Digitalisation can make a huge contribution to a greener future, but it must also be as sustainable as possible. To make significant progress, more collaboration and national leadership will be needed. Leiden University has therefore signed the Digital Sustainability Manifesto, which was presented on…

Many Western defence strategies concentrate on maintaining the status quo. Actively promoting universal values can also be a good strategy for resilience, according to Theo Brinkel, Professor by Special Appointment in Military-Social Studies. Inaugural lecture 15 January.

Stichting Onderwijsgeschillen (Foundation for Educational Disputes) is pleased to announce that it has established an endowed chair ‘Conflictoplossing en rechtsbescherming in het onderwijs' (conflict resolution and legal protection in education) at Leiden University.

For most school students, writing their extended essay (or profielwerkstuk) is the first time they really come into contact with what it means to do research. But where do you start? This is a question that is nonetheless relevant in contexts where the extended essay is written in English, such as bilingual…

As one of the first environmental scientists ever, Arnold Tukker received the honorary doctorate at Linköping University on Saturday 12 November. This Swedish university awarded Tukker for his scientific work to establish a circular economy.

A cultural delegation from Taiwan has presented 175 books and journals to Leiden University. The gift is meant as thanks for all the research carried out by the university on the subject of the indigenous peoples of Formosa, as Taiwan was called in the past.

On 9 June the deans of Leiden University met for the 500th time with the Rector Magnificus for the Board of Deans. An informal, inspiring and contemplative meeting without a strict ending time, say deans and former deans.

He had been emeritus for 13 years when he suddenly received an email from Poland. Professor of Inorganic Chemistry Jan Reedijk was awarded an honorary doctorate from Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń. During the celebration of the 550th anniversary of the birth of patron Nicolaus Copernicus,…

Crucial information about research, funding or how university rankings are created is often not freely accessible. The Barcelona Declaration on Open Research Information calls for such information to be made open. Professor Ludo Waltman is one of its initiators. What needs to change?

Lara Ummels came from Maastricht to study law in Leiden, and never left. She recently joined the board of the 3 October Association.

The Molecular Physiology group collaborates with both international public-private and academic institutions.

From Friday evening 23 October Leiden University will receive 120 refugees in our University Sport Centre (USC) on the Einsteinweg in Leiden. The refugees will stay for a week, up to and including Friday 30 October. This measure has consequences for students and staff. Sporting activities in the sport…

A stretchy sheet over a bowl representing space, a marble on it's surface creating a dimple, deforming space. Simple classroom experiments like these are featured in new educational videos by AstroEDU. In the videos Leiden astronomers Maria Cristina Fortuna and Henk Hoekstra explain what we know of…

A professor from Leiden University has subjected various colleagues to intimidating and unacceptable behaviour for a longer period. These are the findings of an investigation carried out by the University’s independent Complaints Committee for Unacceptable Behaviour at the request of the Executive Board…

Jan Erk, political scientist at Leiden University, has been selected as the 2016-2017 Smuts Memorial Fellow at the University of Cambridge. During his residency at the renowned British academy, he will work on his research project ‘The Enduring Impact of Africa’s extinct kingdoms and invisible chief…

Leiden PhD candidate Mona Shahab climbed Mount Everest two years ago to raise money for the education of disadvantaged children in Egypt. She made it to the top and posed there with the University flag. She recently presented the flag to Rector Carel Stolker.

Leiden University will be opening a new Student Centre in The Hague, in the Orion Building at Turfmarkt. The Centre will have room for social and cultural activities, study workplaces and a fitness room for the growing number of students and staff at the Hague Campus.

Last Friday, 2 February, Mariana Gkliati presented a paper at the Seminar, ‘Controlling Migration through Cooperation: Recent trends in the externalisation of migration control’, at Tilburg University, which was discussed by Thomas Spijkerboer and Thomas Gammeltoft-Hansen.

Under the direction of Professor Thomas Jaeger, the University of Vienna in cooperation with the Austrian Society for European Law organises regular 'European Law Workshop Talks'. On 19 May 2022, a lecture given by Christa Tobler on the topic '

On 19 November 2019, the Faculty of Law and Criminology of the University of Ghent (Belgium) and the Ghent European Law Institute organized an academic workshop.

Prof. Ton Liefaard and Chrisje Sandelowsky-Bosman visited Curaçao to launch de Caribbean Center for Children’s Rights and present research.

Madalina Busuioc, Associate Professor at the Institute of Public Administration, has been awarded the prestigious Fernand Braudel Senior Fellowship by the European University Institute (EUI) in Florence.

No more smelly lorries disposing of building waste or delivering building materials to the centre of Leiden. That’s Leiden University’s ambition for its future renovation or construction projects in the city centre. Electric boats should make the process cleaner and less inconvenient for the people…

On 16 February, Leiden University participated in the Dutch National Rounds of the 2024 Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition, the world's largest moot court competition featuring participants from approximately 700 law schools across the world.

