Five candles on CPP’s cake

The Centre for Political Philosophy (CPP) is celebrating its fi fth anniversary. This initiative by the Institute of Philosophy and Political Sciences off ers a platform for activities and encounters in the fi eld of political philosophy for all interested parties in the Leiden academic community. The Centre organises frequent colloquia with guest speakers from the Netherlands and abroad, workshops and conferences. The CPP also hosts the World Aff airs Forum Leiden (WAFL), which organises regular meetings on current events. On the occasion of the Centre’s anniversary, Professor Melissa Lane (Princeton) gave a well-attended lecture in which she showed how the ancient Greeks (in particular Plato) warned of developments that can damage the stability of a state, and how these warnings still apply today.

MOOC on music and society

In November, the Academy of Creative and Performing Arts (ACPA) launched its fi rst MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) via Coursera: Music & Society. Professor Marcel Cobussen and Dr Hafez Ismaïli M’Hamdi teach this thorough introduction to the numerous links between music and society. For example, how does music impact social, political, economic, technological and other developments? The MOOC includes fascinating lectures and interviews, challenging assignments, interesting articles, and of course a lot of musical examples to illustrate where, how and why we listen to music, how music forms identity, and how it aff ects our norms and values.

https://www.coursera.org/learn/music-society

of digital tools, it has become possible to fi nd new connections within large quantities of data, and on a smaller scale too, digital methods are off ering new perspectives. Text mining is the collective name for the digital analysis of text that forms the lion’s share of the Leiden Digital Humanities. Th e Centre’s second core task is visualisation: graphic

Th e Centre focuses on teaching and supporting students and researchers in using digital research methods. Its roots date back to the 1990s, with the large-scale digitisation of text materials. By now the mass of text has reached such proportions that research opportunities are arising on a so far unthinkable scale. With the development

representation of the connections that are found.

Stimulating teaching and researchTh e University has made funding available for the Leiden University Centre for Digital Humanities. Vice-Dean Egbert Fortuin explains: ‘Th ere is considerable potential in this

area; we are a bit behind in Leiden. Th e Centre plays an important role in stimulating our teaching and research.’ With the appointment on 1 November of two lecturers, Paul Vierthaler and Javier Cha, the Centre is really taking off . Th e team will be completed with two still to be appointed PhD candidates who will conduct research on sign

language and grammar. Th e Chair of the steering group coordinating the LUCDH is Hilde De Weerdt: ‘We fi rst need to make an inventory of the Faculty community: Who works with Digital Humanities? Who wants to grow further in this domain? As soon as we have more insight into this, we can start building a network.’

‘We are not number crunchers who don’t care about content’

Minor in Digital HumanitiesTh e next step is off ering a Bachelor’s Minor in Digital Humanities, which is currently running through the approval procedure. In all likelihood,

fgw•nu // nr7 • december 2016 | 1

With the creation of the Leiden University Centre for Digital Humanities our Faculty is stepping with both feet into the digital era. The founders are very enthusiastic, but as befi ts a buzzword, the Digital Humanities are also regarded with some scepticism. What will the Digital Humanities bring us, we ask ourselves. What will we gain? And will we not lose something too?

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Award winner Karwan Fatah-Black The Anglicisation of education Three questions about: Leiden Asia Year

Help from zeros and ones

fgw•nu is an internal publication for all staff members of the Leiden University Faculty of Humanities // nr7 • December2016

Et al Achievements at the Faculty of Humanities

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Faculty of Humanities professor curator of queens

This winter Leiden’s National Museum of Antiquities will witness a revival of the wealth, power and worship of the queens of ancient Egypt. The ‘Queens of the Nile’ exhibition tells the remarkable story of the pharaohs’ wives. Professor of Egyptology Olaf Kaper is the guest curator and master’s student of Egyptology Fania Kruijf his assistant. Together they compiled a unique exhibition of no fewer than 350 Egyptian masterpieces that illustrate the queens’ wealth. Visitors can, for instance, admire the sarcophagus and burial gifts of the famous Queen Nefertari, from Museo Egizio in Turin. Kaper and Kruijf also collected important pieces from museums in Brussels, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Hildesheim, and the National Museum of Antiquities’ own collection. Never before has the Netherlands been home to such an extensive exhibition about the Egyptian queens. The exhibition is open until 17 April 2017.

