Bjørn Peare Bartholdy is Archaeology’s representative in the Open Science Community Leiden (OSCL) . We spoke with him about the value of Open Science and how to make a good start. ‘Open Science is headed to be a regular way of academic work.’ So better to jump on the Open Science bandwagon early on.

Universities, companies, organisations and societies are increasingly facing enormous quantities of data. It is a great challenge to transform these Big Data into knowledge, which is why Leiden University has launched a University-wide Data Science Research Programme.

Four FSW researchers received good news at the end of 2025: they will receive an NWO-XS grant this year.

Rawi Ramautar will be the new Programme Director of the bachelor of Bio-Pharmaceutical Sciences starting September 1. The appointment is for four years. Ramautar succeeds Erik Danen, who has held the position since 2019.

Associate professor Rens Tacoma has won the 2021 Research Prize for Historical Sciences. The prize is awarded annually by the Italy Studies Working Group for the best scholarly publication in the field of Italy Studies in Dutch or Flemish academia.

The Faculty of Archaeology used to be involved in several excavations in Syria, before the outbreak of civil war made travel to the region impossible. One of these excavations is the one of tell Hammam al-Turkman, which started in 1981. Student Ruben Hartman, together with archaeologist Dr Diederik…

In this NRC article, sociologist John Boy together with Martijn Lampert and Lonneke van den Berg discuss the three biggest paradoxes of Generation Z: limitless freedom but experiencing enormous stress, being culturally independent but economically dependent and being highly idealistic but also constantly…

Dutch universities have responded positively to the new coalition plans. Investments in education, research and innovation will be prioritised, and the stringent cutbacks proposed by the previous cabinet will be reversed. Optimism is the order of the day in Leiden, though caution is advised.

Valerie Pattyn has received Veni funding for her project Policy evaluations evaluated. When do they prompt an overhaul of policies? 'I am really looking forward to immerse myself in this study, and I am enormously grateful for this unique opportunity'.

Gilles van Wezel has been reappointed as Scientific Director at the Leiden Institute of Biology (IBL). Van Wezel has been director of this institute since September 2018 and will remain so until 1 September 2026.

In less than a week’s time, millions of Turkish people are going to decide who will govern their country for the next five years. These elections promise to be the most closely contested in years, with the opinion polls showing very small differences and everything at stake, including for Europe. Alp…

Not experiments and lab coats, but computers and artificial intelligence: this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry went to the inventors of the groundbreaking AI model, AlphaFold. This programme accurately predicts protein structures based on their genetic code—a crucial step in understanding biological…

Happy Holidays from LACDR

The energy transition is already a huge challenge for society, but sustainable use of resources is even more complicated. Yet it is at least as urgent. Ester van der Voet has been working on it for decades, for example within the United Nations. Since February, she is a professor at the Centre for Environmental…

Whereas most outgoing professors are offered a congress, Nico Kaptein's former students and PhD students took a bigger approach. They treated him not only to a farewell congress, but also to a two-week tour of Indonesia, filled with lectures, and trips.

Jan Aart Scholte is the first professor on the new Leiden interdisciplinary programme, Global Transformations and Governance Challenges. He researches how to tackle global challenges such as climate change and inequality. Inaugural lecture on 4 February.

A European bachelor’s degree, an enormous web of collaborations and masses of fantastic opportunities for researchers and support professionals: in two years, we as a university have come far within the Una Europa alliance, says Professor Joanne van der Leun. She rejoined the Una Europa Board of Directors…

A report by interest group Tax Justice Network shows that the Netherlands is still one of the most attractive countries for companies when it comes to tax: we hold a dubious fourth position on a list of seventy coutries. In Dutch magazine Vrij Nederland Jan Vleggeert, Professor of Tax Law, explains…

The nine suspects from Hilversum accused of beating Carlo Heuvelman so badly on the night of 14 July last year that he later died will hear their sentences on Friday. The Public Prosecution Service (OM) had demanded that one of the suspects be sentenced to 10 years in prison, and two others eight ye…

Marcello Bonsangue will be the new Scientific Director of the Leiden Institute of Advanced Computer Science (LIACS) from January 2024. Bonsangue has been appointed for four years. He succeeds Aske Plaat, who led the institute for eight years.

Space is of enormous strategic value. Having rules in space therefore is to everyone’s advantage.

Dirk Uittenbogaard, a student on the Delft-Leiden Master’s in Industrial Ecology, has won a gold medal for rowing at the Olympic Games in Tokyo. Uittenbogaard took gold in the men’s quadruple sculls, together with Abe Wiersma, Tone Wieten and Koen Metsemakers.

Every year in the Netherlands, thousands of children are placed in out-of-home care because their parents are unable to look after them properly or because the children are at risk.

Ans is Leiden University's digital testing platform. It allows you to make digital exams using a variety of questions for summative and formative assessment.

Masses of hamburgers, steaks, cheese and a lot of eggs: Americans love their animal products. But researcher Oliver Taherzadeh discovered that only a relatively small group of high-volume consumers need to modify their diet to achieve an enormous environmental gain.

