In a landmark ruling, the International Court of Justice says that states are obliged to protect the climate. Jolein Holtz, a climate and human rights expert, believes the Court is too vague about the impact for future generations: ‘A missed opportunity’.

Organisation

More efficient use of phosphorus fertilisers would make it possible to meet food demand in 2050, without using more of the world’s land for agriculture. This is what environmental scientists José Mogollón and colleagues have discovered by working out various future scenarios for food production and…

Many students on the Master’s programme in International Relations and Diplomacy had their internship cancelled last year because of the pandemic. As an alternative, together with Professor of International Relations Madeleine Hosli, they wrote a book: The Future of Multilateralism.

Prof Harold Linnartz has been reappointed Director of Education of the bachelor and master programmes of Astronomy. The appointment is for a period of four years, until 1 October 2026.

The 8th edition of the Brussels Privacy Symposium, co-organised in Brussels by the Future of Privacy Forum and the Brussels Privacy Hub on 7 October 2024, was a great success. More than 160 people from all over Europe and the world attended the event.

What will it be like to study at Leiden University in 2075? Ten surprising, artistic uni-visions could be brought to life. It’s up to you to vote for your favourite.

What energises you, what are your talents, and how can you use all this in your future job? These are essential questions that will help you to identify your career options and design your future. The What’s Next? course offers the opportunity to find answers to them.

How can The Netherlands, France and Germany cooperate more closely on issues such as European security and defence. Join the kick off of The European Strategic Dialogue Series, an initiative by the Institute of Security and Global Affairs and its partners in France and Germany. Joachim Koops tells more…

Violent conflicts and civil wars in Chad impede most rural households' access to food security, agricultural activities and access to essential services such as health care. In her dissertation, Nakar Djindil Syntyche denounces this issue. She obtained her PhD on 24 November.

On 11 April, we marked an important milestone for our LLB students who celebrated at their graduation ceremony.

The Leiden Research Profile Area Political Legitimacy organizes a public symposium on the 12th of May 2016 on the legitimacy and future of the Dutch Senate.

Should I enroll in a second master's degree? What will my future employer expect from me? How do I find out what I actually enjoy doing? In this special episode of the Leiden Lawcast, career coach Anne-Marie Schreurs gives tips & tricks on how to best prepare for your future career!

How can you find an internship or research project and what arrangements do you need to make?

Han Meyer, Carola Hein, Paul van de Laar and Sabine Luning, argue that in the current moment of major crises these ship channels necessitate radical reconsideration.

Bart Barendregt receives a Vici grant of 1.5 million euros from the NWO for his research project 'One between the Zeros, an Anthropology of Artificial Intelligence in Islam'.

In a paper, researchers suggest how the next European Commission can develop an alternative policy model that centres people’s well-being.

Jasper Knoester is the dean of the Faculty of Science. How is he doing, what exactly does he do and what does his day look like? In each newsletter, Jasper gives an insight into his life.

Leiden researchers have discovered an enzyme that helps bacteria feed on everyday plastics. This common enzyme could play a crucial role in future research and eventually in addressing the global plastic crisis. The study was published in Nature Communications.

Over the centuries painters and photographers have depicted students at study in Leiden. An exhibition at the Hortus botanicus reveals the similarities and differences in 450 years of student life.

Leiden University’s Living Lab is moving to the middle of the Leiden Bio Science Park. In the lab’s new home between the University of Applied Sciences, Mentor and Naturalis Biodiversity Center, the first ditches have now been dug. This new location is more accessible to both researchers and the public.…

Leiden University will continue to offer its BA in Italian Language and Culture. The Board of the Faculty of Humanities has reversed its decision to stop admitting new students as of the 2026/2027 academic year.

The virtual Exhibition Gold Matters is now live and can be explored online. This exhibition is the result of collaborations between artists, members of mining communities, and researchers of the Gold Matters’ project. Curating the exhibition is a collaborative effort of the Gold Matters Team with Sabine…

Nicky Boer is enrolled in the Educational Master’s Programme in Social Studies/Social Sciences at ICLON, the Leiden University Graduate School of Teaching.

Psychologist Bramesada Prasastyoga discovered that small business owners who engaged in entrepreneurship mostly for the pursuit of rewards and opportunities tended to be more willing to grow their businesses than those who engaged in entrepreneurship mostly due to the need for security and necessity,…

On Tuesday 5 September, the opening of the faculty year took place at the Kamerlingh Onnes Building. Staff and students gathered in the Cleveringa Room to take part in the interactive part of the programme.

