Every day, 5 people die by suicide in the Netherlands. Suicide is a complex phenomenon and consequently many questions remain about how to reduce the number of suicides. Renske Gilissen will strengthen both research and education on suicide prevention at Clinical Psychology in Leiden. From June 1,…

PhD student Camil Staps is continuing his academic career in Berlin. He receives a Rubicon grant to do research there on demonstrative pronouns.

AI networks CLAIRE and ELLIS have jointly won the prestigious German Artificial Intelligence prize. The WELT newspaper awarded the prize, worth 100,000 euros, last week in Berlin. The AI Prize is an innovation award for pioneering achievements in AI research and development.

If universities and research institutions want to tackle unacceptable behaviour in academia, they must shift their focus from dealing with complaints to preventing such behaviour in the first place. This is what the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) has concluded. It has therefore…

Neuroscientist Anne Urai is one of 25 early-career researchers recognised with the Rising Stars of Neuroscience Award for outstanding achievements. Known for innovative research and commitment to sustainability in academia, Dr. Urai is among the rising scientists thought to shape the field for years…

Ancois de Villiers, PhD candidate at the Institute of Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology, received the PeerJ Award for Best Student Presentation at the International Mediterranean Ecosystems Conference.

Wim Timmermans, a former lecturer at Leiden Law School, has been appointed Knight in the Order of Orange-Nassau. He was awarded this prestigious honour, among other things, for his outstanding contributions in the field of Russian and East European law.

As of 1 November W&N has a wellbeing officer. Alexandra Blank will commit herself to the wellbeing of our students. Students, but also lecturers and mentors can approach her with ideas and initiatives to support students.

The demonstration on November 14th in Utrecht was cancelled, but alternative protests took place in Leiden and The Hague. Read the message from our Dean why we should keep raising our voices against the proposed budget cuts.

The Academia in Motion programme aims to activate Open Science and Recognition & Rewards across the university. Last year, the faculties were asked to establish their own working groups and set up initiatives. On Thursday 23 January 2025, Leiden Law School’s working group met for the first time.

Dr. Sylvia Le Dévédec has been awarded an OSCARS grant for the project BIO-CODES. OSCARS, a four-year Horizon Europe initiative, promoting the adoption of Open Science in Europe by building on the successes of world-class European Research Infrastructures (RIs) in the ESFRI roadmap and beyond. Among…

LUCL member prof. dr. Holger Gzella has been elected as member of the Academia Europaea (The Academy of Europe).

In a project funded by the John Templeton Foundation to the group of Micha Drukker, scientists will produce stem cells from short and long living understudied species to model cellular and organismal lifespan.

As of 1 September, Tim van Surksum will take on the role of assessor for our faculty. The 22-year-old second-year Mathematics student is excited about his appointment.

Dr Mark Leiser, Assistant Professor in Law and Digital Technologies at eLaw, is part of a successful €1.5 million bid for a research grant from the acclaimed Volkswagen Institute on “Reclaiming individual autonomy and democratic discourse online: How to rebalance human and algorithmic decision makin…

On behalf of the interdisciplinary programme Social Resilience & Security, we would like to remind you of the call for proposals for seed funding (up to €4.000) to boost interdisciplinary research.

In October 2024, Jannemieke Ouwerkerk, Professor of European Criminal Law, was appointed to the European Commission’s (EC) Expert Group on EU Criminal Policy. This independent advisory group focuses on improving coherence and consistency within EU criminal law policy.

Leiden University and four other parties have signed a declaration in which they agree to improve the well-being of students in Leiden. They signed this Declaration on Student Well-Being on 5 April at the Leidsch Besturendiner, a dinner for student associations, universities, local government and bu…

Facility, Human resources, Social

Assistant Professor Briitta van Staalduinen has received the Best Dissertation Award from the American Political Science Association, Section on Class and Inequality. Her dissertation, Ethnic Inequality in the Welfare State, aims to reconcile the persistence of ethnic inequalities in expansive welfare…

This year's RISE Award goes to emeritus professor Jetty Kleijn (LIACS). According to the board of RISE, Kleijn has dedicated herself in the past years to gender equality within LIACS and the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences. It is the first time since the introduction of the award in 2018…

Connecting scientific fields, enhancing research and teaching, and providing innovative solutions to complex social issues: that is the idea behind interdisciplinary research. What did the university achieve in 2024? A small sample.

Het college van bestuur heeft Wim Voermans benoemd tot Universiteitshoogleraar. Hij gaat zich richten op duurzaam institutioneel vertrouwen.

