Ulli Beier was born in Germany in 1922. From 1950 to 1971 he taught literature and creative writing at the universities of Ibadan and Papua New Guinea. During the period of 1971 to 1978 he was the director of research institutes in Nigeria and New Guinea. In 1981 he founded and directed IWALEWA Haus, a center for contemporary art, music, and literature from the Third World. He died in 2011.
