Leiden Law School is pleased to announce that Professor Ursula Kilkelly, School of Law, University College Cork, Ireland, will visit Leiden in academic year 2022/2023 as Rotating Honorary Chair ‘Enforcement of Children’s Rights’.

In this book, a new generation of scholars offers fresh perspectives on the history of the Dutch slave trade. Traditionally, Dutch research has focused on business practices, often overlooking the enslaved and the complexities of illegal trade and violence.

Other COI publications can be found on Leiden Law Blog, the Leiden Law Methods Portal, and in the drop-down tabs below.

Our mission is to recognise and treat stress and anxiety in children as early as possible, by connecting scientific research, clinical practice and education.

After 45 years at Leiden University, it is time for Kees Goudswaard to retire. In his farewell lecture, he reflects on developments in his field: social security.

For the spring semester 2025, the Austria Centre Leiden and the Institute History are excited to welcome Prof. Eva Pfanzelter to Leiden for her term as Visiting Professor in Central European Studies. Prof. Pfanzelter will teach two classes, give public talks in Leiden and around The Netherlands and…

In December 2023, Louise van der Vlugt was announced as Co-Winner of the 'Best Thesis in Jewish Studies' Award. She sat down to answer some questions about her prize-winning BA Thesis.

On 7 December, Meghan Ingram won the Jaap Doek Children’s Rights Thesis Award 2021 for her thesis on the rights of children of foreign terrorist fighters held in Syria. The prize for the best master’s thesis in the field of children’s rights is awarded every year by Defence for Children and the Department…

On the 15th of June, 2017, Professor Ton Liefaard gave a key note address at the occasion of the conference International Conference for Children's Rights. A Rights-based Approach to Child Welfare in Taipei, Taiwan.

Recently, Hart Publishing published the book Rewriting Children’s Rights Judgments, From Academic Vision to New Practice edited by H. Stalford, K. Hollingsworth and S. Gilmore.

Mariëlle Bruning, Professor of Child Law, is elected Member of the Expert Group on Responses to violence against children (CAHENF-VAC), which is established to assist the Ad hoc Committee for the Rights of the Child (CAHENF) of the Council of Europe.

Kirsten Sandberg appointed as Rotating Honorary Chair in Enforcement of Children’s Rights 2025/2026

When Floris Harm took up his role as director of the Leiden Asia Centre, he made a remarkable discovery on the university website. It turned out that a past family member was one of Leiden University’s first sinologists.

On 20 September 2019, the opening drinks for the Open Science Community Leiden will be held at the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences. Open science is the approach to science aimed at making scientific research accessible, reproducible, and freely available to people within and outside the academic…

The registration for the Medieval Studies Day on 17 December 2021 is now open.

Is aggression always bad? PhD research by psychologist Simone Dobbelaar shows that it is not. In fact, children who occasionally fiercely defend themselves and stand up for their peers often feel better mentally.

Do offshore windfarms affect the local biodiversity of the pelagic fish community and are fish deterred or attracted by sounds?

In a longitudinal study, Eichengreen and colleagues explored how the certain aspects of emotional intelligence impact the development of adolescents’ mental health, thus identifying potential warning signs and targets for intervention programs. Despite a higher risk for mental health issues and lesser…

Students and lecturers from around the world who have obtained international training, experience and exposure bring an international and multi-cultural perspective on psychology and being a psychologist to class.

Hoogleraar Jeugdrecht Mariëlle Bruning vertelde in Met het Oog op Morgen over schadelijke patronen in de pleegzorg.

The department of Child Law of Leiden University and Defence for Children invite you to the eighth Jaap Doek Children’s Rights Thesis Award ceremony. The ceremony will take place online, on Thursday 10 December from 15.30 until 17.00h.

A delegation of the Child Law Department has attended the World congress on family law and children’s rights in Dublin, from 4-7 June. This congress organised once in every four years was hosted by prof. Ursula Kilkelly (University College Cork). Over 600 people attended the congress; professionals…

Three young researchers from Leiden have received an Early Career Award from KNAW for their innovative research. The award consists of the sum of 15,000 euros and an artwork.

Humans are increasingly losing agency on social media. A team of legal scholars from Leiden University, computer scientists from other universities and civil society organisations, is conducting a study into the balance of power between Big Tech and users.