A growing number of student organisations are focusing attention on the mental, social and physical well-being of their members. This year, the first Student Well-being Award was therefore presented at the annual reception for new student association board members (’omgekeerde constitutieborrel’) in…

The rise of extremism in Europe has increased polarisation. The EU-funded DRIVE project, led by Tahir Abbas, Professor of Radicalisation Studies from Leiden University’s Institute of Security and Global Affairs, explores how social, structural, and individual factors contribute to radicalisation, offering…

Five lecturers from Leiden University have received a Comenius teaching award. With the grants they can carry out an innovation project.

Inspired by a gift she received at a conference abroad, Laura Kamsma, coordinator of the FGGA International Office, went looking for new promotional goodies to hand out to the representatives of international exchange programmes at Leiden University - Campus The Hague. The gifts had to meet three requirements:…

Some governments and companies are pursuing a more circular economy, but what is the best way to get there? An international group of industrial ecology researchers wrote a report that stresses the importance of including the scientific side into policies and practices. ‘We feel an obligation to support…

Organisation

Global science research serves the needs of the Global North, and is driven by the values and interests of a small number of companies, governments and funding bodies, finds a major new international study published today. As such, the authors find, science, technology and innovation research is not…

On 17 February 2024, Leiden University's Scheltema building was abuzz with the energy of the annual MSc International Relations and Diplomacy (MIRD) Re-Connect Gala. This year's event marked a joyous return to in-person gatherings, bringing together 200 students, employees, and esteemed alumni of the…

Het College van Bestuur laat door een postdoc een eenjarig vooronderzoek doen naar het koloniale en slavernijverleden van de Universiteit Leiden.

Seven researchers from Leiden University have made a successful application to the Open Competition SSH (Social Sciences and Humanities) XS, a Dutch Research Council pilot programme.

In recent months, the Work Balance in Action core group has taken several steps to improve the work balance at the Faculty of Humanities. The programme is now ready to be shared more widely across the faculty. Core group members Annemiek Hogendorp, Jaap Kamphuis and Ylva Klaassen tell us what to exp…

The Europaeum academic community was awarded the Scaliger medal on 23 September in recognition of its promotion of academic values. Andrew Graham, trustee to the Europaeum and founder and honorary advisor to the Scholars Programme, was presented with the medal by President of the Executive Board Annetje…

Five projects with a lead applicant from Leiden will receive an Open Science Fund grant from the Dutch Research Council (NWO).

How should we organise interdisciplinary work within Leiden University? This was the key question at a symposium organised by the Liveable Planet interdisciplinary research programme. Radical ideas, like getting rid of the faculties, came up for discussion.

Nieuwe medewerkers op de faculteit

Proton therapy is a new way of treating cancer in which radiation doses are delivered more precisely. This results in less damage to surrounding tissue and fewer side effects. Professor Marco van Vulpen is medical director of HollandPTC in Delft, where the social value of this therapy is studied. Van…

No fewer than 55 applications were submitted for a Kiem seed grant, an initiative for developing new interdisciplinary, interfaculty research partnerships and encounters. The draw took place on Monday for the allocation of 22 seed grants. The Executive Board was so impressed with the number of applications…

Luning and Hein receiving a LUF grant to research the intricate relationship between infrastructure projects and their impact on geopolitics, economics, politics, and culture in Africa

Juan Masullo (Leiden University Institute of Political Science) receives a grant from the Elise Mathilde Fund/Leiden University Fund to conduct his research project ‘Forging an Anti-Mafia Culture: Observational and Experimental Evidence from Italy’. Masullo aims to find out what ordinary Italians think…

Hiring academics is more than just tallying up publications, says academic director and history professor Jeroen Duindam. He and his colleagues have come up with tips and guidelines for interview committees that align with the new system of recognition and rewards.

This year, in a three-part symposium series, we are exploring how interdisciplinary collaboration can be promoted at the university. In the second session in March, the attendees discovered that understanding your rhythm and perspective is essential when embarking on an interdisciplinary project.

In a collaborative effort between the Leiden Children’s Rights Observatory, the Leiden Law Academy, UNICEF and the Petitions Section of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, a symposium held last week commemorated the tenth anniversary of the Optional Protocol to the Convention…

The Ministry of Justice and Security and Leiden Law School are planning to collaborate on a more structural basis. This is the outcome of a meeting that took place at the Academy Building in Leiden on 19 October. Those present at the meeting included the Minister for Legal Protection, Franc Weerwind,…

Research

We spoke with Mathilde Witkam about her research as a dual PhD candidate at the Dual PhD Centre. Her dissertation is about the effect of open government on public trust. Mathilde: ‘Trust in government ensures that people are more honest in their tax returns; less control saves time and money.’

Erkennen en Waarderen Academia in Motion

Mathematician Francesca Arici has joined the Raising Public Awareness Committee of the European Mathematical Society. She aims to coordinate and unite the European efforts of communicating and promoting mathematics. ‘We also hope to achieve more recognition for people who do science communication.’