In Sri Lanka, a prominent Singhalese Buddhist monk publicly proclaims that it is not a sin to kill Tamils. In Japan, the family register kept in a Buddhist temple and specifying the outcaste status of a lineage is provided to private detectives investigating the marriageability of a young woman. Throughout…

On 17 February 2016 Armin Cuyvers was invited to speak at the Liverpool European Law Unit (LELU) in a seminar on ‘Legitimacy and participation in the EU’. In his presentation, entitled ‘National parliaments as training wheels of EU democracy?

In the context of urban challenges, multidisciplinary knowledge adds value. The idea is that urban planners, sociologists, economists, and historians can collectively provide a deeper understanding of what has worked and what hasn't so far. Since 2022, scientists from the University of Indonesia and…

“United Nations peacekeeping is a proven investment in global peace, security, and prosperity. Together, let us pledge to do all we can to enable that mission to succeed”. – Secretary-General António Guterres

Festival, Network Launch

Protestant missionaries have provided the earliest and most detailed sources regarding the ritual art of the Papuan peoples of the Geelvink Bay. Raymond Corbey brings these sources to bear on circa 300 ritual objects and their itineraries in the book KORWAR - Northwest New Guinea ritual art according…

Biologists Michelle Spierings and Ryan Bogaars will both join the Dutch Final of the FameLab Competition on April 21st in Museum Boerhaave, Leiden.

Historian Alanna O’Malley has been appointed to a brand-new Professorial Chair in United Nations Studies in Peace and Justice in The Hague. This extra attention for the UN comes at a significant moment in world history, she says.

Lecture

Leiden University took the initiative for a National Dialogue Network of Diversity Officers. The main goal is to create a platform of knowledge and experience related to the development and implementation of policies on diversity.

American anthropologist Rosemary Joyce will be awarded an honorary doctorate from Leiden University on its Dies Natalis on 8 February. Joyce has delivered important new insights into the ancient Mayan cultures of Central America.

In the first episode of the podcast series, Andrei Marin, Associate Professor at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences, interviews Marja Spierenburg, Professor of Anthropology of Sustainability and Livelihoods and Scientific Director at Leiden University, along with Diana Vela Almeida, Assistant…

On 15 June 2022 Professor Anthropology of Sustainability and Livelihood Marja Spierenburg was one of the invited speakers at the round table in the House of Representatives of The Netherlands.

Drawing on insights from past and contemporary scholars and world leaders, the report explores the concepts of a new social contract, a new global deal, and networked and inclusive multilateralism introduced recently by Secretary-General António Guterres to help the United Nations better grapple with…

Cultural anthropologist Annet Pauwelussen has been invited by the University of Washington to participate in an expert meeting on 'Global Measures of the Contribution of Small-Scale Fisheries to Sustainable Development'. 29 - 30 May 2018, Seattle.

Course, Workshop

Subproject of the ERC project 'Challenging the Liberal World Order from Within: The Invisible History of the United Nations and the Global South'.

Why are the majority of our national holidays based around Christian festivities? Arabist Maurits Berger talks about this in an article on Ruetir.

Quentin Bourgeois and Luc Amrkeutz were interviewed for an National Geographic Historia article about the burial mound research in the Veluwe.

Neurospyschologist Liza Cornet is the winner of the national final of Famelab. Famelab is an international science communication competition for young researchers. The aim of Famelab is to explain your research as clearly as possible in a maximum of five minutes. No PowerPoint or video and with just…

Subproject of the ERC project 'Challenging the Liberal World Order from Within: The Invisible History of the United Nations and the Global South'.

The European Union has claimed, following its own investigation, that the Dutch government is falling short in how it deals with Dutch nationals convicted abroad, but who want to serve their sentences in the Netherlands. Jannemieke Ouwerkerk, Professor of European Criminal Law, has responded in Dutch…

Engagement between Asia and Europe is increasing. If these continents want to build a lasting relationship, they need to understand each other better in the economic, socio-cultural, historical and legal arena. Researchers from Leiden have already contributed to the body of knowledge on past and present…

In the media, we hear a lot of worrying news from Africa: refugees, attacks, Ebola, starvation, corruption... But Africa is much more than that: it is a continent in transition, with developments occurring at breakneck speed. African Studies scholars from different academic disciplines in Leiden conduct…

Very little is known about the relationship between religion and the digital future. Bart Barendregt, Professor by special appointment Anthropology of Digital Diversity, is about to change that. He receives a Vici grant of 1.5 million euros from the NWO for his research project 'One between the Zeros,…

Is it a prehistoric mammoth tooth or just an ordinary pebble? It was National Finds Day at the Dutch National Museum of Antiquities on Saturday 17 June, and Leiden University was one of the collaborating partners.

Cultural Anthropologist Erik de Maaker published, together with Monica Janoswki (School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London), Stories across Borders: Myths of Origin and Their Contestation in the Borderlands of South and Southeast Asia in Southeast Asian Studies (SEAS).

Anthropologist Marja Spierenburg talks in the Dutch newspaper NRC about the neoliberal system and how it has to change in order to solve the energy crisis in South-Africa.

Last January, 20th, a new NSE-lunch-discussion took place. The NSE is an annual national survey among all bachelor and master students, and asks them about may topics regarding their programmes. During the lunch discussion, we highlighted several topics that stood out in the NSE-results for our program:…

Biologist, artist, activist and Leiden alumnus Merijn Tinga supped the river Rijn in 28 days, to gain attention for plastic waste. His journey of more than 1000 kilometers has been captured in the documentary ‘From Source to Sea’, that can be seen on 4 June at 20:50 on National Geographic Channel.