Luitzen Egbertus Jan Brouwer (1881-1966) was one of the most important Dutch mathematicians. Shortly after Brouwer's death, together with the Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen, the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, KWG introduced the Brouwer Medal as prestigious mathematics prize.

Every three years KWG chooses a subfield of mathematics and a special committee selects an internationally prominent researcher from that subfield, who is invited to give a lecture at the Netherlands Mathematical Congress about his/her research. The lecture must be accessible to a broad mathematical audience. After the lecture, the laureate is awarded the Brouwer medal with accompanying certificate. The medal has a great international prestige.