One of our PhD candidates at the LACDR, Joey Zuijdervelt, recently achieved recognition by winning the first prize in the ‘Schild-De Groen Onderzoeksprijzen’ for cancer research. His award-winning master’s thesis explored glioblastoma multiforme through an innovative orthotopic zebrafish xenograft model,…

The Faculty of Humanities’ On-Campus Master’s Experience Day was a pleasantly busy event. The information sessions and corresponding information market went down well with interested undergraduates.

The sixth edition of the lecture series Duurzaamheid & Recht was held during the last semester. Once again, it attracted many students.

The Global Summit, which took place from 12-16 January 2021, is an initiative by Richard Albert, the William Stamps Farish Professor in Law, Professor of Government, Director of Constitutional Studies at the University of Texas at Austin, and Founder & Director of the International Forum on the Future…

Dutch retailer Blokker has gone bust. But a restart could be possible depending on the trustee. Research conducted by Jessie Pool and her colleagues has shown that one third of all bankruptcy trustees would prioritise saving the high street.

Professor Susanna Lindberg has been appointed Scientific Director of the Institute for Philosophy with effect from 1 February. In her new role, she aims to foster connections among people. ‘I want my colleagues to feel good.’

Saskia van Otterloo works as a policy advisor on climate adaptation at the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management in the Netherlands. She graduated in 2015 with a bachelor's degree in cultural anthropology and development sociology. How does her knowledge of anthropology help her in her job…

On 14 September the construction of the Spui university building officially began.

Hortus prefect Paul Keßler was a part of the delegation of Leiden researchers that traveled to Indonesia on a knowledge mission. In two weeks, he visited seven different universities and institutes and of course he also went to see three botanical gardens.

One million migrant workers are employed in the Netherlands, often in poor conditions. If we want to reduce labour migration, we need to restructure the economy, says economist Olaf van Vliet. Either way, we need to address abuses, says FNV lawyer Imke van Gardingen.

Staff from Leiden University are starting the Dutch universities’ staggered strike against the government cuts on 10 March. Follow the strike in this liveblog.

Big celebration upcoming weekend: MIRD's 20th anniversary is on the cards. Four alumni from different periods tell what this unique two-year master's in International Relations and Diplomacy has brought them.

More papers, more grants, more students: constant growth is still the gold standard at universities. Neuroscientists Anne Urai and Claire Kelly argue that this mentality obstructs us in resolving such complex societal problems as the climate crisis. Their alternative? The university as a doughnut.

A safe place to discuss burning social issues such as racism with each other. The student workspace Space to Talk About Race and the Afro Student Association both meet this need and also organise many other activities. Three board members explain why this is necessary.

On 1 September, Ad Maas, curator of Rijksmuseum Boerhaave, was appointed professor by special appointment. In this role, he will primarily focus on the representation of natural sciences in museums.

Psychology teacher of the year is Anouk van der Weiden. The master thesis awards are for Irina Verhülsdonk and Christel Klootwijk. Eliška Procházková receives the PhD publication prize; Katja Cardol and Judith Tommel the PhD wild card: the Open Science Award. Conny Binnendijk earns the OBP prize and…

The daisy has been crowned the Netherlands’ national flower. Rogier van Vugt, Head of Horticulture at the Hortus botanicus, explains why the daisy merits its elevation to national symbol.

Students in the third year of the BA International Studies programme follow the Practicing International Studies (PRINS) consultancy course. They conduct a project put forward by real clients and then present them with their research results. PRINS is so successful that it has now been running for 10…

Three Humanities lecturers received the Senior Teaching Qualification (SKO) this year. Lecturer Hossam Ahmed is one of them. What does he think makes for good education?

An impressive 875 students from all corners of the globe are taking part in Orientation Week Leiden (OWL). After all the lockdowns in their own countries, they’re glad to meet up in real life in Leiden. What do they expect of their studies here?

Better recognition and rewarding for support staff. Organisations tend to overlook this, despite the crucial role this group plays. A new initiative is set to change this for our faculty. Paul de Hoog explains how FWN support staff will soon have even better opportunities for growth.

In the new Annual Report 2020 we report on not only the research and teaching, but also the knowledge transfer, operational management and general policy at Leiden University in 2020. The report is divided into a general section and a section with the figures, i.e. the university’s financial stateme…

Fish populations in lakes and rivers have declined in recent decades. This is probably due to light and noise pollution. The Horizon Europe grant enables ecologist Hans Slabbekoorn to investigate this and improve the situation for migrating fish. In order to do so, a seven-metre-long swimming tunnel…

Jonathan Todres appointed as Rotating Honorary Chair in Enforcement of Children’s Rights 2024/2025

After having been cancelled in 2020, this year the Summer School in Languages and Linguistics is going online. From 12 – 23 July, language and linguistics enthusiasts from all over the world can once again learn about a variety of rare languages and linguistics topics. Director Sasha Lubotsky tells…

The sixth specialisation of the Master Crisis and Security Management (CSM) will start in September 2023: Governance of Violence. Coordinator of this track is Professor Marieke Liem. She talks about the how and why of this new track and the importance of research in and knowledge of the nature and scope…

A bloody civil war has raged for years in the Central African Republic. PhD candidate Crépin Mouguia points out a tragic pattern: young people have been recruited as fighters or soldiers for generations and thus fuel the conflicts.

