In consultation with the Executive Board of the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences and having heard the views of the Faculty Council, the Executive Board has appointed Bart Barendregt as Dean of the Faculty until 1 April 2027.

Leiden University’s President of the Executive Board, Professor Annetje Ottow, has been reappointed for a second term by the Board of Governors.

Leiden University has a new Executive Board. Since 8 February 2021, Annetje Ottow has been the new President and Hester Bijl the new Rector Magnificus of the Board, while Martijn Ridderbos has continued in his role as Vice-Chairman.

ChatGPT, the text-generating chatbot, has recently become available for anyone to use. Is this artificial intelligence (AI) tool a threat to our teaching?

We asked a lot of everyone last year. The Personnel Monitor showed that the workload was high in 2022 and Covid took its toll. I therefore think everyone deserves some downtime. Time away from the daily grind.

This is a difficult time. Above all, for all those directly involved in this horrible case – unacceptable behaviour by a professor and his removal from the University – the case we went public about on 18 October and that has been reported in the media. This is painful and tough for the complainants…

This week we can vote in the University elections. The University Council and faculty councils are incredibly important. During the fantastic seminar on 50 years of participation that the University Council recently held, our former Rector Carel Stolker aptly said: ‘Without participation, there would…

Several Dutch universities have said they do not want foreign student numbers to grow any more in some of their degree programmes. They are reaching maximum capacity. We are also alert to this in Leiden, but I see many positive aspects to the intake of international students.

If we need funding for a project, equipment or research at the university, we automatically think of the Dutch Research Council or other grant providers. But more and more researchers are managing to connect with people who care about the university.

The rising energy prices cannot have escaped anyone’s notice. They have dominated the news in recent months. As a university, we too face a big challenge as the prices continue to rise. We will all have to do our bit in the coming months, also in view of the climate crisis that we want to help resol…

The more than 370 sensors that have been hung up in Leiden University buildings to count the people present will not be switched on again. The equipment will eventually be removed from the buildings.

Academic freedom is something to be cherished. The freedom to conduct research, design courses and publish research findings as we see fit is crucial to our work.

Professor of Privacy and Cybercrime Bart Schermer researches the relationship between new digital technologies, enforcement and human rights. What cybercrime trends can he see that are relevant to an organisation like Leiden University?

I was disgusted by the recent Ongehoord Nederland broadcast on 15 September. The racist and hateful comments made by alumna Raisa Blommesteijn were, as far as I am concerned, way over the line and in my opinion also violate Article 1 of the Constitution of the Netherlands.

The world is currently beset by many problems. The armed conflict and continuing violence in Israel and the Palestinian territories is resulting in numerous casualties. This is giving rise to many emotions and reactions worldwide, and also greatly affecting our own university community. We have seen…

Organisation

I recently went to the anniversary celebration of The Meeting Point, and the stories the refugee students told made a huge impression on me. The Meeting Point helps students from different backgrounds feel part of our university community.

Leiden University is a fantastic example of a network university: we create an impact with the city, stakeholders and regional and international partners. The lines of communication are really short and there is a great sense of togetherness. Our good relations with the city have also informed how we…

Ever since its foundation, Leiden University has turned its gaze outwards to other cultures, languages and forms of academic practice. It is only natural, therefore, that we as a university have four institutes abroad: the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV-KNAW)…

Now the introduction weeks can go ahead as usual, the new students’ enthusiasm is overwhelming. It’s back to normal for the student associations too, having had a hard time of it during the pandemic.

Each research institute has its own dynamic. The Executive Board is visiting our institutes to find out what they are up to. On 24 June, it was the turn of the Institute for History. ‘History helps us make sense the present, whether through family stories, local issues or world politics.’

A lot is going on in the world right now, and our university regularly faces big issues and dilemmas too. Then it can be tricky to switch off. For me, exercise is a way to unwind. We want our staff to be able to relax too and are therefore offering various events and workshops that should help.

Our annual strategic conference was held this year on 15 and 16 June in Soesterberg, and has now become a tradition at our university.

Academics increasingly face threats, intimidation and abuse. The WetenschapVeilig platform has been launched to address this. Academics who are being threatened or intimidated can seek help from the platform 24 hours a day. It’s good that we now have this platform. But at the same time, it’s awful that…

Good lecturers are extremely important to our university. I therefore think it is crucial that we provide them with enough professional development opportunities. The Lecturer Development Taskforce has issued concrete recommendations on how to improve this. As the Board we welcome this advice.

Our university recently joined the European university alliance Una Europa. Staff from the 11 affiliated universities met in Leiden last week to discuss our collaboration.

We know more together than alone. To increase our university’s impact on the region, we have to be open to the world outside. This is how we strengthen our ties and create new opportunities for teaching and research.

After nearly five years as President of the Executive Board, Annetje Ottow will be stepping down from the role as of 1 September. During her time as President, she helped shape the university’s strategic direction, strengthening its regional, European and international profile. Sustainability, and dignity…

We want to be an engaged community where we feel heard and enjoy working together. But how do we have an open conversation about difficult topics?