Activities

Many activities have been organised and carried out by students and staff over the recent period.

Support and advice

The Diversity Office provides support and advice on initiatives that promote diversity and inclusiveness. The staff work closely with faculty diversity coordinators who play an important role in implementing the diversity policy within the faculties. They meet on a monthly basis to  exchange knowledge and discuss developments.

Training courses

Training courses provide direct support in creating the awareness and developing the skills needed to achieve an inclusive learning and working environment. The Diversity Office works closely with the Human Resources department and ICLON to develop interesting and effective courses to underpin our diversity policy.

Examples of training courses for staff

• Intercultural communication
• Bias in theory and in practice
• Observation and on-the- job feedback
• Diversity-conscious selection and evaluation
• The role of the HR professional in Diversity & Inclusion

Training courses for lecturers

• Cultural Awareness in Teaching and Learning
• Inclusive education - reaching all your students

I have become more aware of my own attitudes and patterns of behaviour in situations involving different cultures.

A participant in a course on Intercultural Communication

Meetings

Annual symposium

A diversity symposium is organised every year, which is an opportunity for students and staff to consider the results achieved to date and to celebrate our successes. The winner of the Van Bergen competition is also announced at this symposium. 

• How inclusion makes diversity work (2017)
• The making of an inclusive Leiden University. Do's and Don'ts (2016)
• Diversity and Inclusion: Challenging Implicit Bias (2015)
• Excellence through Diversity (2014)
• Excellence through Diversity (2013)

Monthly Let's Talk sessions

Every third Thursday of the month, Let's Talk sessions are organised where students and staff can share their experiences with one another. At these sessions one person talks about his or her personal story, and the discussion that follows brings together this story and the stories of other individuals present at the meeting. Listening to each other's stories and experiences is a way of broadening our perspective and learning to apply this wider outlook to how we think and act. The Diversity Office's aim with these Let’s Talk sessions is to highlight the different stories of Leiden students and staff.