Each year, the Leids Universitair Fonds (LUF) awards grants to research and educational project in various academic fields. In 2019, dr. Tanachia Ashikali received a grant to conduct an in-depth study into the determinants of inclusive leadership in public organisations: What does it take to be an inclusive…

It may be the best tradition of them all: on the university’s birthday, its professors go to primary schools to teach a special lesson. This year, 75 professors visited 44 local schools. ‘How does stress get into your body?’

Portraits of six Leiden professors for whom 8 February 2016 was the first time that they took part in the procession of Leiden professors at the Dies Natalis.

Smartphone behaviors are so common but how does the brain generate this behavior? The Cognition in the digital environment laboratory (CODELAB) investigated the brain activity surrounding smartphone interactions with the help of Artificial Intelligence. According to their research, the brain fluidly…

Presence of LUGO

At the Dies Natalis Willem Otterspeer, Professor Emeritus of University History, presented the fourth and final volume of Groepsportret met Dame, his series on the history of Leiden University. De 'Strategie van de Aanpassing' covers the period 1876-1975. Otterspeer talked about his book in a podcast…

On 8 February 2016, Dr Jennifer Tour Chayes, Director of Microsoft Research in Boston and New York, will be presented with a Leiden honorary doctorate by Frank den Hollander, Professor of Probability Theory and Statistical Physics.

How can we explain that Caribbean small states have the most stable two-party systems in the world, while Pacific small states have either very weak parties or no parties at all? Matthew Louis Bishop (University of Sheffield, UK), Jack Corbett (University of Southampton, UK) and Wouter Veenendaal (Leiden…

Over 1,200 children from junior schools in Leiden and The Hague were taught by a real professor on the university's anniversary.

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.

Course, Summer School

American anthropologist Rosemary Joyce will be awarded an honorary doctorate from Leiden University on its Dies Natalis on 8 February. Joyce has delivered important new insights into the ancient Mayan cultures of Central America.

Does suffering suffice? Andrei Poama, Assistant Professor at Leiden University, and Paul C. Bauer, research fellow at the Mannheim Centre for European Social Research, did an experimental assessment of desert retributivism. Their resulsts were published on April 20 on PLOS ONE.

Jaroslaw Kantorowicz examines how strategic climate litigation influences public attitudes on climate policy, using a UK experiment to explore legal cues.

Using brain imaging to discover the area in the brain that recognizes emotion.

The Rijksmuseum welcomes international, independent research proposals which open new perspectives on the museum’s collection, its history and activities. The programme enables highly talented candidates to base part of their research at the Rijksmuseum, and offers access to the museum’s expertise,…

The celebration of Leiden's Dies Natalis on Monday 9 February in the Pieterskerk was extra special this year and was attended by many prominent guests. This was the kick-off of the special 88th Lustrum (five-year) celebrations in 2015.

Is my cap on straight? Where in the cortège will I be walking? These are some of the questions asked by professors joining the Dies Natalis procession for the first time.

A school lesson by a professor, for instance about the history of Africa, the climate or research and healthcare. A hundred Leiden professors told primary school children about their work in the Meet the Professor project.

Carel Stolker, former Rector Magnificus and President of the Executive Board of Leiden University, has been made an Officer in the Order of Orange-Nassau for his services to the city and University. Mayor Henri Lenferink awarded the royal honour to Stolker at the University’s Dies Natalis on 8 February…

Maarten Feteris, the former president of the Court of Appeal and an alumnus of Leiden University, composed the piece ‘Intermezzo’ to mark the transfer of the rectorate during the Dies Natalis on 8 February 2021.

‘Praesidium Libertatis is a daily responsibility.’ These were the words of Rector Magnificus Carel Stolker on 8 February during the 443rd Dies Natalis of Leiden University. The University needs to pay continuous attention to open debate if it wants to remain a bastion of freedom.

Leiden University will confer an honorary doctorate on astrophysicist Sara Seager for her work on exoplanets.

On February 10, 2026, emeritus Professor Dr. Takamitsu Muraoka (1938–2026) passed away, one day after celebrating his 88th birthday. From 1991 until his retirement in 2003, he held the chair of Hebrew Language and Culture, Israelite Antiquities, and Ugaritic at Leiden University.

The Faculty of Humanities is proud to launch its new D&I Calendar for the academic year 2025-2026. This calendar is an effort to build awareness and cultural understanding of important religious holidays and other special observances of the diverse groups within our academic community.

