The corona crisis is also a disinformation crisis for the global community in general, and for the European Union (EU) in particular. What is less clear is how adequate the EU’s response to the ‘infodemic’ has been. This essay exposes the dangers of disinformation for the EU, which have intensified…

Almost three years after receiving her honorary doctorate, Dr Graça Machel returned to Leiden University. Over the course of two days she spoke with students, researchers, and other interested persons, about human rights – particularly those of women and children – in a world in which these are continually…

This book aims to unravel some of the mysteries surrounding this exceptional group of larger-than-life Bronze Age blades.

In this article, Madeleine Hosli, Professor of International Relations at the Institute of Security and Global Affairs, and Jaroslaw Kantorowicz, Assistant Professor at the Institute of Security and Global affairs, discusses the relevance of structural variables in a time where European politics are…

In Freedom on the Offensive, William Michael Schmidli illuminates how the Reagan administration's embrace of democracy promotion was a defining development in US foreign relations in the late twentieth century.

In this article, Barrie Sander, Assistant Professor of International Law, elaborates some of the risks that arise from relying on AI technologies to address climate change and explores the extent to which human rights law may be harnessed to address such risks through three registers of human rights…

Large numbers of children all over the world face significant health risks, such as infectious and chronic diseases, malnutrition, injuries and the consequences of natural disasters, protracted armed conflicts and poverty.

On 21 Januari 2020, Patrick van Berlo defended his thesis 'Human Rights Elephants in an Era of Globalisation: Commodification, Crimmigration, and Human Rights in Confinement'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. J.P. van der Leun and Prof. M.A.H. van der Woude.

Darinka Piqani visited the Law Faculty of the University of Tirana (Albania) on 16-20 January 2023 and lectured on the transparency and the right to information in EU law. These lectures were held in the context of the Research Expertise from the Academic Diaspora (READ) Fellowship that Dr Piqani holds…

This paper investigates possible convergence of issue salience of terrorism among citizens within the European Union for ten jihadist attacks in the period 2015–2017 using Eurobarometer survey data.

This book focuses on policing in city-regions in Europe bringing together experts from across the continent to develop a sociology of urban policing and a unique methodology for comparing different metropolises in the same country.

On the 1st of November 2017, Ingrid Leijten hosted an expert-seminar titled ‘Tailored Provisions, Social Rights Compliance?’ (‘Maatwerk als Mensenrecht?’).

Study information

The Sackler Distinguished Lecture Series on Human Rights was established at Leiden University through an endowment given by Dr. Raymond R. Sackler and his wife, Beverly, international philanthropists with a commitment to supporting scientific research. The lectures mark the annual celebration of International…

Study information

The European Elections are approaching and we get to take a trip to our local polling station. But the turnout in the Netherlands is likely to be low and who exactly do we get to vote for? Rik de Ruiter, Associate Professor at the Institute of Public Administration, explains the two political dilemmas…

Which challenges exist for girls to effectuate their right to education and specifically getting access to education?

The European Court of Human Rights recently ruled in favour of a group of older Swiss women. The issued concerned the health of senior citizens, especially women, who experienced symptoms as a result of climate change. They claimed that the Swiss Government should have taken more climate action, as…

On 7 May, Aleksandre Zardiashvili defended the thesis 'Power and dignity: the ends of online behavioral advertising in the European Union'. The doctoral research was supervised by Bart Custers and Simone van der Hof.

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the European Union (EU) and its Member States have adopted wide-ranging legal and political measures to support Ukraine in its struggle.

Does foreign aid promote human rights?

Mark Klaassen presenter at the Reuniting Families: From Access to Integration event organized by the EU office of the Red Cross in Brussels.

The 9th Network Europe Conference in Edinburgh was held at June 2017 in Edinburgh and organized by the Europa Institut Zurich. The contributions of the conference are now published.

The number of children being housed in emergency asylum accommodation has skyrocketed over the past two years. Various agencies have been issuing warnings for several years about the distressing conditions found in emergency accommodation in the Netherlands. Dr Mark Klaassen, Assistant Professor of…

This conference is organised by the European Society for International Law Interest Group ‘EU as a Global Actor’, supported by the University of Leiden (Europa Institute, Europe hub, Ukraine hub), KU Leuven and City Law School, City, University of London. It will be held at the Leiden Law School on…

On 3 December 2019, Meda Couzens defended her thesis 'The application of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child by national courts'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. T. Liefaard and Prof. J.J. Sloth-Nielsen.

On Thursday 20 May 2021, Tania Li delivered the annual Van Vollenhoven Lecture.

As a research project between four Jean Monnet Chairs - two located in Europe, one in Canada and one in the U.S. -- the project DEUBAL has been approved in 2010 for co-financing by the European Commission. DEUBAL aims to study changes in European decision-making due to the Lisbon Treaty, by a combination…

This summer school focuses on the emergence of sexual orientation, gender identity (SOGI) and intersex issues in different areas of international law, such as human rights law, refugee law, international economic law, and international criminal law. Details on the application for this edition are available…

Jorrit Rijpma, Professor of European Law, together with Greek independent researcher Apostolis Fotiadis, investigated the European Commission’s enforcement powers in relation to fundamental rights compliance at Europe’s external borders. The study was commissioned and funded by the Greens Group of the…

This thesis studies theoretical surface chemistry within the field of heterogeneous catalysis.

In November 2022, at the request of the House of Representatives, the Dutch Government established the State Commission on the Rule of Law.

On 7 November 2024, an ESIL Joint Colloquium, organised by the European Society of International Law (ESIL) Interest Group ‘The EU as a Global Actor’ (IG EUGLOBAL), in partnership with the Interest Group on Migration and Refugee Law (IG MigRefLaw), took place on the topic ‘The EU as an (Imperfect) Global…

On Friday 12 September 2025, the Opening Ceremony of the European Law LL.M. programme took place in the Lorentz lecture hall at Leiden Law School. Following Dr Barbora Budinska’s and Professor Armin Cuyvers’s warm words of welcome for the incoming students, Dr Darinka Piqani presented two student pr…

Develop a tool to assess land tenure, access to land and, and land tenure conflict in Timor-Leste

In secondary school, homophobic language is common, even in the Netherlands where there is high acceptance of homosexuality in the adult population. Adolescents especially in lower educational levels have prevailingly negative attitudes towards their lesbian and gay peers. Peer education with its participatory…

In this article, Meier & Nadler suggest that while non-citizen enfranchisement boosts participation across all citizens, citizens with immigration backgrounds are more reactive to the NCV rights in terms of higher turnout. In this way, the paper adds a critical nuance to individual-based explanations…

In this article, Adriana Cerdeira and Dovile Rimkute explore how certain dynamics shape banks' behaviour.

This paper develops a novel theoretical framework for the conduct of postmortems after major foreign policy surprises for the European Union and its member states.

Linde Desmaele explores how the United States is recalibrating its stance on European unity amid growing strategic competition with China.