In March, Jan Pronk starts as the new Executive Director at the Faculty of Archaeology. We sat down with him for an interview on his background, his drive, and his take on archaeology.

When children were asked to draw a scientist, a bald, middle-aged man in a white coat was most often depicted. Why is that? A group of Leiden University science communication researchers discovered that children already get this impression in primary school. Published in PLOS ONE on 16 November.

After completing one bachelor’s and two master’s programmes at Leiden University, alumnus in Philosophical Perspectives on Politics and the Economy Matthieu Agustoni finished his student life with a bang: he got his master's thesis published in a prestigious journal.

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…

What is Leiden University doing to make its buildings future-proof and independent of fossil energy?

Lack of manliness, avaricious or too imaginative. These are just a few of the accusations with which British scientists discredited each other over a hundred years ago. PhD candidate Léjon Saarloos researched British scientists around the year 1900 and their idea of what makes a good - and therefore…

Aqueous solutions of proteins and carbohydrates separate into two parts with an extremely ‘soft’ boundary surface. The surface tension between these two parts can be manipulated, for example by adjusting the pH balance. This can be used to develop emulsions of a water-based solution in another aqueous…

NWO has awarded a VIDI grant to Alex Geurds for his research proposal entitled Networked practices of contact: Cultural identity at the Late Prehistoric settlement of Aguas Buenas, Nicaragua, AD 500-1522. Geurds will investigate material culture exchange along the frontier of the Mesoamerican and the…

Can humans sense where north is, using what is known as magnetoreception? This question had master’s student Björn Keyser (Media Technology) so intrigued that he started crowdfunding to be able to study this together with the California Institute of Technology.

Professor Jan Willem Erisman is happy with the freedom at our University. But frameworks are needed, he believes. That is why he makes a proposal for such a framework from the perspective of his own profession. In fact, he makes a proposal for a wonderful ambition for Leiden University.

Researchers and policymakers are welcome to attend the AI & Society Conference in The Hague on Friday 23 June. The SAILS interdisciplinary research programme will be taking a nuanced look at the state of the art of AI technology. And offering fresh perspectives.

Robbert Visser has won the Political Science Master’s Thesis Prize 2017. His study in the field of Political Theory is the latest milestone along Visser’s (in his words) ‘long road to the master’s title’. The jury was impressed by his work: 'Deeply engaging, providing a critical and balanced analysis,…

The Executive Board has decided to appoint Dr. Bibi van den Berg as Professor of Cybersecurity Governance within the Institute of Security and Global Affairs, starting on 1 September 2017.

With Brexit looming, stronger economic governance of the European Union is more essential than ever. It’s high time for action, says Amy Verdun, Professor of European Politics and Political Economy. Inaugural speech on 27 September.

As of the 1st of January 2021, Lisa Cheng, Professor of General Linguistics, will be the next Scientific Director of the Leiden University Centre for Linguistics (LUCL). She tells us about LUCL and shares some of her thoughts about her upcoming role.

Meniere’s disease, a disorder of the inner ear, was first described back in 1861, but there’s still no good test or treatment for it. Tjasse Bruintjes, Professor by Special Appointment of Ear, Nose and Throat Surgery, wants more attention for this mysterious disease. And he wants to tell his fellow…

Marta Fiocco, professor at the Mathematical Institute, has received a grant for predicting survival outcome and improving the balance between prognosis and quality of life for soft tissue sarcoma patients (Personalised Sarcoma Care).

The 2018 King's Speech was a string of statements containing little or no substance. It was obvious that, in an attempt to keep all the coalition parties happy, the speech covered more issues than in 2017. This is confirmed by an analysis of the speech carried out by public administration experts Gerard…

She works four days a week as a project manager at LIACS and trains six days a week with the Dutch Para Climbing team. Christiane Luttikhuizen balances her role at the Faculty of Science with competing at a high level in climbing.

Last January, the education assessors of the different study associations chose Fouzia Lghoul-Oulad Saïd of the Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research (LACDR) as teacher of the year. Her passion for teaching extends beyond her classes, according to the students who nominated her: ‘ She is always ready…

Elon Musk managed to foil a strategic Ukrainian drone attack with the push of a button. It clearly shows that democracy is hanging by a thread, says Associate Professor of Constitutional Law at Leiden University and Professor of Digitisation and the Democratic Rule of Law at the Open University, Reijer…

A new position has been created at the Faculty of Humanities. On 1 September, Marian Klamer became the first Director of PhD Programmes at the Graduate School. ‘I want to find the balance.’

On Monday December 17th the ILS 2.0, SOLID project will hold an afternoon Symposium on ‘Challenges to European Integration: welfare states and free movement in the EU’ from 11.45 – 16.30. The symposium will take place in room A.014 at the Kamerlingh Onnes Building (Steenschuur 25) of Leiden Law Scho…

Europe can only maintain its level of consumption by structurally relying on resources extracted abroad. This finding was published in the September issue of the prestigious journal Global Environmental Change, in a paper that was co-written by scientists at Leiden University.

