they’d give their younger selves. Their responses were somewhat disappointing (“just be happy”), but I’ve kept asking questions.

Ever since, my curiosity has driven me professionally as a journalist, leading me to cover a wide range of topics—from lab meat to diamond mining and migrant smuggling.

My work has appeared in publications all around the world. To name a few: Slate (US), Courrier International (FR), De Groene Amsterdammer (NL), De Standaard (BE), Roads & Kingdoms (US), MO (BE), Reader’s Digest (US), Apache (BE), and Internazionale (IT).

I have also appeared as a guest on Dutch and Belgian national radio programmes, including Reporter Radio and Interne Keuken, where I spoke about my investigative work. In addition, Dutch composer Rob Zimmerman created an original soundtrack for my short story Het Gat (The Hole), which was broadcast on NPO Radio 4.

I was born below sea level in 1983 and studied Fine Arts at ArtEZ University of the Arts in the Netherlands. After working as a professional artist, I went on to study Journalism at AP University College in Antwerp, Belgium, and have worked as an independent journalist since. Seven years ago, I moved to Ireland, where I have built my life and home.