The municipality of Leiden aims for circular construction, but how do you reconcile that with the growing demand for housing? For the Kennisatelier Duurzaamheid, master's students from Industrial Ecology are investigating whether the municipality can build enough houses up to 2030 and still use half…

In The Best of Times, The Worst of Times, environmental scientist Paul Behrens describes both hopeful and pessimistic scenarios for our future and that of our planet. With the book soon to be published, Behrens talks about its content and the writing process itself.

Two terrifying yellow eyes stared at eleven-year-old Francis Lesilau. In the evening light they changed colour: green, amber, back to yellow... The lion had just grabbed one of his camels and now turned to number two. For a moment Francis was nailed to the ground, then he ran towards the predator, screaming.…

‘The climate crisis is the greatest threat we face,’ says Leiden University environmental scientist Paul Behrens. ‘And yet, there is hope. In the near future, I think we will wonder why we didn’t make these changes earlier.’

Circular agriculture and more nature are important to reduce harmful emissions and to give a new impetus to biodiversity. But is that compatible with the Netherlands' position as an important exporter of food products? Professor of Conservation Biology Geert de Snoo believes it is, at least provided…

Dutch greenhouse horticulture is a world leader when it comes to innovative capacity and sustainability, but ‘the challenges are great in terms of energy, water, environment and biodiversity,’ says Peter van Bodegom, coordinator of AgriFood at the Centre for Sustainability of the Leiden, Delft, Erasmus…

“A partnership based on water” summarised Gerhard van den Top the relationship between the Netherlands and the Philippines in the 4th Louwes Lecture. He emphasised the significant role of international and intercultural cooperation in managing the complex challenges brought forward by climate change.…

No fewer than seven Leiden FWN students received a Young Talent Award from the Royal Dutch Academy of Sciences on Monday, 29 November. Mark van den Bosch and Karlijn Kruiswijk won a graduation prize, a group of young astronomers won the ET Outreach Award and the other five students each received an…

Not one but two openings: the minister who defended her plans and many who emphasised the importance of standing together with the arts and social sciences: the opening of academic year 2019-2020 in Leiden was not without event.

How has progress been made on diversity and inclusion at Leiden University over the past decade? Attendees reflected on this at the D&I Symposium 2024: Untold Stories. And in the workshops, students and staff discussed the next steps toward a more inclusive community.

Rector Magnificus Carel Stolker will retire on 8 February. If there’s one theme running through his career, it’s the links between the University and society. In this series of pre-retirement discussions, Stolker will talk one last time to people from within and without the University. In this edition…

Better supervision of PhD candidates, clear guidelines on career paths and an MRI scanner that can be accessed by all researchers: these are the recommendations from the new self-evaluation. Colleagues say: ‘This forces us as an institute to formulate our mission and vision more precisely.’

As Board Secretary, Corry Donner aims to be a ‘spider in the web’; someone who keeps a watchful eye on and brings together all the different perspectives of the institute’s board. Now she's left her carefully woven web at the university and transfer her tasks to her successor. Last September, we talked…

The airspace had almost closed last year as Leiden students and staff rushed to leave the Netherlands Institute Morocco (NIMAR). How is this Leiden institute in Rabat doing over a year later? ‘Luckily we’d done a crisis exercise a few months before. Everyone managed leave the country in time.’

On 29 January, the Mayor of Leiden, Henri Lenferink, was awarded Leiden University’s Scaliger Medal. The longest-serving Mayor of Leiden was presented with the medal by the University’s longest-serving Rector Magnificus, Carel Stolker. Lenferink was awarded the medal in recognition of his achievements…

During Cyberweek, from 17-24 October, the Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs (FGGA) highlighted its research and teaching on cybersecurity, digital developments, and their impact on society.

A delegation from Leiden University visited Japan from 18 to 26 November to facilitate cooperation in research and teaching. The delegation also attended the signing of a twinning agreement between the cities of Leiden and Nagasaki and the opening of a bridge to Dejima, once literally the bridge between…

Rector Magnificus Carel Stolker will retire on 8 February. If there’s one theme running through his career, it’s the links between the University and society. In this series of pre-retirement discussions, Stolker will talk one last time to people from within and without the University. In this first…

How can our university really become inclusive? This is what students and staff discussed at our annual Diversity & Inclusion symposium. ‘It’s moving from a have-to to a want-to’

A new year that will bring all sorts of developments in the world of research. What are the new year’s resolutions in social sciences research at our faculty? What unites us, and what exciting developments do we anticipate?

