Archaeologist Quentin Bourgeois received an NWO Vidi grant to investigate the emergence of a pan-European culture in the third millennium BC. ‘We see ideas being shared across the entire continent in pre-literate societies. And not only that, for a thousand years, the same cultural ideas persist.’

The Dutch phrase ‘ijs en weder dienende’ (literally, ‘ice and weather serving’) is a good example of what is known as a participle clause and is perhaps one of the most unfathomable grammatical constructions in Dutch. For what (or who) is serving whom (or what)? It actually means ‘ice and weather permitting’.…

After one bachelor’s and two master's theses, Fenna IJtsma knew for sure: she wanted to do a PhD. Her thesis supervisor warned her about the high workload. In the 'Twijfeltraject' (PhD: to do or not to do) podcast, published by Mare, IJtsma explores with Mare editor Susan Wichgers whether a PhD track…

Research master's student in history Jesse Dijkshoorn collaborated on a transcription system for medieval texts. ‘It’s nice to make the Middle Ages accessible to people.’

Ten Leiden museums and heritage institutions have curated the online exhibition ‘Carel’s Universe’. They selected objects from their collections that symbolise retiring Rector Magnificus Carel Stolker and the research in Leiden. With direct references, playful associations and the odd nod and wink.

Two Leiden University science communication projects have been awarded a WECOM grant through the Dutch Research Agenda (NWA). One project is a study of the history of the deaf community in the Netherlands and the other is of a condition that causes people to lose their way.

Over the past year, historian Fenna IJtsma delved into 'four centuries of historical greenery'. As part of the Heritage Deal, with input from biologists at Naturalis and others, she looked for inspiration and examples from the past to contribute to a future climate-proof city centre.

The Master's programme in History at Leiden University is set to change. From September 2026, three of the five specialisations will be replaced by new subjects that are more closely aligned with the field of research and students’ interests. One of these new specialisations will also be taught entirely…

How have British cities changed in the years since the Second World War? And what drove this transformation? This innovative new history traces the development of the post-war British city, from the 1940s era of reconstruction, through the rise and fall of modernist urban renewal, up to the present-day…

Dr Letizia Lo Giacco is the recipient of the 2024 Rosalyn Higgins Prize for her article titled 'When a Dispute Exists: The Emerging Evidentiary Practice of the ICJ in Common Interests Proceedings'.

Three Leiden students who have made their dreams of studying abroad come true this year with the aid of a VSBfonds scholarship talk about their experiences.

On Wednesday 16 June 2021, Karim Khan was sworn in at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. Experts say this is no easy time to join the ICC.

Legal action relating to the situation in Gaza is now being taken in various countries and courts around the world. In a podcast for ‘NPO-Radio1’, Larissa van Herik, Professor of Public International Law, outlines what is gained from these cases and the relationship between law, activism and politic…

Last week Russia and Ukraine met for the first time since the outbreak of the war. The talks took place in Belarus.

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…

Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, Professor International Relations and Diplomatic Practice at the Institute of Security and Global Affairs at Leiden University spoke to Belgian (Flemish) news magazine Knack about the position of Europe in relation to the United States and China. ‘Europe has to be careful to avoid…

We are delighted to announce two new exciting research projects at the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies! Dr Misha Plagis and Dr Hilde Woker have each received a starter grant for their collaborative research projects. Dr Hilde Woker and Dr Jason Rudall have received funding for their project…

Pauline Schuyt, Professor of Penal Law and Sentencing, spoke on Dutch current affairs programme ‘EenVandaag’ about the stark rise in combination punishments that include penal hospital orders (in Dutch: terbeschikkingstelling, TBS) and custodial sentences. Since 2019, the number of combination punishments…

The International Health Regulations are a set of binding rules which organise the global response to viral outbreaks and other similar transboundary risks to public health.

Dr. Vanessa Newby (ISGA) and Dr. Catherine Jones from St Andrews won a grant worth over €23.000 from the RSE Saltire Facilitation Network Award entitled: ‘Worse Things Happen at Sea’: The Governance & Security of the Ocean. The grant will comprise three workshops in 2022: one in Leiden, one in Edinburgh…

In mid-March 2020, the European Commission adopted, against the background of the Corona pandemic, temporal common rules for the export into third countries of personal protective equipment, needed in the context of the Corona pandemic, out of the EU.

From 1717 onwards, many Dutch textile workers emigrated to Spain, recruited in the Netherlands through Spanish intermediary agents and diplomatic staff. Bourbon Spain wanted to strengthen its economy by founding royal factories and was in desperate need for skilled foreign labour. This example of labour…

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From October 1-3, 2017, the 24th Annual International Law and Religion Symposium was held at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, USA. The Symposium was attended by 100 participants, from 50 different countries, while interpretation at the venue was available in 11 languages (Arabic, French, Italian,…

Vier leden van het Grotius Centre, Larissa van den Herik, Carsten Stahn, Anna Marhold en emeritus hoogleraar Nico Schrijver, stellen in verschillende media dat de recente aanval op Iran in strijd is met internationaal recht.

