Dialogue session

Lecture

A cover over your drink in the pub, deodorant as pepper spray or headphones to avoid hearing catcalling: many women use everyday objects to feel safer in public spaces. Student Anne van der Linden made an online exhibition about this.

PhD defence

The Week of the International Students, from 14 – 18 November is an initiative of Nuffic. The aim of this week is to showcase the importance of an international experience for both Dutch and international students. This year’s theme Meet the world, make the change highlights the positive change students…

Leiden Law Cast is a podcast made by Leiden Law School, Leiden University, for everyone who wants to learn more about current legal issues.

Marokko zegt het contact met de Duitse regering op. Volgens Marokkaanse media is ministeries en andere overheidsinstanties per brief gevraagd direct de samenwerking op te schorten met de Duitse ambassade in Marokko.

Shell Nigeria is liable for damages from oil spills in Nigeria. The Hague Court of Appeals gave this ruling in a case that was brought by four Nigerian farmers.

Should we cut our ties with Israel or maintain them? The event ‘A university conversation on Israel/Palestine’ on 1 July revealed the depth of feeling about the conflict, with students and staff grappling with academic values and moral dilemmas.

Geopolitical situations, such as the conflict in Gaza, evoke strong emotions among staff and students. How do we discuss such situations at our faculty? This issue is an ongoing part of safeguarding academic freedom at our university.

A peer educator intervention can give pupils more knowledge and awareness about their LGBT peers, and sometimes also a more positeve view. This is the subject of Marieke Kroneman's dissertation. Defence on 15 September.

The university elections are approaching. Are you going to represent student and staff interests this coming year? University Council chair Pauline Vincenten gives a peek behind the scenes at student and staff participation at Leiden University. ‘I get so much energy from collaborating with the students…

Can Russia be prosecuted for war crimes against Ukraine? The International Criminal Court does not have this jurisdiction. To fill this void in jurisdiction, a new commission has been created: an International Centre for the Prosecution of Crimes of Aggression, the ICPA.

Aoife Fleming attended the climate summit in Glasgow as UN Youth Delegate for the Netherlands. She recently graduated with a master’s degree in Financial Law.

The Security Studies bachelor's programme has received a bronze medal in EW Best Studies 2023. Every year, EW Best Studies selects the top programmes in Dutch higher education.

‘Islam and Muslims are not something that happened to Europe; they are part of Europe. In fact, Islam is one the biggest constants in European history,’ argues Professor Maurits Berger in the new eight-part History of Islam in Europe podcast series of the Leiden University Faculty of Humanities.

Education

The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) has awarded a KNAW Early Career Partnership 2023 to Philippe van Gruisen for interdisciplinary research on (labour) migration from a broad perspective on societal wellbeing.

In an essay published in three prominent European newspapers, Professor Luuk van Middelaar takes a close look at Europe’s role in the Russian invasion of Ukraine. ‘Europe shows plenty of political energy, but what is still lacking is strategic cool-headedness, in facing a nuclear power.’

The student elections for the student representatives of the Faculty Council will take place from 22 to 25 April. Prominent members of four student parties engaged in a debate last Thursday on topics close to students’ hearts.

Practice and science show that secure residential youth care in the Netherlands should no longer be used as a catch-all solution. This is the conclusion of several professionals including Professor of Child Law Mariëlle Bruning in Dutch newspaper NRC.

The first fine for space debris has been issued. An American company that had failed to clean up its space junk has been fined $150.000.

Education, Organisation

It is with great sadness that Leiden University has learned of the death of Professor Cees Fasseur (11 December 1938–13 March 2016)

By the time you read this message, it will already be February. But since this is our first newsletter of the year, I still feel compelled to wish all of you a very happy New Year!

The legal protection of parents and children in cases involving placement in care must improve. That is the opinion of Mariëlle Bruning, Professor of Children and the Law.

Leiden University has seven top-rated bachelor's programmes according to Keuzigids universiteiten 2026, a consumer guide to university programmes. This is based on the National Student Survey.

Lecture

Level Up is a non-profit project led by a multi-disciplinary team of doctoral researchers in the framework of the Europaeum Network was founded by the University of Oxford University. Sophie Veriter explains the importance of Level Up, the development of the ‘Level Up Toolkit’, and why this project…

The 2025 Data for Policy conference at Leiden University explored how digital and green transitions can shape a more sustainable and inclusive future.

A consortium including economists, psychologists and public administration scholars from Leiden University will study public acceptance of the hydrogen transition in the Netherlands. They will look at the labour market impact, public perceptions of hydrogen and businesses’ willingness to invest.

Salvador Regilme recently joined the Institute for History as a lecturer in International Relations.

What is the top 50 most popular studies among employers? That's what career platform Magnet.me investigated for the second consecutive year. What does it show? The programmes of the Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs are well represented in the ranking.

Lecture

Within the scope of Leiden European City of Science, the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) presented the quadrennial Lorentz Medal to Daan Frenkel in the Academy Building yesterday. The ceremony was in collaboration with the Lorentz Center and was attended by Robbert Dijkgraaf, Minister…

Last week Russia and Ukraine met for the first time since the outbreak of the war. The talks took place in Belarus.

Conference

Organisation

Lydie Cabane, Assistant Professor at ISGA, has written an article in E-International Relations to discuss the key lessons from other crisis management domains to improve the EU response to pandemics.

Leiden University’s Annual Report 2021 has been published. In this report, which consists of a general section and a financial section (the financial statements), the University provides a record of its research, teaching, knowledge transfer, operational management and policies in that year.

The Leiden-Delft-Erasmus (LDE) alliance signed a collaboration agreement with the Indonesian Ministry of Education, Culture, Science and Technology on 23 September.

The European Commission awarded the project proposal INSIGHT, a follow-up project on illegal firearms trafficking and gun violence from Professor Social Resilience and Security Marieke Liem and PhD-researcher Katharina Krüsselmann of the Institute of Security and Global Affairs (ISGA).

Students and researches from all faculties at Leiden University are warmly invited to a lunch meeting on Monday 14 October, discussing the rise of AI and the challenges this poses for various governance structures. The event is hosted by Leiden University’s interdisciplinary programmes GTGC and SAIL…

Loes Janssen would like to foster well-being of families by using an app and sending families short and fun activities each day to do together. For the Synergy Award ’21, PhD candidates were invited to submit their innovative idea on how to create societal impact. Watch the final on 4 February and vote…

Sinds Februari, werkt Angus Mol als UD bij het Centre for Digital Humanities (LUCDH). Zijn aanstelling wordt gedeeld door het Instituut voor Geschiedenis en het Centre for the Arts in Society (LUCAS). Hiervoor werkte hij voor het Prins Claus Fonds voor Cultuur en Ontwikkeling, deed NWO-Rubicon onderzoek…

Kenan van de Mieroop recently joined the Institute for History as Assistant Professor. Below, he introduces himself.

How do you set up successful interdisciplinary collaborations? That is the central question of a triptych of Leiden symposia in 2024. The final part, on 6 June, looks at cooperation and decompartmentalisation between public institutions. In addition, there will be information on the new round of Kiem…

Lukas Milevski is a lecturer in International Studies at the Institute for History. He introduces himself.