Of Tocharians and number concepts

There are two new projects on the agenda of the Leiden University Centre for Linguistics (LUCL). In October, Michaël Peyrot used a VIDI grant he was awarded for his research on the Tocharian language and its speakers to start work on a project entitled ‘On the trail of the Tocharians’. This Indo-European language, known from North-West Chinese manuscripts dating from 500-1000 AD, is related to Latin, Greek and Dutch. Speakers of Tocharian must have migrated from Europe to China, and their migration route can be reconstructed on the basis of contacts with other languages.

Lisa Bylinina was awarded an NWO VENI grant for her research on ‘Number words’, which is due to start in 2017. The project focuses on how numbers are used in different cultures. Despite the fact that people worldwide tend to think of numbers in a similar way, there is still a lot of cultural variation. Bylinina collects data on the realisations of number concepts in the grammars of various languages and in this way tries to establish patterns and ways to close the gap between language and number cognition.

New NIMAR premises in Rabat

In December the Netherlands Institute in Morocco (NIMAR) will take up residence in its new premises in Rabat. The festive opening of the new building will take place in January in the presence of Minister Jet Bussemaker and Rotterdam Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb, who is also chair of NIMAR’s Advisory Social Board. NIMAR is part of the Faculty of Humanities and offers teaching, facilitates research, and actively contributes to Dutch knowledge of Moroccan languages, cultures and society.

What is your award-winning research about? ‘I won the award for two studies. The first was part of a larger research project by VU University Amsterdam, the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV) and Leiden University on the role of the Dutch in the Atlantic region between 1680 and 1800. We looked at the movement of people, goods and ideas between Europe, Africa and the Americas. We call these intercontinental migration and trade flows the ‘Atlantic world’. My specific study was on Suriname as a junction in the Atlantic world. The other study, which I conducted together with historian Matthias van Rossum, was on the importance of the slave trade for the Dutch economy of the time.’

Why are these two studies important?‘My findings make it clear that we have a distorted view of the colonial period. First of all, we try to sweep under the carpet how important the slave trade was, when in fact it was a strategic trade flow. My study on Suriname also shows that the colonies were much more inter-connected than is generally assumed. The imperial borders were much less important and there was no self-evident loyalty towards the colonial powers. We still take a much too nationalistic view of the past.’

Could you explain what you mean by Suriname as a junction in the Atlantic world?‘Previous research has shown that contacts within the Atlantic world cannot be understood within national frameworks alone, because there was a lot of exchange between colonies and between world empires, including informally. This is certainly true of Suriname, as I discovered. When the Society of Suriname was founded in 1683, only trade with the Dutch Republic was allowed, but this quickly turned out to be untenable. Regional contacts with the British colonies in North America for example were necessary to provide for the daily needs of people in Suriname. Besides molasses, a by-product of sugar production and one of the raw materials in rum, was too cheap for an expensive journey to the Netherlands, and horses were too fragile to transport from the Netherlands to Suriname. In the end, in 1704, the Directors of the Society of Suriname changed their minds, and allowed trade with North America, on condition that every ship should contain at least one horse. This resulted in many American captains sheepishly reporting to the Governor of Suriname that the horse had fallen overboard.’

‘Our’ historian Karwan Fatah-Black recently won the Heineken Young Scientists Award for his research on colonial history. What exactly is his research about? What does this award mean to him? And what is his perspective, as a slavery expert, on the ‘Zwarte Piet debate?

‘We still take a too nationalistic view of the past’

How did you discover this? What sources did you use?‘I studied the movements of ships sailing into and out of Paramaribo, but also the correspondence and ship documents of North American captains and traders. They are surprisingly candid about their smuggled goods. Their correspondence shows that they felt absolutely no compunction about discussing the quality of the sugar, coffee, tobacco and cocoa they transported illegally.’