On the first day of February, employees of the Faculty of Humanities gathered in the Faculty Club. They were there to usher in the new semester, while enjoying refreshments and drinks.

Alumna Lauren Antonides has won the Roggeveen Prize for her thesis on the regional identity of Zeelandic Flanders. She will receive a sum of 1,000 euros.

Does the university value teaching less than research? Can you advance in science without academic awards? Which scholars inspire you? Does the university pay enough attention to both your academic achievements and your personal well-being?

Ludo Waltman, professor of Quantitative Science Studies at Centre for Science and Technology Studies (CWTS), has been awarded the Derek de Solla Price Medal.

Two Humanities research masters and one master’s programme score well above average in the Keuzegids Masters: the research master History, the master and research master Classics and Ancient Civilizations.

Heavy! This is the first word that comes to lecturer Marjo de Graauw’s mind when she looks back on the past year. But with her creativity and experience with educational innovation she was nonetheless able to provide her usual high standard of teaching.

Eiko Fried (Clinical Psychology) was inspired by the idea of ​​mental disorders as complex properties with "fuzzy boundaries", rather than the categorisation of psychiatric conditions. For his research he has been awarded the Janet Taylor Spence Award from the Association for Psychological Science (APS).…

As of 1 September Miranda van Eck will be the new Scientific Director of the Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research. She succeeds Hubertus Irth, who led the institute since 2016. Van Eck has been appointed for a period of four years.

The KNAW has rewarded 11 Leiden scientists for their commitment to science communication, by awarding them 10,000 euros each from the ‘Appreciated!’ fund.

Prof Dr Joke Bouwstra will receive the “ Dr Saal van Zwanenberg Ereprijs” from the “Koninklijke Hollandse Maatschappij der Wetenschappen” on November 14 in Haarlem. Joke is awarded for her innovative contributions to the field of skin delivery science and technology. She shares the price with prof…

Educator Marjo de Graauw is awarded a Comenius education grant from the Nationaal Regieorgaan Onderwijsonderzoek (NRO) for her lab education project Stress-free laboratory education with video labs.

This year marks a special occasion because it was just ten years ago that the Georgian language was taught for the first time at Leiden University. It is even more exciting that its first professor, Ramaz Kurdadze, will return to Leiden this year to teach students interested in the language. Kurdadze…

Markus Davidsen, assistant professor of Religious Studies, is the winner of the 2021 Impact Prize. He is receiving the prize of 1,000 euros for the material he has developed for religious education in secondary schools.

Education, Research

And the construction has started! Students of the Leiden Science study associations ceremoniously hammered down the first poles of the new Gorlaeus on Tuesday morning. By doing so, they initiated the second phase of the construction of the second part of the new building.

The challenges of building a sustainable society are unprecedented. But the Dutch municipalities cannot be faulted for their commitment. They are working hard, conclude Professor Eefje Cuppen and Lian Merkx, programme manager for energy at the Association of Netherlands Municipalities (VNG). To exchange…

Fifteen passionate lecturers from Leiden University were awarded the Senior Teaching Qualification (SKO) on Thursday 27 January. One of them is Frank Takes, as of 1 February Associate Professor of Computer Science. For him the SKO was a good opportunity to reflect on how he teaches.

Since a few months, Executive Director Niels Laurens no longer has to divide his attention between two faculties but has been able to fully focus on FGGA. A conversation about the dynamics within our Faculty, his management style, and the steps we will all have to take together to improve issues such…

Limburg lawyer Roger Cox has caused a legal revolution. With high-profile cases against the Dutch state and Shell oil company, he transformed the law into a tool to enforce climate policy. Leidraad alumni magazine spoke to him about a life defined by radical choices for a better world.

Given the teacher shortage, secondary schools could use an extra pair of hands. Alfrink College in Zoetermeer is glad to have students from the university helping out in class. ‘We hope students will see how great it is to work in teaching.’

Everyone has been watching the attack on Ukraine, a war on the European continent, with a sense of foreboding. It will bring devastation, loss, suffering and worry and it raises questions. With these words, Rector Magnificus Hester Bijl opened the meeting on the war in Ukraine at Wijnhaven on Thursday…

Rutger Leukfeldt has been appointed endowed Professor of Governing Cybercrime at the faculties of Governance and Global Affairs (FGGA) and Leiden Law School. Leukfeldt: 'It’s great that the two faculties are joining forces at a time when we’re faced with enormous challenges in the field of cybercrim…

In the next decades, thousands of wind turbines will be added to the North Sea. Environmental scientist Chen Li identified the most beneficial areas for their construction, focusing on material use, carbon footprint, and environmental impact. His paper was published in Environmental Science & Techno…

‘We can only achieve this if we work together.’ This is what Rector Magnificus Hester Bijl emphasised as she spoke about professional research support at the opening of the second Research Support Conference at PLNT on 14 June. For the 80 research support staff present, learning and inspiration was…