Thirty years ago, pioneers of the internet expected that this new technology would be a force for freedom, democracy, justice and peace. Yet today digital communications often involve human rights abuses, criminal activity, disinformation, gender-based violence, and cyber warfare. How can we turn these…

What are you going to do for peace and justice? What will your contribution be to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals? And who or what do you need to make sure your idea has impact? Come to Humanity House in The Hague on 21 September.

Today’s world faces large-scale climate change and other environmental disruptions. Meeting these challenges involves major adjustments to economy and society, with substantial potential for conflict and violence. This dialogue assembled leading authorities on the relationship between climate and peace,…

Finding solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the not-inconsiderable task of the new Peace Academy in The Hague. Professor Maurits Berger and twelve students from different conflict zones are starting a creative thinking process that aims to discover the basic conditions for peace in the…

The Just Peace Festival's first edition is live! The Opening Event marked the beginning of two weeks filled with activities to reflect on what peace and justice mean in today's world.

De Tweede Kamer wordt de meest versplinterde ooit, met zeven partijen van drie zetels of minder. Waar verschillende experts waarschuwen voor bestuurlijke chaos, ziet hoogleraar staatsrecht, Wim Voermans, hierin juist de kracht van de Nederlandse democratie, zegt hij in het NRC.

Psychologist Floor van Meer won the first Trial & Error Award for her research on the effect of being distracted while eating on eating behavior. This award from the Journal of Trial & Error (JOTE) honors the often underappreciated aspect of research: learning from errors. For her publication, Van Meer…

The Just Peace festival is coming up shortly. From 21 to 24 September we will be celebrating peace in The Hague with some inspiring HagueTalks, the Peace in the Park festival and the annual Peace Run.

Political scientists Tom van der Meer, Lisa Janssen (University of Amsterdam) and Tom Louwerse (Leiden University) analyse polls presented by the main polling agencies in the Netherlands, as well as micro-level panel data. They reach three main conclusions. First, vote intention polls in the Netherlands…

On 17 March 2023, GTGC co-organized an event on Inclusive Peace in Ukraine together with Leiden University College, the Institute of Global Affairs at Leiden University, the UN University of Peace, and Peace Analytics. The event discussed the peace process in Ukraine and uncovered views from both theory…

This was the fourth panel of the Just Peace Dialogues.

‘Realising we have shared ancestors and that our past is dynamic makes us more accepting of others.’ Sada Mire is an archaeologist at Leiden University and a former refugee – she fled from the civil war in Somalia. At the HagueTalks night during the Just Peace Festival, she will share her thoughts on…

Universiteit Leiden en Unicef werken al 10 jaar samen om kennis over kinderrechten uit te breiden en te verspreiden. Ze verlengen deze samenwerking.

Den Haag is de stad van vrede en recht. Rondom deze thema’s organiseren culturele en maatschappelijke organisaties het festival. De Universiteit Leiden is nauw betrokken bij de organisatie. Universitaire medewerkers en studenten doen bijvoorbeeld mee aan de Vredesloop, Marieke Liem van het Institute…

On Friday 1 April 2022, Tom Buitelaar presented his work to the Conflict, Peace and Security thematic area during a research feedback seminar. The title of his work was 'the Agency of Individuals in UN Peace Operations.'

Do you have a question about studying at leiden University or student life in Leiden or in The Hague? Do you want more information about the Crisis and Security Management programme? Chat with a current student for answers to your questions!

On 10 December 2021, the GTGC Conflict, Peace and Security thematic group organized a research seminar. In this seminar, Tahir Abbas, from the Institute of Security and Global Affairs at the Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs, presented a draft on ERC grant application on the inter-generational…

On 1 October 2021, GTGC Conflict, Peace and Security thematic group organized a research feedback session. In this session, Hilde van Meegdenburg's from Leiden University presented a theory chapter for her planned book about the Narrative Basis of Foreign Policy: On the use of Private Military and…

On 5 November 2021, GTGC Conflict, Peace and Security thematic group organized a research seminar about Migration across the Mediterranean. In this seminar, Eugenio Cusumano from the Institute of History at Leiden University, presented a paper on Migration across the Mediterranean.

War and peace studies. A topic that is more relevant than ever because of the war in Ukraine. In September, the MSc Crisis and Security Management (CSM) will start a new track: War and Peace Studies. CSM’s Programme Director, Ernst Dijxhoorn, discusses the new track, how it was created and what students…

It seems that the Dutch Tax Offices’ Benefit Fraud Scandal has still not come to an end. New skeletons keep falling out of closets which has resulted in a parliamentary inquiry. But is such an inquiry the proper instrument to make sure that no stone is left unturned?

Frits van der Meer and Gerrit Dijkstra of the Institute of Public Administration reflect on the increasing power of political assistants in the magazine “De Hofvijver”.

To say that IT projects in the public sector do not always run very smoothly is an understatement. There are more than enough examples, from the IT project for student loans in the '80s, to problems with IT at the tax authorities, the judicial offices and the police in more recent times.

On 23 September, the Leiden alderman for the Management of Public Space was presented with a Ginkgo Biloba in the Blekerspark. This special 'Peace Tree' was grown from a seed from a tree that survived the atomic bomb that devastated Hiroshima. The Peace Tree is being temporarily housed in Leiden's Hortus…

The imprisoned leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (Partiya Karkerên Kurdistan, PKK), Abdullah Öcalan, called for a peace settlement between Turkey and PKK on 28 February 2015.