The Guggenheim Fellowship is a prestigious award for US nationals. There are more than 3,000 applications every year, and this year only 188 were honoured. Professor Jonathan Silk is one of these 188, the first ever at Leiden University, and he tells us more about the fellowship and what he will do…

Leiden University joins the Just Transitions for AMR Working Group, an interdisciplinary team of social science and humanities researchers who are exploring ways to mitigate the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance in a just and equitable manner, with due consideration to the human rights of present…

Suzan Verberne has been appointed professor of Natural Language Processing at the Leiden Institute of Advanced Computer Science (LIACS) from 1 October. Verberne has been at LIACS since 2017 as group leader of the Text Mining and Retrieval group.

Organisation

An international team of researchers, including scholars from Leiden University, has received a Seed Funding Grant within the Una Europa network. The project, Democracy and AI, focuses on the impact of artificial intelligence on the functioning of democratic systems.

The European PANVIPREP research project started at the Leiden University Medical Center on 11 March. The participants are virologists, biochemists and pharmacists from 14 European countries. Their mission is to develop antiviral drugs to protect Europe during pandemics. At least two such antivirals…

How do you make effective use of AI and medical technology? And what role do you play in this as a doctor? This is what the LUMC/Leiden University is preparing medical students for, right from the first year of their studies.

Our own Dr. Martin Berger has been accepted as a member of the Young Academy Leiden! He is thrilled with his appointment. ‘I am honored to be accepted as a member of the Young Academy Leiden and am looking forward to working together with other scholars from across the University.’

A number of election debates will be taking place in the run-up to the municipal elections on 18 March 2026. Leiden University and its partners in The Hague are also organising several initiatives that give students and staff the chance to exchange ideas with local politicians about the city’s futur…

In an interview on the website of the NWO, Sabine Luning, Marjo de Theije and Esther van de Camp talk about the gold miners they met in various African and South American countries and they come to new insights.

Future proofing student skills with a new cohort of Digital Humanities & AI students.

Since 1 January Leiden has a new graduate school. The Netherlands Institute for Cultural Analysis (NICA), previously based at the University of Amsterdam, has moved to the Centre for the Arts in Society (LUCAS).

On 7 November, we marked an important milestone for our Law and Criminology bachelor's students who celebrated at their graduation ceremony.

Leiden University has decided to withdraw from EUniWell as of January 2023. The importance of synergy in our international portfolio and research and teaching agendas recently led us to accept the invitation to join Una Europa, an alliance of 11 leading European research universities. We have explored…

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Health and well-being staff spend at least 25 per cent of their working hours on admin.* Time that could be used for care. Much of this work could be automated with artificial intelligence. The LUMC is the first in the Netherlands to offer medical students AI language model programming internships.

Leiden students often prefer complicated theory and a difficult test to experiments. Yet associate professor Paul Logman believes students learn a lot from practical teaching. He challenges his students to come up with their research questions themselves. The Leiden Institute of Physics (LION) is at…

It is the final stretch for the students of FGGA. Summer is approaching and they are working hard to complete everything before the summer holidays. We asked some of them how they look back at the academic year. ‘Being a mentor during HOP week is something I can recommend to everyone’

In its Strategic Plan Leiden University sets its direction for the coming years. A new plan will be presented next year, and in the runup to this we are organising different forms of student and staff consultation within the scope of LDN FWD (‘Leiden Forward’). A series of meetings were recently held…

On 7 July, the Mayor of Leiden, Peter Heijkoop, visited Leiden Law School. During his visit, he learned about the faculty’s commitment to advancing research and education while contributing to tackling the challenges faced by society.

Professor Beatrice de Graaf held the 53rd Huizinga Lecture on Thursday 12 December. In front of a a sold-out Stadsgehoorzaal, she spoke about how history can be used in times of crisis to give meaning to the situation.

For the Bachelor Honours Class 'Mass Extinction', students produced podcasts about the past, the present and the future of mass extinctions. What exactly is lost when a species goes extinct? What are the practical consequences? But also: does humanity have the moral duty to protect other species?

LUNHA strives to redefine global health by prioritizing justice, fairness, and inclusion in Africa. Through collaboration with diverse stakeholders, LUNHA aims to reshape global health research and foster a broader engagement with social sciences and humanities.