It was not until 1878 that the first female students enrolled at Leiden University, but the discussion on whether women were suited to study was by no means over. 8 March is International Women's Day. BBC correspondente Kim Ghattas will deliver a lecture on 6 March on the struggle by Arabic women for…

Astronomers from Leiden Observatory have developed a new method to find distant quasars and better distinguish them from other objects that look like them, using machine learning techniques. The research result has been accepted for publication in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics. It is the last…

Lifelike gods, provisional professors and the city militia with weapons a clanking. Leiden put on a colourful procession and drummed up hundreds of citizens to celebrate the foundation of the first university of the Republic of the Netherlands on 8 February 1575. 'It wasn't a party just for the sake…

With this quote in mind, we organised an alumni event in Brussels for those alumni that live and work in the Brussels Area. 67 mostly young alumni - the majority graduated in the years 2010-2019 - showed up at the beautifully renovated Holland House, situated near the lively Place du Luxembourg (better…

Dr Ionica Smeets, one of the well-known ‘Maths girls’, has been appointed part-time Professor of Science Communication at Leiden University with effect from 1 July. Over the coming five years she will carry out research on science communication, how the subject is taught and how to raise students’ enthusiasm…

The celebration of Leiden's Dies Natalis on Monday 9 February in the Pieterskerk was extra special this year and was attended by many prominent guests. This was the kick-off of the special 88th Lustrum (five-year) celebrations in 2015.

In October 2014, Leiden University established the ‘Leiden University Teachers’ Academy’. Helen Westgeest, who lectures in the BA and MA Art History and MA Media Studies, was put forward by the Faculty of Humanities for appointment in the so-called ‘LTA’.

The Academy for Professionals project started in November. The project will focus on further developing existing and new educational programmes for professionals. ‘This is part of taking valorisation seriously.’

Memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between ISGA and Fukushima University during visit in Japan

It is crucial that Leiden University reflects on its colonial history. These were the words of Cleveringa Professor Gert Oostindie in his inaugural lecture on 24 November. ‘As a university community, we must dare to hold up a mirror to ourselves and, where possible and necessary, also take concrete…

What role do the soil and soil organisms play in the restoration of nature quality? This is what researchers at Leiden University are going to find out, together with water company and nature manager Dunea. They will do this by inoculating soil, whether or not sterilized, with soil and seeds. On Friday…

Every year, the Netherlands and Belgium Red Cross organize the Frits Kalshoven International Humanitarian Law Moot Court Competition, which brings together students from both Dutch and Belgian universities.

The Leiden University Centre for the Digital Humanities (LUCDH) invites applications from Leiden University staff and students for funding aimed at developing Digital Humanities activities.

The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences at Leiden University is considering establishing a special chair for Workplace Pride. The professor appointed to this chair will study opportunities for improving the position of lesbian women, homosexual men, bisexuals and transgender people (LGBTs) in…

The Leiden bachelor’s programmes in Linguistics, Religious Studies and Ancient Near Eastern Studies have received the accolade of ‘top study programme’ in the Keuzegids (Study Guide) 2019 for Universities.

It is the third year in a row that the Faculty of Archaeology is ranked the highest in continental Europe. Aside from this the faculty features, as it did last year, in the top ten worldwide.

It is the sixth year in a row that the Faculty of Archaeology is placed in the top ten of archaeological institutes worldwide. The QS World University Rankings by Subject looks at criteria like academic reputation and citation ratios.

Leiden University College The Hague received the 'Top rated Programme' seal from the Keuzegids Universiteiten 2021 (Dutch University Guide). It is the eighth consecutive time the Liberal Arts & Sciences programme focusing on Global Challenges is awarded the honorary seal.

Leiden University has become more sustainable in the past few years, but it could do better, particularly in the area of teaching and research. A student and staff workgroup is preparing a new Sustainability Vision 2030. Programme Manager Daphne van den Berg explains how this is taking shape and where…

Leiden University College The Hague received the 'Top rated Programme' seal from the Keuzegids Universiteiten 2020 (Dutch University Guide). It is the seventh time in a row the Liberal Arts & Sciences programme focusing on Global Challenges is awarded the honorary seal.

Leiden University Libraries (UBL) has acquired a rare manuscript map of Suriname. The map from 1830 is almost 2.5 meters long and is highly detailed. It was hand-drawn by Helmuth Hendrik Hiemcke (1808-1858), one of the official surveyors employed by the colonial administration, and shows Suriname in…

The University’s Executive Board (College van Bestuur) has decided to continue the Leiden University profile area Asian Modernities and Traditions for another four years, from 2015 to 2018. By 2018, AMT2 commits itself to achieve demonstrable results in enhancing the visibility of Asian research both…

How can we further streamline the development of software for the government? Leiden University and ICTU are to investigate this in a joint research project that was launched on 6 July 2016.

Last Wednesday, on 12 May 2021, Leiden University hosted the virtual Young FIDE Seminar. This online event brought together junior EU law scholars and practitioners to discuss the three topics of the main XXIX FIDE Congress, which will take place from 3 to 6 November 2021 in The Hague and of which Leiden…

It is the seventh year in a row that the Faculty of Archaeology is placed in the top ten of archaeological institutes worldwide. The QS World University Rankings by Subject looks at criteria like academic reputation and citation ratios.

We talked to Hester Bijl about the worldwide protests sparked off by the death of George Floyd. A demonstration against racism will also be held in Leiden on 14 June. How does she, as Vice-Rector responsible for diversity and inclusion, view this issue? What steps is the University taking? And how can…