The research programme Industrial Ecology aims to support the ecological transformation of society and environment towards sustainability. The research subject is Industrial Ecology in its broadest definition, covering environmental systems analysis, and incorporating the social and economic aspects…

Are you thinking about studying Industrial Ecology? Learn more and watch the introduction video.

The master's programme Industrial Ecology (joint degree Leiden University and Delft University of Technology) is unique in the Netherlands and one of the few programmes in the world combining natural science, engineering, and social science for science-based solutions for sustainability problems.

Do you deeply care about our planet and are you eager to make a real change? Then our two-year MSc programme Industrial Ecology may be the place for you. The interdisciplinary programme, offered jointly by Leiden University and TU Delft, is a true powerhouse for sustainability solutions. As a student…

Our Mission: To optimize human well-being within the constraints of planetary boundaries through innovative research, education, and partnerships that advance sustainable production and consumption. We strive to remain global leaders in developing and applying systems-based approaches, methodological…

How do humans, non-humans and their interactions and relations shape the home as ecological and social space?

Many of the most acute problems we face today are global: they transcend national boundaries, they put the future of society and even humanity at peril, and they can only be addressed through international cooperation. However, what can international cooperation deliver? Find out in the minor Ecology,…

Promotor: Carel J. ten Cate, Co-Promotor: Hans W. Slabbekoorn

The soil-dwelling, filamentous bacteria of the genus Streptomyces are renowned for their production of useful secondary metabolites including antibiotics. The work described in this thesis provides new insights on the role and regulation of antibiotic production and resistance in these bacteria.

Promotores: Prof.dr. H. van Veen & Prof.dr. W. de Boer (Wageningen University)

This ecological community has long been known to affect host biology, and their diverse roles have been further clarified in recent years following numerous studies of animal:microbiota interactions in diverse systems.

Promotor: Prof. dr. Arnold Tukker & Prof. dr. René Kemp (Maastricht University)

Institute of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, Leiden University

PhD defence

The mycorrhizal symbiosis is among the most widespread species interactions on Earth⁠. This thesis focuses on orchid mycorrhiza, a unique mycorrhizal type that has caught scientists’ attention for centuries⁠.

The aim of this thesis was to develop and evaluate a Ecological Professional Development Model to support preservice biology teachers to direct their own subject-specific ecological professional development route.

Sarah Giest, Assistant Professor at Leiden University, and Ishani Mukherjee researched the topic of 'Behavioural Insights Teams (BITs) and Policy Change: An Exploration of Impact, Location, and Temporality of Policy Advice'.

How can we let the sonic speak in public urban environments? What is the function and position of sound in our daily encounters with urbanity? How do we experience cities aurally? This was the topic of Marcel Cobussen's inaugural lecture on November 28th, 2016.

Filamentous Actinobacteria, such as Streptomyces, produce a plethora of chemically diverse bioactive metabolites that have found applications across medicine, agriculture and biotechnology.

Uncover novel antimicrobials with prospective health benefits for sea turtles.

Some MPs are very active, while others are not. The number of proposals and questions that MPs in the Netherlands put forward is determined in part by the level of activity of their fellow committee members rather than by electoral incentive, which is the case in other countries.

Promotores: G.R. de Snoo, B. Sinsin, Co-Promotor: H.H. de Iongh

Can socioeconomic differences in health behaviour be explained by competing goals and demands in everyday life?

At Leiden University’s Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences we keep in touch with our alumni in various ways.

There are five institutes at the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences:

The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences (FSW) aims to play a leading role in gaining insights on current developments in society.

Promotor: E. Gittenberger, Co-promotores: L.P. van Ofwegen; B.W. Hoeksema

How have human-environmental entanglements changed in the Gulf of San Miguel, Darien, Panama, from the first traces human practices through to the present?

In 2021, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) asked Leiden University to conduct a rapid review of best practices and possibilities for follow-up research on the integration of behavioral sciences in security by design methodologies and projects. This academic field is called security by behavioral…

The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences brings together high-quality research and outstanding teaching in the disciplines of cultural anthropology, education and child studies, political science, psychology, science and technology studies, as well as in multidisciplinary approaches.

Promotor: Prof.dr. G.R. de Snoo, Prof.dr. G.A. Persoon

Research in Leiden University’s Institute of Political Science focuses on the dynamics and the interaction of political institutions, individual decision-making, and collective behaviour.

The first international master programme in Industrial Ecology worldwide starting in September 2011.

Promotors: Prof.dr. G.R. de Snoo, Prof.dr. H. Leirs (Univ. Antwerpen), Co-promotor: H.H. de Iongh

The more opportunities a child has to learn and develop, the stronger his or her future position in society. Leiden University investigates how the brain picks up information, and how learning processes can be influenced positively.

This thesis combines field and laboratory studies to address some of the most pressing questions in the field of microplastic research.

Leiden University social scientists have shown that customised intervention pays off. A new fundamental research-based approach in children who are in danger of going off the rails has delivered spectacular results.

How do leadership behaviour repertoires take shape in public organizations?

Can we predict fluctuations in suicidal ideation in a person’s daily life, from hour to hour?

This article presents a new dyadic approach to studying voting behaviour in the Council of the European Union.

By training with virtual opponents known as computer generated forces (CGFs), trainee fighter pilots can build the experience necessary for air combat operations, at a fraction of the cost of training with real aircraft.

Are you curious about why people are the way they are – and how they change? At Leiden University, you’ll explore social behaviour, ideas and cultures, from the past to the present and from local to global. From major cities to world religions, from philosophical questions to education and upbringing…

Are you curious about why people are the way they are – and how they change? At Leiden University, you’ll explore social behaviour, ideas and cultures, from the past to the present and from local to global. From major cities to world religions, from philosophical questions to education and upbringing…

A warm welcome to the Graduate School of Social and Behavioural Sciences at Leiden University.