De discussie over de sluiting van illegale schietbanen van Defensie, als gevolg van de stikstofwetgeving is ingewikkeld en omvat diverse juridische aspecten. Armin Cuyvers, hoogleraar Europeesrecht, bespreekt de zaak in BNR-Nieuwsradio.

Electrolysis is a technique that can be used to convert CO2 into fuels and other useful products. To do this efficiently and on a large scale, however, we need to understand exactly how electrolysis works. Professor Marc Koper is an expert in this field.

Curious about how sustainability fits into our university's strategic plan, or how much energy and water we consume? Read about it here.

The energy system is at the heart of two of the greatest challenges of the 21st century: decreasing CO2 emissions to meet the ambitions of the Paris agreement while fulfilling the growing energy demand associated with the economic aspirations of a growing world population.

Managing scarcity to serve the public interest is a classic government task. An important way to execute this task is by allocating individual rights that are only available in limited quantities, such as CO2 emission allowances, gambling licences, subsidies, radio frequencies, public contracts and…

Can Cyanobacteria be engineered to convert the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide into the valuable chemical isoprene?

Hydrogen can help to solve the climate problem. At least, if we start producing it in the right, clean way. Leiden researchers mapped out the global environmental impact of hydrogen production and looked ahead to 2050. They published their work in Energy & Environmental Science.

The chemical industry must continue to innovate for a more sustainable, healthier society. The reseachers from the Leiden Institute of Chemistry (LIC) contribute by applying their knowledge to themes such as sustainability, energy and health.

The following page offers tips for more sustainable travel options, such as taking the train or bus, and highlights online tools that can help you plan eco-friendly trips and find affordable tickets.

In this dossier you can read about Leiden University’s commitment to sustainability.

An estimated 17% of our university's total carbon footprint comes from the thousands of travel movements by our staff, students, visitors, and suppliers. Our aim is to reduce these emissions by a quarter in the coming years.

The following master research projects are currently open in the Bouwmeester group.

The E2CB programme has been launched to bring CO2 emissions to zero by 2050. The goal: to produce all raw materials for the chemical industry from sustainable sources. Professor of Electrochemistry Marc Koper is involved in the project.

Tussen de sterren is niet alleen leegte. Er zweven ook stoffen als methanol en koolstofdioxide. Chemische theorieën kunnen nog niet verklaren hoe die zijn ontstaan onder omstandigheden die dat juist onmogelijk zouden moeten maken. Fedor Goumans gaat met een Veni-beurs proberen die vraag te beantwoor…

Limiting global warming to 1.5°C will require aggressive emission reductions and large-scale CO₂ removal from the atmosphere. Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) can neutralize hard-to-abate residual emissions and even draw down atmospheric CO₂ to reverse a temperature overshoot. However, deploying CDR at…

Financial support that wealthy countries provide to poorer countries in order to help them combat climate change and the associated emissions was the central topic of this year's UN Climate Change Conference in Baku. Annemarie Drahmann, Associate Professor of Constitutional and Administrative Law, discussed…

Twenty years from now, the world population is estimated to be around 9 billion people (now 8 billion). In combination with the improvements in living standards and the corresponding growth in consumption, this population will result in an enormous increase in the demand for food, consumables, water…

Research at the Catalysis and Surface Chemistry group is comprised of the following research themes:

From a meaningless block of plastic to an advanced component that contributes to the energy transition. The technicians and scientists of our faculty think it out in detail and make it a reality. This special project shows that they need each other.

Foute taal? Bestaat niet!

Using biomethane to produce ammonia, a crucial chemical in agriculture, could drastically reduce the climate impact of the process. In a study published in One Earth, researcher Robert Istrate shows it’s even possible to make ammonia production net-zero or carbon negative.

Leiden University is a integral part of the community and contributes to a sustainable society. Over the coming years our University will become even greener.

The Leiden University Green Office has some great news: you can now make the most environmentally-friendly search engine - Ecosia - your default on a public LU computer!

The world we live in is changing in many aspects at an ever-increasing speed. And it will continue to do so. How do we anticipate these changes, such as the increase in atmospheric CO2, the extinction of species and industrialisation?

Promotor: E.F. Smets Co-promotor: J. Geml

MICRO-biome climate smart applications: Can we use indigenous microbial rice communities to reduce methane production in agricultural settings?

This guide relays information on tips and tricks for traveling by train and bus, and which online tools you can use for sustainable travel and trip planning.

Paul Behrens and his team have won the Frontiers Planet Prize of half a million euros for their research into the effects of switching to a plant-based diet.

PhD defence

PhD defence

As a virtually inexhaustible source, solar energy plays a major role in future global energy scenarios.

A liveable planet. More biodiversity. And resources which are being managed wisely. At the CML, we want to make an impact with our research and education. On this website you can read what we do to achieve that.

Everyone knows smoking is unhealthy, but did you also know that smoking is not good for the environment? In parternship with UFB, we are organising a number of action days to pick up cigarette butts, hand out sustainable ashtrays and inform people about how they can smoke more sustainably!

Planet-forming disks surrounding newly born stars consist of gas and dust. As their name suggests, they are the birth sites of planetary systems.

The "Van Marum Colloquia" are a collaborative lecture series between the LION and LIC institutes, focusing on fundamental and applied surface science.

The sustainable production of hydrogen could potentially be made more efficient by adding a cleverly chosen salt to the process. Researchers at the Leiden Institute of Chemistry (LIC), in collaboration with physicists at the University of Twente, have discovered that the type of salt present in the…

Steel production is likely to take up a large portion of our future carbon budget. Capturing CO₂ from coal-based production won’t solve the problem. Technologies that rely on renewables are more effective, but not enough to get to net zero.

To construct catalysts that can produce fuels from CO2 innumerable times, we need to learn much more about how catalysis works. Irene Groot is conducting groundbreaking research into catalysis at the atomic level.

We would like to present to you a simple guidebook about living a sustainable life as a student in the cities of Leiden and The Hague. Whether you are a first-year student still trying to find your way around or already doing your masters – students wanting to explore more sustainable options and save…

Lecture

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…

Sustainably produced food reduces CO2 emissions during production and promotes the region’s economy. The University is working to increase the number of organic, fair trade, vegetarian and vegan products in its restaurants.

What is Leiden University doing to make its buildings future-proof and independent of fossil energy?

Lecture

Rector Magnificus Hester Bijl received an honorary degree from the University of Birmingham on Friday 12 December for her contribution to educational innovation, student well-being and culture change within academia.

How the TikTok account came across his publication remains a mystery to researcher Martín Hernán Di Marco. But he is well aware that his work has gone viral. The video has now been viewed five million times and shared more than 100,000 times.

Leiden University is committed to reducing our water consumption.

This project, under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Hans van der Plicht, comprises several studies aimed at the use of isotopes occurring naturally in organic material as tracers for both the climate change and its cultural impact at about 6200 BC. The research will be carried out by the co-applicant at…

We review the state-of-the-art in the theory of dissociative chemisorption (DC) of small gas phase molecules on metal surfaces, which is important to modeling heterogeneous catalysis for practical reasons, and for achieving an understanding of the wealth of experimental information that exists for this…

Research carried out at Leiden University contributes to our knowledge of sustainability. This is essential if we want to work together to find solutions to pressing issues, such as the current climate emergency and the shortage of raw materials.