The association agreement between the EU and Ukraine is highly important for peace in Ukraine, and it is therefore essential that Europe weathers these difficult times. These were the words of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on 27 November during his Europe Lecture at Leiden University.

One of the good things about my job is that I come into contact with so many different alumni. It’s incredibly important that we build good relationships with our alumni from a young age already. We can help our graduates develop skills and grow their network, and they in turn can help our organisation…

‘We could share our knowledge more with others and apply it more widely,’ said Annetje Ottow, President of the Executive Board, while presenting the new Strategic Plan on the University’s 447th Dies Natalis. The new Strategic Plan therefore focuses on innovating and connecting, among disciplines and…

Following a period of intensive discussion, the University Council (UR) approved the University Quality Standards Plan on 10 December. The UR endorses the content of the plan in broad terms and is pleased with the extra efforts made by the University.

Professor Wim van den Doel, dean of the Faculty of Humanities at Leiden University, has been appointed member of the Executive Board of the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) with effect from 1 January 2017.

On 8 November 2021 YAL organized the successful symposium Interdisciplinary Research: Challenges and Opportunities.

On Friday 8 June 2018, Hugo Weiland’s long-standing service was celebrated with a festive lunch organized by board members Ida van Veldhuizen en Hans van Eenennaam.

Black-and-white photographs filled with solemn young men and distinguished professors line the walls of the Grand Auditorium. Young women are missing from the photos; women rarely obtained PhDs 50 years ago. And this article is about that group, the PhD candidates between 1966 and 1972, who were invited…

The Durham Declaration was presented at the Climate Symposium marking the Coimbra Group’s 40th anniversary on 26 March. Leiden University is proud to be one of the first signatories of this declaration.

On the occasion of prof Paul van der Heijden’s stepping down as Rector Magnificus and President of the Executive Board of Leiden University in 2013 the Chair bearing his name on Social Justice was established. It was a “farewell present” of the Leiden University to it’s Rector.

Leiden University contributed to colonialism and slavery through its research and teaching. And governors and residents of Leiden had an active role in colonial networks. These are the findings of two explorative studies presented on 3 April.

Jason Rudall, Assistant Professor of Public International Law at the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies, has been awarded the Hsu Mo Prize at the 2023 International Law Association-American Society of International Law Research Forum in Taiwan.

Wim van Saarloos will become Vice-President of KNAW with effect from 1 September 2016. He will also take up the post of Professor of Theoretical Physics at the Faculty of Science at Leiden University with effect from 1 January 2017. He will then relinquish his position on the Board of Governors.

Hoe kijken Nederlandse bedrijven naar online prijsdiscriminatie? Kimia Heidary, Bart Custers, Helen Pluut en Jean-Pierre van der Rest schreven hier een artikel over.

‘‘Stop focusing on the money and start creating a heart for Europe’’ This Friday, the 29th of April, Bernard Steunenberg and his co-authors will launch their book ‘Fit for the Future’. We spoke with him about issues presented in the book, the EU Presidency and why people should read the book.

On January 14th the executive Master’s programme Cyber Security started for the second time at the HSD Campus

Why does one person radicalize to involvement in terrorist violence within a group-based context, while another engages in this form of violence alone?

At the request of outgoing minister Stef Blok, the Province of Groningen wrote a letter to support the minister in his rejection of two amendments by the Dutch House of Representatives.

Ed van den Berg, MBA, will succeed Dirkje Schinkelshoek from 1 September as interim member of the Faculty Board of the Science Faculty, responsible for operational management.

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

Leiden University no longer wishes to collaborate with fossil fuel partners that are not demonstrably committed to achieving the Paris Agreement targets. Exceptions will be made only if a collaboration demonstrably contributes to the energy transition. This proposal by the Executive Board was discussed…

The Plants & Planets exhibition brings two worlds together in a dazzling mix of science, nature and art. It opens at Old Observatory Leiden and Hortus botanicus on 7 February.

On Monday 23 November, Ms Simonetta Cook, member of the Cabinet of the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, addressed master's students following the LLM European Law Programme. She shared valuable insights on what it is like working for the European Council, in addition to some of her…

Of the women studying at university, 52% have experienced some form of sexual harassment. For male students, the figure is 19%.