At the start of the new year, we celebrate the release of a new selection of collection items into the Public Domain. This year, Leiden University Libraries (UBL) is making approximately eight hundred items freely downloadable via Digital Collections.

On the university’s birthday, professors teach a class of 10 and 11-year-olds during Meet the Professor. The professors were bombarded with questions.

Call for Papers: Yearbook for Dutch Book History 33 (2026). Deadline 1 April 2025.

Four students founded the Leiden Student Working Group on Homosexuality on the day of the Dies Natalis in 1968. This was to be the start of the LBGT+ movement in Leiden, which celebrated its 50-year anniversary this year. What has been achieved and what is the status of emancipation today?

Public Administration researcher Adrienne Héritier will receive an honorary degree from Leiden University. The award is for her groundbreaking work in the field of multilevel governance, decisionmaking and institutional theory at the European level. She will be awarded the degree on the dies natalis…

Are you an assistant professor, associate professor or full professor at one of our participating Dutch universities and interested in spending some research time in Cairo working in the inspiring and stimulating environment of NVIC? We participate in the NWIB Visiting Professors Programme and have…

From the end of 2026, drone flights could be tested out of visual range in a special zone above the North Sea. Assistant Professor Benjamyn I. Scott commentys in regional newspaper ‘Leidsch Dagblad’: 'Safety remains paramount in aviation.'

Leiden University celebrated its 444th anniversary with a historical procession on 8 February. It celebrated this year’s Dies Natalis in time-honoured fashion with a ceremony in the Pieterskerk, but broke with tradition by sending professors out to primary schools.

Five master's programmes from the Faculty of Humanities scored highly in Keuzegids 2026.

Writing a book on the recent history of Leiden University in corona times. For educational and policy historian Pieter Slaman (34), this has meant working in the attic of his parents’ house while they looked after his daughter, along with numerous online conversations and very few, if any, visits to…

On March 13, Dr. Erik Deul passed away at the age of 67. He leaves behind his wife Wilma, children Caroline and Wouter, and grandchildren Joris, Stach, Viggo, Archie and and a granddaughter expected later this year. Erik served as head of ICT at Leiden Observatory for 35 years, and later also at the…

Harriet Zurndorfer passed away on 18 March 2026 in Leiden.

Are you an assistant professor, associate professor or full professor at one of our 6 participating Dutch universities (see below) and interested in spending some research time in Cairo working in the inspiring and stimulating environment of NVIC? We participate in the NWIB Visiting Professors Programme…

Lecture

On 24 January 2026, the Advanced MSc International Relations and Diplomacy (MIRD) hosted its Annual Reconnect & Gala, bringing together alumni from across the world, current students, and faculty. The event celebrated shared values, connection, and purpose, focusing on ‘The great shifts in international…

Civil service systems are often targets of criticism globally. This article seeks to fill an evidence void about government performance and meritocracy

In romantic love, we often invoke an idiom of infinity—for instance, when we promise to love each other forever, or declare the other to be the one. But what does this metaphysical appeal signify? And how can such a promise of infinite love be made within the bounds of a finite life? In attempt to answer…

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…

In this article, Honorata Mazepus, assistant professor at the Institute of Security and Global Affairs, and Dimiter Toshkov, associate professor at the Institute of Public Administration, discuss whether the winner–loser gap extends beyond the political domain to subjective health and well-being as…

LUC The Hague is recognised as a national Top Programme, reflecting a vibrant learning community where curiosity, academic excellence and global engagement come together.

The Frits Kalshoven International Humanitarian Law Competition, organised by the Netherlands Red Cross and Belgian Red Cross-Flanders, lets students explore the legal framework governing armed conflict. Eight teams from Belgium and the Netherlands competed in the 19th edition (23–27 February 2026) in…

On the occasion of the conferral of an honorary doctorate to children’s rights activist Graça Machel, a fund has been established that will enable two female students from South Africa to come and study in Leiden.

Vincent van Heuven passed away unexpectedly on Friday 6 February 2026 at the age of 76 at his home in Kûbaard (Friesland), the Netherlands.

From ransomware to Citrix traffic jams: over the past few months Dutch organisations were regularly brought to a standstill by serious cyber attacks. We can only face these threats by standing as one, and universities and government should take the lead. These are the words of Leiden professors Bibi…

These podcast episodes were written for the Green Office’s Spring Podcast competition and miniseries 'Beyond the Safe Space', on the theme: the Planetary Boundaries, which took place between the months of March-May 2023.