12 May 2025

Talented students who are committed to social change can be nominated for an ECHO Award. Do you know a suitable candidate? You can submit a nomination until 23 May!

About the ECHO Awards

The ECHO Award is a nation-wide award for excellent talent in higher education, awarded by ECHO, Expertise Center Diversity Policy. Students who are eligible for an ECHO Award are Dutch students with roots in Africa, Latin America and Asia (including Indonesia and Japan), and international students who are part of an underrepresented group in their own context.

This year, ECHO is introducing a new format. They will award three ECHO Awards to students who distinguish themselves through the impact they create on urgent social issues. Suitable candidates are making tangible contributions that lead to positive change, are being engaged in initiatives focused on policy-related and/or systemic issues and are demonstrating inspiring leadership and the ability to mobilize and motivate others in processes of social change. Bachelor, master and PhD students can be nominated for the ECHO Awards.

In our experience, the trajectory for winners leading up to their nomination is a valuable experience, which positively contributes to their personal development: they reflect on themselves, who they are, and where they want to go. 

The winners of the ECHO Award 2025 will be rewarded with a 6-week Summer Course at UCLA in the United States in 2026. (Subject to change; if the Summer Course is not possible, a suitable alternative will be sought together with the winners).

Curious about the stories and experiences of previously nominated candidates from Leiden University? Read more about the Leiden finalists from 2024.

How to nominate a student

Do you want to nominate a student? Send the following information to the Diversity and Inclusion Expertise Office (diversiteit@leidenuniv.nl):

• Name and email address of the suitable candidate
• Short justification for the nomination by nominator (ca. 250 words)
• If possible, a CV and short motivation from the candidate

The deadline is Friday 23 May. The EDI will collate the university’s nominations and submit them to ECHO.

The D&I Expertise Office of Leiden University will provide guidance to the candidates in writing the final motivation letter and other requirements of the official nomination procedure for the ECHO awards. More information about the ECHO Awards and the award ceremony can be found on the ECHO Website. The procedure as stated on the ECHO website differs from the nomination procedure for the ECHO Awards at Leiden University. Please follow the internal procedure as stated above.

Please contact the D&I Expertise Office via diversiteit@leidenuniv.nl with questions.