ICT, Security

A clean street, public transportation, or taxes: these are all public goods that keep society running. But how do people decide which public good to invest in, if at all? These are the kind of questions PhD student Laura Hoenig explores.

Working for a social client during your studies: this is what happens at Urban Studies. For the course Urban Studies in Practice, third-year students carry out projects for public clients, such as the municipality of The Hague.

Last Friday, Leiden University College The Hague (LUC) celebrated the graduation of the Class of 2020 ½ and 2021. The 186 students received their Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree’s in LUC’s interdisciplinary honours programme Liberal Arts & Sciences: Global Challenges. Under the silver-…

At Leiden University many staff members and students value making sustainable and responsible choices in their personal lives. Making these choices in our professional lives may feel a bit more complicated. But is that feeling justified? Archaeologists Gerrit Dusseldorp and Roos van Oosten share their…

Maritime archaeologist Martijn Manders has been appointed professor of Underwater Archaeology and Maritime Cultural Heritage Management at Leiden University. He will combine his new appointment at the Faculty of Archaeology, which began on 15 July 2022, with his current position at the Cultural Heritage…

I think we should go this way. This way! THIS! WAY!! Making yourself heard in a city can be difficult. That is not only the case for humans, but birds seem to be hindered by urban noise as well. Researcher Hans Slabbekoorn of Leiden University already showed that great tits in Leiden communicate differently…

Human resources

There are two vacant seats available in the upcoming interim elections for the Faculty Council. What can prospective council members expect? Professor Jos Schaeken, a member of the Faculty Council, explains in more detail.

A big performance by André Rieu, food trucks in The Hague and more contact with the Royal Family: grand plans were announced in April to make the State Opening of Parliament (Prinsjesdag) a real ‘crowd puller’. For this year, however, we will just have to make do with slight differences in emphasis.…

Three of our researchers have been awarded a certificate for receiving enough downloads to be in the top 10% of papers in 2022

In May, the University concluded that a smaller programme of construction would be possible for the Humanities Campus. The new criteria were presented, which will have an impact on the surrounding area. During two meetings held in May and June, local residents, business owners and other stakeholders,…

A European project should help reinvigorate Latin teaching in secondary schools. 'By focusing on citizenship, we want to show that Latin is relevant to discussions about citizenship and migration.'

Stefan Sagel heeft op 10 februari de Gouden Peer arbeidsrecht van het juridische platform Mr. ontvangen. De hoogleraar arbeidsrecht kreeg de onderscheiding op voordracht van twintig juristen uit hetzelfde rechtsgebied.

The Dutch Research Council (NWO) has rewarded four projects in which Leiden researchers are bringing science and society closer together. What are these projects?

Leiden University and the Municipality of Leiden will develop new plans for an alternative Humanities Campus in the city centre. This means they will not proceed with the compulsory purchase of the De Doelen housing complex to facilitate the construction of the new Humanities Campus. The plans to demolish…

Quantum technologies are in demand worldwide, but until now Leiden students could not specialise in them. The new master’s program QIST (Quantum Information Science and Technology) is going to change that. Researcher and professor Jordi Tura i Brugués: ‘We need to train the next generation of quantum…

It’s November, so from now on we will be using Shuttel to log our travel and homeworking days. Esther van Opstal (HR Director) and Karin van den Elzen (Finance Director) were closely involved in developing our new mobility policy and the updated travel allowance. They explain how they use Shuttel and…

This year, Leiden University College (LUC) celebrates its 15th anniversary with the theme ‘Global challenges, local impact’. This theme highlights how LUC tackles global issues through education and research while making tangible contributions to Dutch society

Oud-studenten gingen op 30 augustus weer de collegezalen in om hun vaste plekje op de banken op te zoeken tijdens Leiden Revisited. Bezoekers konden genieten van inspirerende lezingen, maar ook van een gezellige borrel, buffet, en livemuziek.

Jasper Knoester is the dean of the Faculty of Science. How is he doing, what exactly does he do and what does his day look like? In each newsletter, Jasper gives an insight into his life.

With the conference circuit slowly reopening after Covid forced almost all academic interactions online, thousands of conference attendees descended on Brussels for Europe’s largest technology conference. eLaw’s annual sponsorship of one of the many CPDP conference panels brought a diverse range of…