Analysing the ways in which immigration structurally challenges and changes the organization and conceptual boundaries of national welfare states.

On 12 September 2019, Michiel Rhoen defended his thesis 'Big Data, Big Risks, Big Power Shifts: Evaluating the General Data Protection Regulation as an instrument of risk control and power redistribution in the context of big data'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. G.J. Zwenne and Prof.…

Profile Area Political Legitimacy, Leiden University

Leiden University’s new ‘Europe Hub’ is an interdisciplinary platform that showcases the university’s research and teaching expertise and capacities on Europe’s societal and governance challenges.

At the very heart of the law, ethics, and digital technology.

On 22 June, Anneke Koning defended the thesis 'Return to sender: a multi-method study of guardianship against transnational sexual exploitation of children'. The doctoral research was supervised by Joanne van der Leun, Masja van Meeteren and Johan van Wilsem.

This case study (in French)—conducted as part of the NWO/Clingendael Institute project ‘Plural Security Insights’—highlights how the dilemma of security provision in Tunisia is part of a crisis of trust between society and state institutions.

Digitalisation to achieve sustainable (administrative) justice.

The Divide & Quantum (D&Q) project offers various solutions to harness the power of quantum computers in the near term, proposing entire pipelines, from theoretical research, via implementation to real-world case studies in a number of disciplines, to science communication with the broader society.…

The mobile lab, the Psychology Lab on Wheels, brings science to the general public!

Constitutional and administrative law is a specialisation of the master’s programme Rechtsgeleerdheid (Law) at the renowned Leiden Law School of Leiden University. This programme looks closely at the interaction between national and European law.

We complete this thematic issue’s contribution on skill, food, and sustainability with a team report based on ethnographic research which focuses on reskilling for sustainability in multiple European locations and involving diverse social actors and stakeholders. The Food Citizens? project (2017-2024)…

The smallness of Suriname, according to political scientist Wouter Veenendaal (Leiden University), strongly affects and shapes the nature of democracy in the country. On the one hand, clientelism ensures that members of each ethnic group included in power-sharing arrangements have access to state resources…

Xiamen is a a city in the Chinese province Fujian. It currently has about 4.3 million citizens in the city. It is therefore the largest city of the province.

Political scientist Maurits de Jongh (Leiden University/Sciences Po) argues that political liberalism is self-defeating as a framework of justification for liberal conceptions of justice. He explores how the framework's self-imposed criterion of acceptability in the eyes of all reasonable citizens leads…

The field of science communication is very broad. Below is a list of organisations where SCS students can fulfill internships or where alumni have found jobs.

The results of the investigations by citizens are used in an innovative research project that investigates the potential of machine learning and automated detection in archaeology.

We work with groups and individuals, stakeholders and centers of excellence to create an environment in which Open Science and Recognition & Rewards can flourish.

Children are little scientists by nature. The best way to introduce them to science is to put them to work and let them do actual scientific research.

Citizens, journalists and scholars notice that foreign policy in, and of, the European Union, is ‘de-Europeanising’. Political scientist Daniel Thomas (Leiden University) offers a theoretical exploration of the likely implications. He expects that it will become more difficult for the EU to achieve…

Law is of major importance for socio-economic development. Ideally, law organizes human interaction in a way that promotes justice and legal certainty and protects vulnerable groups from exploitation and arbitrariness.

This paper will address how digital affordances (Grasseni and Walter 2014) of the interactive documentary are an epistemological tool that shapes and fosters comparative reflections in collaborative ethnographic projects. To do so, I will analyse the process of planning and coding an i-doc (interactive…

Citizens in multiple crime-ridden countries strongly support the militarization of security—that is, placing the military in charge of traditional policing duties. Yet, we know little about the determinants of such support. Do people approve of militarization even in the face of human fatalities? Political…

How interest groups, differences in policy issues and institutional differences between countries affect whether public opinion is translated into policy?

Canal Watch (De Grachtwacht), which has been cleaning canals since 2018, has received the Dutch Research Council (NWO) Communication Initiative Award.

Psychology Lab on Wheels makes science accessible for everyone. On Monday 24 June, we will be back with our mobile lab at the Old Observatory near the Singelpark in Leiden. Join our research to learn to better recognise emotions with a Serious game and read more about participant Maxime and game developer…

A diverse team of Leiden archaeologists applied for, and was awarded, the KNAW ‘Appreciated!’ grant, meant to further their science communication endeavours. We speak with Dr Maikel Kuijpers, who is the main contact person of the application.

Lecture, Research Seminar

It was long thought that the early development of Japanese children's books served mainly as a propaganda tool of the state: the literature was supposed to have been written to shape children into perfect citizens. PhD student Aafke van Ewijk nuances this image. Children's book writers wanted to have…

Lecture, 7th ENIUGH congress

Governance is a complex puzzle of organisations, people and divergent interests. Academic research in this field furthers our knowledge of the role of public administrators, of different organisational structures, of the people who work at such organisations and of how these organisations implement…

meet our staff

The image of the European Union (EU) as a remote law-making machine is widespread. Quite often journalists and politicians deliberately depict ‘Brussels’ as bureaucratic, even undemocratic, bypassing its citizens. And many of us buy into that image. Nikoleta Yordanova, Anastasia Ershova and Aleksandra…

Engagement between Asia and Europe is increasing. If these continents want to build a lasting relationship, they need to understand each other better in the economic, socio-cultural, historical and legal arena. Researchers from Leiden have already contributed to the body of knowledge on past and present…

Governance and Global Affairs, Institute of Security and Global Affairs

The transition from fossil fuels and the practical changes that this entails make many demands on citizens. Emma ter Mors, a psychologist and lecturer at Leiden University, is researching the factors that contribute to public perception and acceptance of new energy technologies.

Professor of Islam and the West Maurits Berger wants to use citizen science to answer this question. On the futureofislam.eu website, he is inviting European Muslims to complete an anonymous survey about how they see their future and the role of Islam in this. He will present the first findings at the…

The European Registry of Exonerations database provides an overview of miscarriages of justice in Europe with a view to preventing future errors.

At Leiden University College we are determined to offer the best Liberal Arts & Sciences programme, and we believe that our students have the potential to play a leading role in tackling the challenges our world faces. Therefore, we aim to ensure that any student - regardless of their background - can…

Edward Elgar

Biodiversity is under pressure worldwide, but is essential for our health, food security and well-being. What is the influence of human actions on ecosystems? Can we provide biodiversity-inclusive solutions for our key societal challenges? These questions are central to the Biodiversity research the…

Are there general principles or values that should govern our actions as moral agents and/or as political subjects?

At Campus The Hague, the University works closely with diverse parties and institutions in the city.

How can Indonesia’s Ombudsman in the Regions be strengthened?

Brenda M.S. da Silva and colleagues designed and validated the “Moral Emotions Questionnaire” (MEQ) for identifying three major moral emotions in preschoolers – allowing to separately measure guilt, shame and pride at the youngest ages.

With the emergence of new methods and technologies such as improved DNA analysis and big data, archaeological research has changed radically in recent decades. The researchers from the Department of Archaeological Sciences at the Faculty of Archaeology use new scientific knowledge to answer fundamental…