Between January and April 2017 Armin Cuyvers (Assistant Professor of European Law) will be a Visiting Fellow at the European Political Strategy Centre (EPSC), the in-house think-tank of European Commission President Juncker.

From academic freedom to security and medical breakthroughs: during Leiden University’s 451st Dies Natalis, the speakers reflected on the role of universities in a world of social and geopolitical tensions.

How is interdisciplinary collaboration faring at Leiden University? And has disciplinarity been completely abandoned? I’d like to reflect on some concerns among colleagues and on our plans for the future.

Today, 13 May 2024, Leiden University’s Executive Board is publishing the advice of the committee that investigated reports of unacceptable behaviour and breaches of academic integrity. These reports were about a professor from the university and their partner (a former member of the university staf…

With the six pieces of the puzzle now assembled by the partners of the University Campus and the Mayor of The Hague, Jan van Zanen, the building at the Spui was officially opened last Thursday.

Leiden University has had a campus in The Hague for over 20 years and sees the city as its second hometown.

Martijn Ridderbos has been reappointed vice-chairman of the Executive Board of Leiden University by the Board of Governors.

Prof.dr. Henk te Velde is appointed as the new President of the Association for Political History.

At the recent Historical Keyboard Society of North America Conference which took place from 22-26 June in Hunter New York, Kathryn Cok, Phd was nominated and elected to the position of Vice-President from July 1st by distinguished American and international colleagues.

What is the significance of the history of slavery for our present-day society? A special exhibition in the inner courtyard of the Academy Building features eleven insightful portraits of students and staff, and their answer to this question. The aim of the exhibition’s initiators is to make the subject…

Cyber Security challenges are dominating the international agendas. Therefore, the Cyber Security Academy (CSA) enthusiastically and proudly announces that on Thursday 18th January a fourth group of 26 professionals from a variety of public and private organisations will start the executive Master’s…

The conflict between Israel and Hamas has had a clear impact on Leiden University. Students and staff are angry or scared, feel unsafe and are experiencing group pressure.

Will Belgian politician Didier Reynders become the new secretary-general of the Council of Europa? At the end of January he submitted his candidacy and he now only has one rival: the Croatian Minister of Foreign Affairs Marija Burić.

On Thursday 3rd of March 2016 the 14th Norbert Schmelzer, organized annually by the CDA party, took place in the Hague. This year the lecture was given by Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.

How do colonialism and historical slavery continue to impact the university today? And what should happen next? Students and staff discussed these questions on 11 March.

The Executive Board and Management Board of the EU Fundamental Rights Agency will meet from 13 to 15 December, with Rick Lawson as Acting Chair.

Jan Pronk has been reappointed by the Executive Board of Leiden University as Executive Director of the Faculty of Archaeology. Pronk will begin his second term (2026-2029) on March 1st.

Information about the situation in Ukraine

A group of Chinese law students currently study this semester at the Leiden Law Faculty with a special focus on public international law. These top talents have been selected by the Chinese ministry of foreign affairs to be China’s future diplomats, if they successfully finish their semester in Leiden…

A lecturer winning a prize, an expert appearing in the media or a professor giving their inaugural speech: these are faces we often see. But we rarely see the staff who work behind the scenes to make their work possible. They are now featured in the photo exhibition ‘The forces behind the faces’.

No procession of professors, just a handful of people in the church and snowdrifts outside Leiden’s Pieterskerk: 8 February 2021 was no ordinary Dies Natalis. Carel Stolker transferred the rectorate to Hester Bijl, and Annetje Ottow became the new President of the Executive Board. With an honorary doctorate…

On Thursday the 30st of June and Friday the 1st of July Vicky Kosta and Vestert Borger participated in the workshop ‘Executive discretion, Public Interests and the Limits of Law’ at the University of Amsterdam. The workshop was organized by Joana Mendes in the context of the research project ‘Unveiling…

Professor Sarah de Rijcke will become the new Rector Magnificus on the Executive Board of Leiden University on 15 January 2026. She will succeed Professor Hester Bijl, who will become Rector Magnificus at Delft University of Technology.

How has evolution shaped our curiosity? And how does that curiosity ensure that we now have the technological ability to discover whether we are alone in the universe? This was all covered during the celebration of Leiden University’s 449th Dies Natalis.