For every period, it is a challenge to unearth the details of political trafficking; yet the effort needs to include all relevant persons, groups, and institutions – not only those wielding formal responsibilities. We hope to reinvigorate this effort by inviting specialists to present their research…

University ceremony

Alumni event, New York

Roundtable

Conference

Lecture

The rise of authoritarianism, the strengthening of the radical right, and the role of the EU in defending democracy—these are just a few of the issues causing concern today. Is the EU capable of defending democratic values within the Union and beyond its borders? In an interview from the Lithuanian…

Academic ceremony

Panel

The Centre for Public Values & Ethics (CPVE) is an interdisciplinary, academic centre of expertise aiming to conduct and disseminate scientific research on normative issues in the public sector, in particular the fulfillment of public office and the planning, making and executing of public policy, both…

To what extent is the image of the Taino settlements on Hispaniola representative for the whole island, or is it only related to a few large settlements of known caciques?

This project studies travel writing about the Dutch East Indies written between 1800 and the end of the Second World War. By analyzing both Dutch travel texts and Indigenous travel texts in Javanese and Malay, it presents a new, double-voiced perspective on (the historiography of) the Dutch colonial…

Each student chooses an individual topic or theme on which they would like to do a graduation research project. Read the below rules and guidelines before you embark on the graduation project.

The scientific interest in stone sculpture has been present in the archaeological investigation of Nicaragua from the mid 19th century onward.

Predictors of work functioning in persons with multiple sclerosis

Recent publications in the BLRN book series can be found below.

There are currently two projects in Coptic Studies that are supported by the NVIC. Both are directed by Dr. Karel Innemee and both take place in the Wadi Natrun.

Conference

University ceremony

Starting 1 July 2020, Pieter Tops will hold the special chair Organised and Subversive Crime Studies. The chair will be hosted by the Institute Security and Global Affairs (ISGA) at Leiden University's Faculty Governance and Global Affairs. Pieter Tops is a lector at the Police Academy. He conducts…

In the 16th and 17th centuries, many Northern-Netherlandish artists drew outdoors to train their hands and eyes, and to record landscapes and nature. In her inaugural lecture on 21 March 2022, Yvonne Bleyerveld, Professor by Special Appointment of Art on Paper and Parchment, draws our attention to a…

Natascha van der Zwan is one of twelve scientist of Leiden University that have been awarded a Vidi grant of 800,000 euros in this round. The Associate Professor at the Institute of Public Administration conducts research into investment politics and how to make the financial system more sustainable.…

The start of this year saw the opening of the LDE Centre for Governance, Migration and Diversity. The Centre looks at public administration and policy issues in the four South Holland cities from a multicultural perspective. What is unusual is that there are already master's graduates at the Centre.

Gilles van Wezel will step down as Scientific Director (SD) of the Institute of Biology Leiden (IBL) as of June 17th. He has held this position since September 2018. Van Wezel will be temporarily succeeded by Hubertus Irth, the current SD of the Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research (LACDR). Irth…

‘A tax crusader’... that’s how Ferd Grapperhaus, former Professor of Tax Law at Leiden University and father of the former Minister of Justice and Security, described himself. In his biography of Grapperhaus, Assistant Professor Rens Pieterse explains that he saw tax as a contribution to society.

What do you get when you bring a percussionist and a trumpet player together in a project orchestra? A story full of passion, unique experiences and a healthy dose of enthusiasm. We spoke with Tommy and Jeroen, both staff members at ISGA, about their participation in the Leiden Canal Concert on Sunday…

On 28 September the famous chemists Carolyn Bertozzi visited Leiden University to speak at the LED3 seminar. Just one week later, she was announced winner the 2022 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Leiden chemists Sebastian Pomplun and Hermen Overkleeft are fan: ‘We are extremely honoured to have hosted this…

Rewarding good behaviour, instead of punishing it – a proven pedagogical method. Would it also work in tackling tax avoidance? This question sparked the interest of PhD candidate Josephine van der Have. Her research investigates the potential of a trademark for fair taxation.