We are pleased to welcome three new colleagues at the Institute of Security and Global Affairs this month: Andrea Bartolucci, Joana Cook and Silvia D'Amato.

Jelle van Buuren, assistant professor at ISGA, discusses the way conspiracy theories and thinkers should be viewed at NPO3

In two weeks' time, the official opening of the Humanities Hub will take place in the Huizinga Building. The first projects have already begun. Professor Journalism and New Media Jaap de Jong and director of the AI and Digital Humanities Lab Jelena Prokic share their experiences.

Sustainability researchers can play an important role in the energy transition. But what if their partners are not (yet) sustainable and science itself has adverse effects? This is the subject of an online talk by researcher Thomas Franssen on 16 December with a discussion afterwards. ‘Clean energy…

Three cybersecurity consortia that Leiden University is part of have been awarded subsidies of over a million euros by NWO. Leiden is the coordinator for two of the projects.

With over 200 participants, the first day of the Multidisciplinary International Symposium on Disinformation in Open Online Media (MISDOOM) was a great success. With researchers and practitioners from communication science, media studies, computer science, data science, and journalists and online media…

The Leiden Centre of Data Science and the Leiden Institute of Advanced Computer Science are part of a consortium that will carry out research on making illustrated and handwritten archives digitally accessible. The project is funded by NWO.

Seagoing vessels may emit fewer and fewer harmful substances, but how do you measure whether they comply with the standards? The Dutch Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT) and the universities of Leiden and Wageningen are starting a joint study to detect the emission of sulfur and nitrogen dioxide…

Manuscripts that look like a comic book, that's how you could describe the manuscripts of the Dongba people from China. The manuscripts are one of the last examples of a so-called pictographic script that can only be interpreted by Dongba priests, shamans, who have knowledge of the ancient Dongba cu…

In her inaugural lecture Susanna Linberg will ask how philosophy should respond to global warming.

It was Leiden University Academy Week from 11 to 15 March. With over 300 sign-ups and a programme with 14 different webinars and workshops on our courses for professions, this edition was once again a resounding success.

Rodrigo Ochigame’s project explores how AI redefines scientific evidence, aiming to help scientists critically navigate these transformations with the Veni grant.

Leiden University, together with the Open University and Universities of the Netherlands, will take up residence in the Spui building at Grote Marktstraat 48-50/Spui 3 in downtown The Hague from 2025. The partners signed the leases on 7 November.

'The way we consume information has changed dramatically over the past fifteen years. You're no longer just a receiver; you participate, create, and spread information. So why not use that to improve society?'

Dilara Erzeybek and Oumaima Hajri, two PhD students in Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology received a Mosaic 2.0 grant last week. This NWO programme supports PhD students with a non-western migration background - an underrepresented group within science - in order to foster diversity in…

More than 700 visitors got to know the Science Faculty during the Leiden Science Family Day. People of all ages could enjoy fascinating experiments, tours, interesting lectures, spectacular nitrogen shows and various workshops. It was an informative day with many (future) scientists, amazement and,…

Young academics often face uncertainties in their academic careers. It is for precisely this reason that Leiden postdocs recently united in a representative body. The Leiden University Postdoc Assembly (LUPA) wants to be a positive force for change, says Eduard Fosch-Villaronga.

Within the space of a few months, the Heritage Quest citizen science project, whereby volunteers scan elevation maps of the Veluwe area for burial mounds and other prehistoric remains, has already led to groundbreaking new insights. Hundreds of burial mounds have been found, as have a huge number of…

Matthias Flór receives the KHMW Graduation Prize in Theoretical Physics for his master's thesis. His research on exotic superconductors at Leiden University and TU Delft struck a chord with the jury. The jury unanimously chose to award Flór noting that ‘he demonstrated impressive technical abilities…

In early 2026, two new programme directors will begin their roles at FWN. Joost Broekens will take charge of the bachelor’s programme in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (DSAI), while Sander van Kasteren will become programme director of the MSc in Life Science and Technology (LST).

Brain scans, heart attacks and credit scores: many science applications revolve around data. But how do you mine applicable insights from a mountain of data? In a Bachelor Honours Class, students discover how data science can contribute to their discipline.

The Dutch Research Council (NWO) has recently awarded a significant grant of 863,000 euros to the project proposal 'RESOCIAL' led by Dr Gianclaudio Malgieri, Associate Professor at eLaw - Center for Law and Digital Technologies. This grant is part of the 'NWA Synergy Theme: Vulnerability and Resilience…

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

Quantum games aren’t just a fun way to explain quantum physics — they may also unlock new discoveries. According to physicist Evert van Nieuwenburg, these games create structure and clear rules. Simply playing them can even contribute to better quantum software.

Study information

Lecture, CHiLL series

Study information

2024 was a remarkable and eventful year for the Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs. In this year overview, we look back month by month at the key events and developments.

This Summer Eduard Fosh Villaronga visited Shandong University. He writes about his stay at the second oldest university in China.

Bart Barendregt has been appointed professor by special appointment per January 2020. “Anthropology of Digital Diversity has the potential to show that there are always multiple directions and different solutions to the challenges the digital transition to us all is.”

In this blog post, Linda Slapakova discusses the various roles that AI plays in counter-disinformation efforts, the prevailing shortfalls of AI-based counter-disinformation tools and the technical, governance and regulatory barriers to their uptake, and how these could be addressed to foster the uptake…

Dutch troops, judges and politicians collectively condoned and concealed the systematic use of extreme violence during the Indonesian War of Independence. Historians have now shown how this could happen. ‘It was scandal management rather than prevention,’ says Leiden historian and research leader Gert…

Eleven researchers from Leiden University have been awarded an Open Competition Domain Science ENW XS grant by the Dutch Research Council for their research projects. They are researching how to make software faster and greener, improve cancer detection and reduce anxiety by manipulating the biological…

Lecture

Lecture

Lecture

Study information

Lecture

Inaugural lecture

Read all about YAL membership and the members of the Young Academy Leiden.

Arts and culture, Studium Generale