In this project, the hypothesis that language contact crucially impacts the development of spatial grammar and phonology is investigated.

Four university medical centres, including the LUMC, are joining forces to increase pandemic preparedness in the Netherlands.

Whilst government’s ability to design ‘context-specific’ regional innovation policy is generally assumed to depend on the region’s decision-making power, the aim of this study is to investigate how regional government matters. In order to open up the black box of policy design, the study develops a…

This thesis focuses on using liposomes in two different treatment strategies; vaccination (or immunotherapy) and delivery of a small molecule, and in two different disease models; cancer and atherosclerosis.

Image segmentation is a fundamental task in computer vision, with applications ranging from medical diagnostics to archaeological research.

Interested in an internship at the Dutch Ministry of Defence? Good news! Leiden University and the Royal Netherlands Air Force have formalized their cooperation to offer students an unique opportunity to conduct an internship at an active military base in Woensdrecht, the Netherlands.

Following news reports about racist comments made by Rotterdam police officers in a WhatsApp group, racism within the police force is back in the spotlight. ‘Dealing with this issue is a matter of urgency’, says Professor of Immigration Law Peter Rodrigues.

The Dutch police force is struggling with diversity. Women, officers who are gay or come from a non-western background often feel unsafe within the police force. That was the message of this week’s startling distress call by police coach Carel Boers, who has been a consultant for the police management…

The external tissues of plants and animals are colonized by microbial communities termed microbiota. When organisms are exposed to environmental pollutants, these substances will therefore encounter microbiota at the exposure interface.

The shortage of reception places has become so great that the Dutch cabinet decided this week to take the lead in designating reception places itself. It is unusual that the Government is taking this measure. Up to now, the cabinet had left the management to municipalities. But the shortage of places…

The aim of this work was to study the applicability of antigen-coated pH-sensitive microneedle arrays for effective vaccination strategies. Therefore, a model antigen (ovalbumin) was coated onto pH-sensitive (pyridine-modified) microneedle arrays to test pH-triggered antigen release by applying the…

About one and a half million people worldwide die each year from tuberculosis. For thirty years, therapy with antibiotics has been the same, while it takes far too long and can lead to resistant pathogens. Leiden researchers from four institutes are now joining forces to develop more effective and efficient…

For effective cancer immunotherapy by vaccination, co-delivery of tumour antigens and adjuvants to dendritic cells and subsequent activation of antigen-specific cytotoxic T cells (CTLs) is crucial. In this study, a synthetic long peptide (SLP) harbouring the model CTL epitope SIINFEKL was encapsulated…

In this project, the hypothesis that language contact crucially impacts the development of spatial grammar and phonology is investigated.

For some time blackbirds have been settling in towns as well as in woods. As a result, town blackbirds have now begun to develop differently from their counterparts in forests. These are the findings of the PhD research carried out by behavioural biologist Erwin Ripmeester who defends his dissertation…

Child marriage has become an increasingly important topic on the international human rights and development agenda. Many organisations are calling for a ban, but what problem would such a ban solve? PhD defence on 18 March 2020.

Biological polymers, including proteins and the genome, undergo folding processes crucial for their proper functioning. Even slight changes in the folding structure of these biopolymers can have significant implications, leading to the development of various pathological conditions, such as neurodegenerative…

Strengthening a cancer patient's own immune system so that the body itself can better destroy cancer cells. This is at the heart of immunotherapy, the most promising progress in cancer treatment in recent years. In order to drive this development further, the Netherlands Cancer Institute-Antoni van…

More than 30 members of Programme Committees, Faculty Councils and the University Council met online on 27 November with a mission: how can university co-participation work towards a more sustainable university in terms of education, research, and operations? The Leiden University Green Office and the…

A lecturer winning a prize, an expert appearing in the media or a professor giving their inaugural speech: these are faces we often see. But we rarely see the staff who work behind the scenes to make their work possible. They are now featured in the photo exhibition ‘The forces behind the faces’.

Numerous of enthusiastic administrators, professionals, policy makers, and citizens gathered last week for an assembly organised by ‘Gezond en Gelukkig Den Haag (in English: Healthy and Happy The Hague). They discussed a different approach to health, health care and society, while exchanging best pr…

Promotor: Prof.dr. T. Schmidt, Co-promotor: Dr. ir. S. J.T. van Noort

Companies in Poland employ North Korean forced labourers on a large scale. Some of these companies are supported by the European Union. These are the findings of a research team headed by Leiden Professor of Korean Studies Remco Breuker and employment lawyer Imke van Gardingen. The study is still ongoing…

On 21 June, Jorrit Rijpma spoke at the first meeting of the Task Force on a European Border and Coast Guard, established by the Centre for European Policy Studies in Brussels.