Amsterdam-based bicycle company VanMoof was declared bankrupt in court this week. The company had been struggling with financial problems for some time and recently closed its doors, causing great concern among customers. Several affected customers whose newly bought or repaired bikes were still being…

On 27 september historian Adam Zamoyski held a captivating lecture on his new book Napoleon: the Man behind the Myth. During this lecture, which was an initiative by Polen in Beeld and the Central and Eastern European Studies Center, Zamoyski answered the question: ‘what were the Napoleonic Wars really…

On 3 February 2021, Prof. Matthias Haentjens spoke at the second conference on bank resolution, jointly organised by the European Banking Institute (EBI) and the Single Resolution Board (SRB).

We are welcoming nominations for the 2023 HJD Book Award ! The HJD Book Award is given to the author(s) of the book that best advances the theoretical and/or empirical study of diplomacy.

Between the early thirteenth and early sixteenth centuries CE, the Sultanate of Cairo affected the balances of power elites across and beyond the regions of Egypt, Syria and the Eastern Mediterranean. Modern historiography has for a long time been determined by the idea of this sultanate as a highly…

On 25 March 2021 this online seminar will be held from 10.15-12.00 at Örebro Universitet in Sweden. Jannemieke Ouwerkerk, Professor of European Criminal law at the Institute of Criminal Law and Criminology at Leiden University, will be one of the speakers at this seminar. Information about registration…

What are we referring to when we talk about ‘good work’? And what does it mean to be a good employer? Helen Pluut and Merel Cornax address these questions in a recently published editorial.

Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, Professor of International Relations and Diplomatic Practice at the Institute of Security and Global Affairs (ISGA), was interviewed by the NRC on 6 February about the government's warning words.

Three Dutch universities: Leiden, Groningen and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam have joined forces this year to organize a first ever Pre-doctoral programme in Indonesia for future and potential Indonesian PhD candidates at Dutch universities.

Through the use of artificial intelligence, the executive is gaining in efficiency. At the same time, however, the judiciary is trailing behind in the process of digitalisation. Is this a problem, and what can we do about it?

Yao Yuan, a PhD candidate from the Company Law Department, has recently concluded a research visit at the Lauterpacht Research Centre for International Law, University of Cambridge. This experience has significantly advanced her doctoral work and enhanced her international academic connections.

Professor Bob Wessels recorded early this year a video on the (draft) EU Insolvency Regulation (recast). Although the text was not final in all its details at that time (February 2015), the video presents a short analysis of the recast’s key topics. It is accessible for free, available via the European…

On Wednesday the 4th of September, Queen Máxima opened the renovated tropical greenhouse complex of the Leiden Hortus Botanicus. At the occasion Máxima met with IBL-PhD student Mahin Ghorbani from Iran and talked with her about her work on drug discovery from Iranian medicinal plants using zebrafish…

Vasiliki Kosta moderated the launch of the book ‘Judicial authority in EU Internal Market Law: Implications for the balance of competences and powers’ written by Dr Vilija Velyvyte (British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow at the Faculty of Law, University of Oxford) at Brasenose College, University of Oxford,…

On 16 November 2018 Armin Cuyvers presented some legal strategies to soften the much criticized absolutist approach to autonomy by the European Court of Justice in Achmea. His main argument was that, as a general principle, autonomy can and should be weighed against other general principles.

Jan Aarts, Leiden professor in experimental physics, has been appointed Ridder in de Orde van de Nederlandse Leeuw. He received the royal distinction from the mayor of Leiden Henri Lenferink in the Hooglandse Kerk.

The annual PhD training of the Netherlands Network for Human Rights Research (NNHRR) took place on 7 and 8 June at Leiden University.

From 4 November until 9 November 2018, the Netherlands Embassy in Cairo organized a training in Museology and Site Management in close cooperation with the Netherlands-Flemish Institute in Cairo, the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities and the Reinwardt Academy (Amsterdam), with great contributions of…

Physics professor Jan Aarts starts a collaboration with chip manufacturer Intel to perform fundamental research in low-power, cryogenic computing.

On 26 June 2018 Claire Achmad will defend her PhD thesis Children’s Rights in International Commercial Surrogacy.

The Hague Journal of Diplomacy is looking for nominations for its 2021 HJD Book Award.

Professor Jaap Dubbeldam passed away on the 19th of November at his home in Leiderdorp.

Dennis Janssen has been appointed as Director of Operations for the Leiden Observatory. He succeeds Dominique de Vet who temporarily held the position. Janssen currently works as a program manager Leiden Research Support within Administration and Central Services and will start his new role on 18 No…

Horizon2020 is the European Union’s research and innovation programme. Now that this programme has almost ended, it is time to think about its successor. Excellence must be at the forefront of this new programme, says the League for European Research Universities (LERU).

Peter Rodrigues contributed a chapter 'Human Rights and the Best Interests of the Child in European Family Reunification Law' in the book by Bergamini E., Ragni C. (Eds.), Fundamental Rights and Best Interests of the Child in Transnational Families.