On 11-13 November, Dr. Joris Larik, Assistant Professor for Comparative, EU, and International Law at LUC The Hague, took part in the inaugural Paris Peace Forum. The Forum is a new annual gathering focused on tackling global challenges through international cooperation launched by French President…

Het rapport van de Commissie Sorgdrager naar aanleiding van de Hawija-zaak, wijst uit dat Defensie niet transparant is over eigen fouten. Wim Voermans, hoogleraar Staatsrecht, bevestigt in Nieuwsuur dat ‘Defensie een patroon laat zien van verkeerd en onjuist informeren van de Tweede Kamer.’

Reijer Passchier universitair docent Staatrecht in Leiden en hoogleraar Digitalisering en de democratische rechtsstaat aan de Open Universiteit, presenteerde op 11 februari zijn bevindingen over het gebruik van digitale systemen bij de uitvoering van wetten, aan de Vaste Kamercommissie Digitale Zaken,…

Na gedwongen uithuisplaatsing gaan vier op de tien kinderen terug naar huis. Van deze kinderen wordt een op de vier opnieuw uit huis geplaatst. Bovendien komt de uithuisplaatsing vaak onverwachts. Dit blijkt uit Leids onderzoek in opdracht van het WODC.

Donororganen zijn er nooit genoeg. De organen die wel beschikbaar zijn, moeten vliegensvlug getransplanteerd worden. De geneeskunde zet daarom volop in op het langer goedhouden van organen. Marlon de Haan (24) onderzoekt hoe je nieren buiten het lichaam in leven kunt houden.

On 6 May 2022, Alies Jansen presented her work on 'Security Force Assistance in Iraq' to the Conflict, Peace and Security thematic area during a research feedback seminar.

On Friday 4 March 2022, Matthew Hoye presented his work on 'OFAC’s War in Afghanistan: Two Theories on Famine and Sanctions' to the Conflict, Peace and Security thematic area during a research feedback seminar.

On 15 May 2025, a roundtable '80 Years of Peace in Europe?' was convened with students and staff at Leiden University to reflect on the anniversary of the end of World War II.

In celebration of the release of his new book on changes in public administration, Prof. dr. Frits van der Meer, professor by special appointment of the CAOP chair: Comparative Public Sector and Civil Service Reform, handed the first copy to Gert-Jan Buitendijk, Secretary General of Ministry of General…

We are excited to announce the Just Peace Festival 2025, a vibrant platform for dialogue, collaboration, and action on the pressing global challenges of peace and justice!

Every year, the city of The Hague and its partners organise the Peace Run. This year a mixed team of staff and students from the Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs (FGGA) will take part! The aim of the Peace Run (a 5 or 10km run linking various peace related institutions in the city) is to raise…

Sonja Barend distantieert zich van het toneelstuk Sonja, dat gebaseerd is op haar boek. Dirk Visser, hoogleraar intellectueel eigendomsrecht, gaf uitleg in het AD: ‘De auteurs hebben het recht om te zeggen dat ze niet meer achter de productie staan.’

On a referendum held on May 21, 2006, 55.5% of voters in Montenegro voted in favor of their country’s independence. While in numerical terms the outcome shows overwhelming support for independent Montenegro, from a normative standpoint it was a narrow win. The normative framework that regulated rules…

The AI research in the area of peace, justice and security at each of the three universities in Zuid-Holland complements the AI research being performed by the other two. Three researchers explain. Part one in a series of five about themes that the three universities’ AI research covers.

Benoeming Willemijn Aerdts tot lid permanente commissie Vrede en Veiligheid

Promotieonderzoek van Karin Smit bij het Instituut Pedagogische Wetenschappen aan de Universiteit Leiden

Door de kalender-indeling 2026 zijn er weinig aaneengesloten vrije dagen rond Kerst en Nieuwjaar zonder vakantiedagen op te nemen. Gerrard Boot, hoogleraar arbeidsrecht, zegt voor Omroep West, dat ‘wanneer Kerst deels of helemaal in weekend valt je als werknemer gewoon pech hebt.’

Political scientist Femke Bakker (Leiden University) is going to investigate whether meditation affects political behaviour. Bakker has been awarded a PEACE Grant by the Mind & Life Institute, which enables her to conduct innovative, experimental research. The aim is an answer to the question whether…

The issues surrounding the crises at the Dutch Tax Authorities and the Dutch Ministries of Justice and Defence had been known internally for considerable time. The information had been duly passed but criticism was largely ignored. Contradiction expressed by civil servants was not appreciated and even…

On 9, 11 and 13 October the ‘The Hague Peace Conference Simulation’ took place at the Wijnhaven building of Leiden University.

Natalia Sobrino-Saeb, third-year student at Leiden University College The Hague, won the challenge by the Ignitor Fellowship Program held by the Nobel Peace Center for her essay on the threats to journalism in Mexico. On December 10th Natalia met the Committee of the Ignitor Fellowship in Oslo and attended…

Natalia Sobrino-Saeb has attended the Nobel Peace Prize award ceremony in Oslo. She was awarded this honour after winning the essay competition of the Nobel Ignitor Fellowship, a programme that seeks to inspire young changemakers around the world – for change can be made by all of us: “You never know…

The International Day of Light (IDL) celebrates the ubiquitous role light has in our lives. From Argentina to South Africa, Japan and Pakistan, several events have taken place across all continents on May 16. The date is a token for people around the globe to connect with the importance of light in…