The Hague Journal of Diplomacy regularly publishes reviews of recent books within the field of diplomacy and global affairs.

The left is gaining more and more ground on the political map of Latin America, with the elections in Colombia as the most recent example. But what’s behind this pull to the left? Professor of Modern Latin American History Patricio Silva talks about the current political situation in the region.

Joris Larik was interviewed by BBC World Service radio on the state of Brexit negotiations, the Irish border issue and ongoing Dutch preparation.

Do you know what the capital of St Eustatius is? Or which province Curaçao belongs to? No idea? You are not the only one: the majority of European Dutch people know little about the Caribbean islands within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. This is according to a large-scale opinion survey led by political…

Should we be deeply concerned about the America of Donald Trump? Or will he bring about positive change? This was the main topic of discussion between researchers and students at the Big Leiden Presidential Breakfast on 9 November.

Interview with Pieter Slaman who received the LUS Education Prize. What makes the award so special to him and does he already know how he will use his prize money?

Debate

In the Bachelor Honours Class ‘The Noble Art and Tricky Business of Translation’, Honours students learn about the tricky business of translation. To gain hands-on experience, students had to translate a poem for the seminar on poetry. For some translators-to-be, one language was simply not enough.

What should the EU do to support Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova? How can the European Union adapt its policies towards these countries in a very difficult and challenging geopolitical context? Ten years after its inception, the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) has fallen short of accomplishing its…

Ron Sela, Associate Professor of Central Asian History in the Department of Central Eurasian Studies at Indiana University – Bloomington, will be the Central Asia Visiting Professor from 19 until 25 May 2017. Ron Sela will deliver a guest lecture and a master class within the Central Asia Initiative…

Ron Sela, Associate Professor of Central Asian History in the Department of Central Eurasian Studies at Indiana University – Bloomington, will be the Central Asia Visiting Professor from 19 until 25 May 2017. Ron Sela will deliver a guest lecture and a master class within the Central Asia Initiative…

Dr Mamadou Hébié, Associate Professor of International Law at the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies, served last week as legal counsel in the world’s first advisory proceedings concerning climate change before the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), on the one hand, and…

Middle Eastern Studies, African Studies or International Relations: all examples of studies that are part of Area Studies at the Faculty of Humanities in Leiden. Within Area Studies you study a region and immerse yourself in (complex) subjects of that region, such as cultural uniqueness, conflicts,…

The city centre of Leiden is covered in them: wall poems. When roaming around, you come across poetry written in the Latin alphabet, but also in scripts that might be more difficult to understand for the average person living in Leiden. In a new series of videos, Tijmen Pronk talks more about this.

His Surinamese neighbours in Amsterdam gave Russia expert and economic historian Isaac Scarborough an idea: a re-evaluation of the Surinamese economy in the twentieth century. An NWO XS grant will enable him to make a start on this.

After two years, it was great to be back in Brussels again. Many thanks to all alumni and students who were present during the academic discussion on the values and the future of the EU, followed by networking drinks.

Lecture, LIAS Lunch Talk Series

Lecture, Sociolinguistics & Discourse Studies Series

Lecture

Tweedejaars studenten van de Bachelor Bestuurskunde, track Bestuur Beleid en Organisatie (BBO), hebben tijdens het vak BBO II: Multi-level governance gewerkt aan een praktijkopdracht voor de gemeente Leiden. De bevindingen werden aan elkaar gepresenteerd tijdens een interactieve sessie.

“The ideas from society should be heard in order to narrow the gap between government and the people”. These words from Kwagjin Choi, Korean diplomat and co-architect of South Korea’s People Diplomacy sum up why, in the view of this guest speaker at ISGA, foreign ministries should pay much more attention…

Claire Vergerio, political scientist at Leiden University, has been awarded a VENI grant by Dutch research organisation NWO. This will allow her to conduct an in-depth analysis of the legal rights and duties of non-state actors involved in warfare. The aim is to tackle some persistent blindspots in…

Why are the local parties so popular? Researchers at Leiden University gave their reaction the day after the elections of 21 March.

The Board of Governors of Leiden University has confirmed the appointment of Professor André Gerrits (Institute for History, currently in the field of Russian Politics and History) to the field of International Studies and Global Politics, commencing October 1st 2015.

According to research conducted by regional Dutch newspaper ‘BN DeStem’, emigration to Russia certainly isn’t off the cards for some Dutch people. Information sessions are being held for anyone interested in emigrating to these countries. Is it acceptable for civil servants to get involved in these…

Friday 25 September, 2015 marks the official launch of Leiden University's Central and East European Studies (CEES) Center.

Bert Koenders, Professor Peace, Justice and Security at the Institute of Security and Global Affairs (ISGA) appeared live on the ‘BNR de Wereld’ special broadcast ‘De Grote Vredesshow’ (The Great Peace Show). The radio show was hosted live from Wijnhaven in collaboration with the Faculty Governance…

Willemijn Aerdts, lecturer at ISGA discusses the warning issued by the MIVD (Dutch Military Intelligence and Security Service) to put away your phone when discussing sensitive or private matters.

The Joint Investigation Team (JIT) which is carrying out the investigation into the MH17 disaster has identified four suspects who have been brought in connection with bringing down the aircraft. The four are to be prosecuted and as a result have been placed on international wanted lists.

Our courses September courses start soon, be sure to apply in time

On 29 February there appeared a column by Maaike Warnaar in the Volkskrant on the Iranian elections.

Leiden law scholars prof. dr. Luc Verhey and Gert Jan Geertjes have edited a book about constitutional conventions and their added value for Dutch constitutional law. The book is published (in Dutch) by editor Boom in Amsterdam.

Lecture, Sociolinguistics and Discourse Studies Series

Last Thursday the Dutch House of Representatives held a debate on children being put into care when the childcare benefits scandal (toeslagenaffaire) had caused problems for their families. Four Leiden University academics were asked by the House to produce a fact sheet for this debate, bringing together…

Lecture

PhD defence

Lecture, LAC Asia Academy

PhD defence

Lecture, Research Seminar

To discuss this question, chairmen, members, and secretaries of the Research Integrity Committees (Commissies Wetenschappelijke Integriteit, CWI) of almost all Dutch universities gathered at the Leiden Observatory on 21 April. Also present were members of the committees from Leuven, Brussels, Ghent,…

This HJD Forum will look at the implications for diplomacy of greater people involvement in diplomacy, as part of the wider governance process. The Forum will interrogate the functions and practices of varying modes of people engagement in external relations in terms of diplomatic innovation. Such participation…

The KNAW has rewarded 11 Leiden scientists for their commitment to science communication, by awarding them 10,000 euros each from the ‘Appreciated!’ fund.

A large group of researchers from Leiden University will convene a panel or present a paper at the 10th European Conference on African Studies (ECAS), which will take place from 25 to 28 June in Prague.

The monthly ILS Lunch Seminars have become a regular point on the Law School’s agenda and are steadily developing into somewhat of a tradition. During this seminar series, all researchers from Leiden Law School can present their research. The idea is to apprehend in a comfortable setting what researchers…

Bureaucrats appointed based on merit are not necessarily more professional or autonomous than those who have been, for instance, ‘politically installed’. Furthermore, patronage does not only have negative effects. These are two conclusions reached by Abdul-Nasir Abubakar, PhD candidate at Leiden University’s…