The Leiden Political Economy Group (L-PEG) is a multi-disciplinary network of scholars with a research interest in (comparative / global) political economy based at Leiden University. Our members belong to various institutes and faculties across Leiden University, and from other universities across…

Should the law and norms applicable to armed conflict include a distinct category covering the transition from armed conflict to peace, jus post bellum, and if so what are its characteristics?

Het Internationaal Strafhof krijgt veel kritiek op haar tanende invloed als het gaat om gerechtigheid in Oekraïne en Palestina. Larissa van den Herik, hoogleraar internationaal publiekrecht, sprak met Trouw: ‘Internationaal recht is altijd in ontwikkeling en is altijd imperfect.’

A preparatory seminar in Bonn leading up to the Annual Meeting in Johannesburg in August of this year

On 14 April 2016, Professor Carsten Stahn, Programme Director of the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies in The Hague, and Ambassador Bernd Borchardt, Founding Director of the International Nuremberg Principles Academy, signed a new partnership agreement on research cooperation and joint…

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.

Directors of museums in the Netherlands announced in March 2019 that they would be taking new steps in relation to the return of looted colonial artefacts. So what has happened since?

From indigenous space to colonial setting. Archaeological investigations at El Chorro de Maita in Cuba wins prestigious prize.

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Two researchers from the Institute of Political Science were recently awarded prizes. Claire Vergerio received the Francesco Guicciardini Prize for her book on the historical origins of the primacy of the state in international law ('best book in the historical international relations category'). In…

Columnist Folkert Jensma spreekt in zijn recente NRC column over een monumentaal NJB themanummer over de Gaza-oorlog. Larissa van den Herik, hoogleraar internationaal recht, droeg hieraan bij met een NJB-artikel over de vraag of de situatie in Gaza kan worden gekwalificeerd als genocide en wat verplichtingen…

Russia is required to pay billions of dollars to shareholders of Russian oil company Yukos. This was decided by the appeals court in The Hague.

'The kind of knowledge you gain in International Studies can take you anywhere,' says Gaby van de Wal (26, The Hague, The Netherlands), who graduated from the programme in 2018. Her own career path is proof that indeed, an International Studies degree comes with many opportunities.

The Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies, in collaboration with the Cambridge Centre for Environment, Energy and Natural Resource Governance (‘C-EENRG’, University of Cambridge) and the ESIL Interest Group (IG) on International Criminal Justice, is pleased to invite public international scholars,…

The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) is the world’s leading institution devoted to international investment dispute settlement.

Professor Paul van der Heijden (international labour law Leiden University) has been appointed the honorary Marcel Storme chair at the University of Ghent. The Marcel Storme chair is a rotating professorship at the law faculty of the University of Ghent which according to the regulations is solely…

On 2 April 2025, Anna Marhold, a member of the Peace and Security Committee of the AIV and Assistant Professor at the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies, joined a technical briefing to parliament providing advice on hybrid threats and societal resilience.

The Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies, in collaboration with the ESIL Interest Group on International Criminal Justice and the Journal of International Criminal Justice (JICJ, OUP), is pleased to invite public international scholars, students and practitioners to attend a conference that…

Leiden University won three prizes at the International Criminal Court (ICC) Moot Court Competition – English edition. The final round was held on 27 June 2022 in Courtroom I of the ICC in The Hague (the Netherlands). Due to current COVID-19 related restrictions, it was a hybrid hearing with judges…

Last week, the 12th Annual Conference of the European Society of International Law (ESIL) took place on the topic of How International Law Works in Times of Crisis. The conference was hosted by the Riga Graduate School of Law in cooperation with the Latvian Constitutional Court. The conference intended…

This page features an overview of relevant lectures, publications and conference papers.

On Wednesday 9 March, a Faculty meeting about the war in Ukraine was held for staff and students in the Lorentz Lecture Hall. By the time the meeting started at 17.00 hrs, the 220 available seats in the lecture hall had been filled mainly by large numbers of students.

For the first time, a court has ordered a company to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions. Lawyers see it as a landmark ruling that will have far-reaching consequences for Shell and possibly also other similar companies.

South Africa is suing Israel on charges of genocide in Gaza. The case is being heard at the International Court of Justice in The Hague this week. Professor Larissa van den Herik, an expert in Public International Law specialising in the law on genocide, explains the situation to NOS.