‘My research shows that we have a distorted image of the colonial period’

What about your other research, on the slave trade?‘Matthias van Rossum and I noticed that strong statements are often made in the Netherlands about how insignificant the slave trade was for the Dutch economy, and that while remarkably little research has been done on the topic. What’s more, the research that has been done focuses primarily on the companies’ profit margins rather than the broad economic impact. And that while slave trade clearly benefitted local economies. Think of ship building,

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Read more: Help from zeros and ones

More information on Digital Humanities can be found (unsurprisingly) online at:

universiteitleiden.nl/en/humanities/centre-for-digital-humanities/twitter.com/LeidenDH

starting in September 2017 students will be able to follow courses such as Digital Literacy, Hacking the Humanities, and New Media Analysis. The Minor will offer a solid basis in the many facets of Digital Humanities. De Weerdt: ‘We devote attention to such aspects as programming basics. This may not immediately sound appealing, but it is essential knowledge if you really want to understand how digital methods work.’

Number crunchersProgramming at the Faculty of Humanities: sceptics wonder whether we are not moving too far away from our discipline. Isn’t our field so rich precisely because of its fine nuances? Surely these cannot be captured in binary codes? ‘The idea that researchers who use Digital Humanities are number crunchers with no interest in content is completely unfounded,’ says Florian Schneider, who makes extensive use of digital tools in his research on Chinese politics. ‘Digital tools are often combined with a careful reading of research data and source materials. These are just tools; we should not forget that the people using them are critical humanities scholars who are fully aware of the limitations and consequences of digital techniques.’

Knowledge and criticismIt is precisely this critical perspective that De Weerdt considers to be an important point for development: ‘Discussions about quantitative versus qualitative research methods are not new. The current criticism aimed at Digital Humanities is however often unfounded, because it is not based on real knowledge. It takes real understanding of the logic behind a method to be able to offer valid criticism – criticism that can lead to improvements.’ With lecturers Cha and Vierthaler, the Centre now has the required expertise in house. De Weerdt: ‘We hope

to ultimately create ongoing interaction between programmers and humanities scholars, so that the two can point out to one another the possibilities and shortcomings of their work, backed by sound arguments.’

‘Critical humanities scholars are fully aware of the

limitations and consequences of digital tools’

Sexy researchAnother concern has to do with research funding. Schneider: ‘There is something sexy about Digital Humanities, which results in funding being easily awarded to researchers who make promises they are unable to keep.’ This can lead to a doomed digital project being awarded a sum of money, a fraction of which would have been enough to perform an ‘analogue’ study. ‘This does happen sometimes, and it is clearly detrimental,’ says De Weerdt. ‘But these are precisely the situations that help us uncover potential pitfalls. Incidentally, the fact that additional funding is available for digital projects does not necessarily mean that there is less money for traditional methods. And furthermore: we should not pretend that all non-digital studies deliver the promised results!’

Digitisation fatigueIt may be that the resistance is not so much about Digital Humanities, but rather expresses a more general digitisation fatigue. ‘There is no getting around digitisation,’ says De Weerdt. Fortuin agrees: ‘Science is moving forward. If you don’t move with it, you will be left behind. This does not mean that everyone at our Faculty suddenly has to do something with Digital Humanities.’ De Weerdt adds: ‘Digital Humanities are a complement. So much is possible now, you can investigate things from so many new perspectives.

The Centre can help you think about different methods and point you to others who do similar work. But it may very well be that some questions do not require these tools.’

The future For now the Centre has its work cut out developing the Digital Humanities network and organising teaching and research. It is as yet unclear what the status of Digital Humanities will be in the long run. De Weerdt: ‘In a few decades the term will probably have become integrated in the humanities as a whole and will no longer require special mention.’ The fact that it is given a name now is a way to accelerate the development of Digital Humanities. Fortuin: ‘We give it a name and additional attention, in the hope that it will in time become integrated in the various disciplines.’

‘We live in a digital world. If we don’t teach our students

to navigate it, who will?’

This dissemination will make knowledge accessible to anyone who wishes to use it. This is beneficial for research, and it is certainly important for students, says Schneider: ‘We live in a digital world. We have to teach our students how this world works, where information comes from, how knowledge is produced and what makes knowledge reliable. If we don’t teach them this, who will?’