Around ten per cent of students have some form of functional disability, varying from ADHD or dyslexia to a physical handicap. Under a UN treaty, the Netherlands is obliged to provide better facilities for these students. What does Leiden University do for this group? Watch the video on Studying with…

On 4 November 2022, the University of Amsterdam will organize the Medieval Studies' Day! More information coming soon.

After a successful career as a singer, Esmee Schoones started studying French a few years ago. It resulted in a national award for her thesis on musical arrangements of Verlaine's poems and a job teaching French.

'Getting used to things, doesn't necessarily mean it's getting easier. That's why we're incredibly impressed by what everyone has accomplished.' How do our institutes stay connected and motivated? Lenneke Alink (Pedagogical Sciences) and Ed Noijons (CWTS) share how pub quizzes and who's who games, new…

Inaugural lecture

On December 3, 2024, Prof. dr. Sarah Cramsey delivered a Cleveringa Lecture in Vienna. Cramsey was the special guest of the Dutch Ambassador to Austria, Mr. Peter Potman.

On Tuesday 11 June 2024 Olivia Ramble successfully defended a doctoral thesis and graduated.

Mathilde Mechling defended her thesis on 28 january 2020.

On 17 December 2021 the Medieval Studies Day will take place in Amsterdam. Keep this date free! More information will follow soon.

This collection brings into conversation several kinds of scholarship on medieval authorship which have tended to remain separate over the last two to three decades, a period of steadily increasing scholarly interest in this topic.

The spectacular “density” of artworks and architecture in Florence, a designated UNESCO World Heritage site (1982, 2015), reflects a nucleus of some of the most important collecting histories and museums in the world, ranging from the unparalleled Renaissance acquisitions of the Medici dynasty to the…

Jifeng Liu defended his thesis on 2 February 2017

Eye contact between parents and children improves their mood and increases feelings of connectedness on both sides; but not in the case of depressed adolescents, Mirjam Wever discovered. Where the parent-child bond has been disrupted, it can be strengthened not only with therapy for the child but also…

Leiden University co-hosts Council of Europe expert exchange on accountability for crimes against children in Ukraine

What are the conditions under which coercive diplomacy can compel a State to abandon its controversial nuclear (weapons) program? Based on the experience of the US coercive diplomacy against the nuclear programs of three countries, namely Iran, Libya and South Africa, Jean Yves Ndzana’s PhD research…

How do different communities of residents in The Hague perceive and manage food waste in relation to citizenship (rights and responsibilities)?

Citizens underestimate their role, but they really can make a difference, says legal specialist Corinne Dettmeijer-Vermeulen. Combatting injustice is still the mission of this former National Rapporteur on Human Trafficking and Sexual Violence against Children. She will deliver the Cleveringa lecture…

Children and young people who are victims of emotional abuse at the hands of their parents often report the symptoms of severe post-traumatic stress. These are generally even worse than after other forms of child abuse, such as physical abuse. These are the results of research by Leiden psychologists,…

Bas Rietjens and his colleagues researched the Russia-Ukraine war, exploring this multitude of facets and their interconnections.

Matheus Mendes was awarded the 12th Jaap Doek Thesis Prize at a ceremony on 13 December 2024 for his thesis on the right to read. The prize honours outstanding master’s theses in children’s rights.

This Justice for Children Call to Action offers a new starting point to place children at the heart of an emerging global movement for justice. It strives to ensure that, in collective efforts to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, no child is left behind.

On 8 July 2021, The Francophone Association of Ombudspersons (L’Association des Ombudsmans et des Médiateurs de la Francophonie (AOMF)) launched their online course platform (CLOM) and training course 'Faire vivre les droits de l’enfant: des clés pour l’action'.

In 2019 UNICEF published the situation analysis of children and adolescents in the Caribbean Netherlands, commissioned by the Dutch Ministry of Interior and Kingdom Relations. It is a follow-up to the first round of situation analysis on children’s rights in the Caribbean Netherlands, which was completed…

The Netherlands Institute in Morocco, part of Leiden University, is open for students from all academic and applied sciences universities in the Netherlands. Four students talk about the added value of studying in Rabat. 'I was surprised that Rabat is so modern.’

Every autumn EUS students take the train down to our southern neighbours to learn the secrets of European Union institutions. They get to hear tips about landing a job in Brussels, learn things about EU institutions that cannot be found in the textbooks, meet important contacts, and get inspiration…