Knowledge that benefits society is the domain of the Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs (FGGA). FGGA provides high-quality interdisciplinary education on and research into social and governance issues such as terrorism, organisation of public administration, climate change and economic crises.

This project looks at the ways in which youth in southern Nigeria navigate their lives in a context of experiencing long-term socioeconomic uncertainty and political insecurity (duress).

Are you thinking about studying Colonial and Global History? Learn more and watch the introduction video.

Are you thinking about studying Global Political Economy? Learn more and watch the introduction video.

This series provides a venue for scholarly work—research monographs and edited volumes—that advances our understanding of the history of slavery and post-slavery in any period and any geographical region. It fills an important gap in academic publishing and builds upon two relatively recent developments…

Multinationals use loopholes in the tax treaties between different states. A possible solution would be to eliminate all these loopholes in one go by creating a central global treaty. Leiden researchers are investigating whether this kind of mega-treaty is feasible.

Although the world has made tremendous progress in health, education, sanitation and hygiene, global public health challenges still exist. Disparities in health exist between and within nations as evidenced by inequalities in disease burden, mortality, nutrition and environmental well-being. How does…

International trade has played a major role in defining the modern global economy. Trade, however, entangles the environmental pressures of economic sectors, giving the illusion of environmental improvements, while the opposite may be occurring.

This edited volume evaluates the concept of global order, with a particular emphasis on the role of regional organisations within global governance institutions such as the United Nations. Several researchers at the Institute of Security and Global Affairs (ISGA) have contributed to this volume in the…

The project interrogates the relationship between impartiality and power and asks whether impartiality as a cornerstone of global governance can – and ought to – be re-envisioned in the context of changing global governance power relations.

This unique collection applies globalization concepts to the discipline of archaeology, using a wide range of global case studies from a group of international specialists.

Much has been said regarding the global flows of information that are characteristic of modernity; it has been frequently stressed that these conduits are so deeply embedded that local or national environments may be imagined as having a global span. Thus, while we are now well aware that the imagination…

The research group on Diplomacy and Global Affairs studies international diplomacy, international organisation, global, transnational, multi-level and comparative governance.

The Multistakeholder Global Governance (MGG) Project is a four-year project which explores how far, and under what circumstances, multistakeholder constructions of global governance operate well, in terms of having capacity, effectiveness, and legitimacy.

The specialisation Global Conflict in the Modern Era of the master’s in International Relations at Leiden University engages you with the scholarly debates about global conflict today and in the recent past.

The Institute of Security and Global Affairs (ISGA) focuses on multidisciplinary research and education within the international scientific field of security studies.

It is often said that the true character of a person is only revealed in a crisis. In these days, the coronavirus causes concern about the true state of the multilateral system. Political scientist Gisela Hirschmann (Leiden University) is worried about the future of multilateralism.

From fake news to COVID-19 conspiracies, debates about truth claims have become more prominent during the past decade. Taking a global, comparative perspective, the minor Disinformation and Strategic Communication in Global Media focuses on the broad spectrum of contested narratives subsumed under the…

Artin L-functions associated to continuous representations of the absolute Galois group G_K of a global field K capture a lot of information about G_K as well as arithmetic properties of K.

Study information, Online Experience

The Colonial and Global History (research) programme at Leiden University offers the most in-depth and comprehensive programme of European expansion and globalisation currently available in Europe.

The key subject of Cities, Migration and Global Interdependence is Inequality at local, national and global levels.

Every year, in the last month of the Islamic calendar, millions of Muslims from around the world come together in Mecca to perform the Hajj, the pilgrimage that all capable Muslims should perform at least once in their lives. In 2013, the National Museum of Ethnology in Leiden organised the exhibition…

On 17 January 2024 Ying Wang successfully defended a doctoral thesis and graduated.

The specialisation Global Order in Historical Perspective of the master’s in International Relations at Leiden University focuses on examining the historical processes and practices in the making of global order.

Are you thinking about studying Global Order in Historical Perspective? Learn more and watch the introduction video.

Are you thinking about studying Cities, Migration and Global Interdependence? Learn more and watch the introduction video.

The Hague is the international city of peace, justice and security – making it the logical place for the Institute of Security and Global Affairs (ISGA) to reach partners from ministries, governments and NGOs with research into issues relating to security.

Lecture, Global Histories of Knowledge Seminar

For many years, human rights have been considered a playing field in which states were the most important actors. In the present day society, this has changed as a consequence of globalization and the rise of multinational enterprises (MNEs). Protection of fundamental labor rights in global supply chains…

Leiden University College The Hague is an institute of Leiden University, located in the City of The Hague. This small and highly international community brings together passionate and motivated staff and students, who want to study and tackle the global challenges that face humanity. The intensive…

Atte Ahola, who graduated last year from the bachelor’s programme in Urban Studies, has won the award for Best Undergraduate Thesis in Europe in the category of Earth and Environmental Sciences at the Global Undergraduate Awards 2025.

On 28 June 2018, Qiuyin Hu defended his doctoral thesis 'Regulating Working Conditions in Times of Globalization'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof.dr. G.J.J. Heerma van Voss and Prof. dr. B. Barentsen.

This book explores the lasting legacy of the controversial project by the Congress for Cultural Freedom, funded by the CIA, to promote Western culture and liberal values in the battle of ideas with global Communism during the Cold War.

Technological advances have an impact on our daily lives. They have also been employed by governments to manage border security, especially at controversial border crossings. Fences, heat sensors, heat cameras, drones and other hi-tech equipment that are currently being tested collectively produce a…

Development of effective VR training for International Law of Armed Conflict (ILAC)

This Philosophy: Global and Comparative Perspectives bachelor's programme is unique. It offers comparative perspectives from around the world that will enable you to be part of the next generation of thinkers, someone studying and shaping philosophy for a globalised 21st century.

The key subject of the research programme Cities, Migration and Global Interdependence 1500 - Now (CMGI) is Inequality (at local, national and global levels).

Study information

Today, humanity produces sufficient calories, in theory, to feed the 7.7 billion people on the planet: the amount of food produced per person on the planet has gone up more than 40% since the 1960s. Yet, ironically, the prevalence of undernourishment – which had been declining for decades – has started…

What are the global relationships between environmental conditions and abundance of distinct types of mycorrhizal fungi in soil and plant roots?

Today, 13 students at Leiden University have started a crowdfunding campaign to collect money for research into the possibilities of growing crops on Mars. Their research will contribute to the knowledge of our galaxy. The project is in the context of the iGEM competition.

These four volumes offer students and researchers a rich collection of published works on the history of slavery works by some of the most preeminent scholars in the field.

A warm welcome to the Graduate School of FGGA at Leiden University.

Are you curious of how the university and the faculty work? Read more about that on this page.

On 22 May, astronaut André Kuipers opened the new Mediterranean garden in the Hortus. With this water-efficient garden, the Hortus aims to offer inspiration for future- and climate-proof garden planting. Prefect Paul Keßler and scientific director of the Leiden Observatory Ignas Snellen also signed…