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gedrukt

Colophonfgw•nu is a periodical for the staff of the Faculty of Humanities, Leiden University. Chief editors // Menno Tuurenhout, Gerdine Kuggeleijn, Arlette van der Zwan

Advisory editors // Wim van den Doel, Sanne Arens, Gareth O’Neill, David Cörvers,

James McAllister

Executive editors // Esther Barfoot, Margot Derksen, Marieke Enter, Romy Koreman,

Joost Kroon, Arlette van der Zwan

Cartoon // Bas van der Schot

Photography and illustrations // Juliën van Eck, Marc de Haan, Mariël Kolmschot,

Florian Schneider, Shutterstock, Universiteit Leiden Beeldbank, Monique van Zeijl Concept and final editing // LIEN+MIEN Communicatie

Art direction // Creja ontwerpen

Printing // UFB Address: Faculty of Humanities ,

Department of Communications and Recruitment

Room 2.06D, Lipsius

E-mail: fgw.nu@hum.leidenuniv.nl

Tel.: 071-527 5888

Read this Humanities newspaper in English

@ www.fgw.nu

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the advantages of teaching this programme in English far outweigh the discomfort. Th e diff erent students, tutors and lecturers, each with their own cultural background, all bring their own perspective to the topics we cover in International Studies, allowing us to enrich each other’s perspectives on the world. And since our staff also form an international community, English is the language we speak at our meetings and write our reports in. And we make sure that communication with our staff members and lecturers always takes place in English. Luckily it has become a university-wide policy by now that all communication within an English-language study programme should be available in English.’

University language policyThe language policy put forward by the Executive Board is based on the principle that Leiden University is a Dutch university, with Dutch as its primary language, operating in an international community. This may in the future have consequences for the language used in administrative communication and meetings, but for now the language of management and co-participation is Dutch. International staff members and students who wish to take part in representative advisory bodies are therefore encouraged to develop at least a passive command of Dutch.

Another aspect of the language policy is that all information about a study programme must be available in the language in which the programme or course in question is taught. In addition, all formal regulations must be available in both Dutch and English. A baseline measurement will be performed to investigate whether this is the case.

* Th is fi gure is drawn from an inventory performed by the Volkskrant, which also reports that less than 30% of master’s programmes are currently taught in Dutch. Th is article, entitled ‘More than half of study programmes fully taught in English’ (‘Meer dan de helft van de studies volledig in het Engels’), was published on 26 August 2016 and can be found in the paid section of the Volkskrant site.

Dutch specialist termsMarkus Altena Davidsen, lecturer in Sociology of Religion, teaches in both Dutch and English. Despite the fact that he is of Danish origin himself and therefore not a native speaker, he nevertheless argues that in many cases it is better to teach in Dutch. ‘Th e study programme in Religious Sciences primarily trains students to become secondary school teachers in Religion/Ideology. Th is is why I believe that we should teach students in Dutch. Our courses make heavy use of English specialist literature, so if we want students to learn the Dutch specialist terms, we need to teach and set examinations in Dutch. Moreover, when I teach in Dutch, I fi nd it much easier to connect to Dutch current events. For example, last year I used the speech by Mayor Van der Laan on the occasion of Dutch Remembrance Day in a lecture on civil religion, the ‘citizen religion’ of shared values and ideals that creates social cohesion within a nation. Th is is much harder to do now that this course is taught in English.’

Express yourself clearlyJudith Pollmann, Research Director at the Institute for History, wonders whether society is indeed best served with English-speaking researchers. ‘It has become self-evident for researchers to publish in English, but is this always desirable? Experts in the fi eld of Latin America or French-speaking Africa might fi nd it more useful to publish in the language they study.’ Students’ career prospects form another argument for teaching in Dutch. Many history students end up in reading and writing professions, such as journalism or government policy-making. It is essential for them to be able to express themselves clearly in their professional life. ‘Another argument is the growing pressure to be accountable to society. Researchers must be able to clarify in Dutch what they are doing and why. If we do not use our mother tongue, we are creating an “ivory tower” and making our educational system less accessible for children for whom English is a third language, thereby further contributing to the polarisation of Dutch society.’