Due to the tightness of the labour market, staff shortages are on the rise in many sectors. One solution often mentioned in the policy debate is that people should work more hours per week; the part-time factor should increase. Another possibility mentioned these days in the United States, is to increase…

The decolonisation war in Indonesia was violent partly because the Dutch military operated on the conviction that ‘an uprising had to be forcibly suppressed.’ This what historian Christiaan Harinck from the KITLV discovered in his PhD research.

Promotor: B. vd Water, T. Schmidt, Co-Promotor: E.H.J. Danen

The ‘empathic mind’ in children with Specific Language Impairments (SLI); what can children with SLI understand of other people’s minds and emotions?

Extending our current arsenal of antibiotics is key to staying ahead in the arms race between humans and resistant bacteria.

Promotor: Prof.dr. G.R. de Snoo, Co-promotores: Dr. ing. M.G. Vijver, J.P.M. Vink

Saniye Çelik, senior programme manager at the Centre for Professional Learning (CPL), has been invited by the Parliamentary Standing Committee for Justice and Security to share her expertise with the Dutch House of Representatives (Tweede Kamer) in the field of discrimination and inclusiveness in the…

Anxiety disorders, like specific phobias, are among the most prevalent mental health disorders that may hinder children in their development. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is considered an effective treatment for childhood anxiety. After treatment, children are encouraged to practice at home with…

Behind the relatively stable income inequality in the Netherlands, big changes have been happening. Income inequality has increased over the past 40 years, but less sharply because women in lower income groups have begun working more. In contrast, men’s income has increased very little over the past…

Leiden University's eLaw Center's BIAS Project and the Universidad de la Laguna's AEQUITAS project will collaborate to develop a deeper understanding of AI technologies' impact on workers and inform policies accordingly.

In December 2020, the Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs and Helmut Schmidt University of the German Armed Forces in Hamburg signed a cooperation agreement to cooperate in the education realm on a variety of topics related to the Civilian and Military dimensions of European and Global Security…

Wednesday 23 of February the NESA Netherlands School of Anthropology) has been officially launched with the first Masterclass by Prof. Dr. Marja Spierenburg (Leiden University) and Dr. Anke Tonnaer (Radboud University). The NESA is a graduate program for PhD candidates of the five Dutch universities…

Children with a specific phobia are excessively afraid of certain objects, animals or situations. Specific phobias are common in children, but they can make the child’s life at home, school and outside quite difficult. Together with a large international team, we developed the KibA-program to help children…

According to Brussels, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has systematically been dismantling the rule of law in Hungary since 2010. In a final attempt to do something about this, the EU wants to make payment of subsidies dependent on respect for the rule of law.

Leiden University is extremely concerned about the situation in Turkey and offers all possible support to its Turkish colleagues.

Promotor: Prof.dr. G.J. Kroes

Opening van het Quantum Delta NL (QDNL) Talent & Learning Centre (TLC) Leiden-Delft.

Stress among students is a growing problem. A new Student Wellbeing taskforce will be looking at the mental health of students at Leiden University.

KWR Watercycle Research Institute and the Centre for Science and Technology Studies (CWTS) at Leiden University are collaborating in the area of social impact.

No, this isn’t about a Star Wars Alliance that wants to suppress The Resistance. Rather, the EPIC Alliance brings together scientific experts from seven countries to address the growing threat of antibiotic resistance. Leiden professor Nathaniel Martin is part of the 11-member consortium.

Astronomers and surgeons from Leiden are collaborating with industry to develop an optical instrument that delivers faster, more accurate imaging of tumour tissue and abnormal blood flow during surgery.

In this thesis, we study travelling waves in stochastic reaction-diffusion equations. We extend techniques from the deterministic theory for travelling waves to apply to the stochastic version, which allows us to compute the stochastic wave speed and shape, and draw conclusions on the stability of the…

Dr Mamadou Hébié, Associate Professor of International Law at the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies, served last week as legal counsel in the world’s first advisory proceedings concerning climate change before the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), on the one hand, and…