A rich perspective on the worldFor some study programmes it is essential for teaching to take place in English. Th is is certainly true for the Bachelor’s programme in International Studies, which brings together students from over fi ft y nationalities. ‘Th is is only possible in an English-language study programme!’ says Jaap Kamphuis, Programme Manager of this English-taught bachelor’s programme. ‘It goes without saying that some lecturers and students fi nd it diffi cult to switch to English, but

Th e Anglicisation of education: piece of cake (or maybe not?)

All over the Netherlands higher education programmes are increasingly being taught in English. In fact, since this academic year, English is the language of instruction of the majority (60%*) of study programmes off ered at Dutch universities. What about our Faculty: what does this shift to English involve, and how do lecturers and students feel about ‘Anglicisation’?

the insurances that were taken out, the salaries paid to sailors and others. Not to mention the incredible impact of the worldwide network required to collect the goods used to trade in Africa, such as silk from Asia or spirits and gun powder produced in the Netherlands. Matthias and I calculated that the gross margin of the slave trade for the 17th and 18th centuries together is between 63 and 78 million guilders. That is much more than was assumed so far. And we are not even talking about the industrial scale agriculture made possible by the slave trade. For the fi rst time a study is now being conducted (by Leiden University, VU University Amsterdam and the International Institute for Social History) to map the economic impact of the entire slavery system.’

What does it mean to you to have won the Heineken Young Scientists Award?‘It’s an incredible honour, especially since this prize is only awarded every two years. In terms of content, I think that my research can contribute to our understanding of the past and in particular of colonialism and the position of the Netherlands in the world. Apart from that, the award has drawn a lot of attention to my research. In one day I was contacted by four publishers asking whether I wanted to write a book for the general public. I enjoy this kind of attention, and the festivities were lots of fun.’

‘There is a strange hyper-sensitivity about naming the less pleasant aspects of our

colonial past’

What is your book about? ‘About my current research. In February I started on my new research project, Paths through Slavery. It will be a social history of the origins of the Afro-Surinamese community in Paramaribo. I look at how slaves could buy their freedom and how successful they were in their lives as free citizens, and how this in turn led to the creation of an Afro-Surinamese community.’

It is that time of year when the Zwarte Piet debate raises its head. As a slavery expert, how do you feel about it?‘I see a clear parallel with what I just told you: that we are only now starting in academia to calculate the income from slavery. Time and again we emphasise the importance of the colonial past for Dutch identity. A few weeks ago on the radio – ten years after his original statement – Balkenende once again highlighted the importance of a ‘Dutch East India Company (VOC) mentality’. But there is a strange hyper-sensitivity about naming the less pleasant aspects of our colonial past. The same applies to racist traits in our culture, such as the fi gure of Zwarte Piet. Personally, I will be very happy if this racist caricature disappears from our annual celebrations and we stop forcing him on future generations. And I do believe that this is precisely what is happening now: it really looks like Zwarte Piet is about to undergo a thorough metamorphosis.’

Read more: ‘We still take a too nationalistic view of the past’

For years now, our Faculty has off ered all master’s programmes in English, with the exception of Dutch Language and Culture. Th e bachelor’s programmes in International Studies and South and Southeast Asian Studies are only off ered in English. Many other bachelor’s programmes include at least some lectures in English. In 2017 the Faculty launched two new English-language specialisations (Arts, Media and Society and Philosophy: Global and Comparative Perspectives) and a new English-language programme (Urban Studies) is currently being developed.

It goes without saying that teaching in a ‘foreign language’ requires our Faculty to be well prepared. For example, do our lecturers have an adequate command of English? And how do we make sure that all students, including those who do not speak Dutch, are well informed about their study programme? Th ese and other issues are addressed in the recommendations issued by the Language Policy Steering Committee to the Executive Board (see box). Before reaching a decision on this policy, the Executive Board wants to make an inventory of a number of items at Faculty level. Th is inventory is currently being prepared.

Language and content are oneGea Hakker, Director of the Academic Language Centre (ATC), was closely involved in creating the policy and in her position she is confronted with language profi ciency issues on a daily basis. ‘Th e ATC

off ers language courses for students but also for lecturers. In the context of the Basic Teaching Qualifi cation (BKO), we oft en test lecturers on their English profi ciency. If a lecturer’s profi ciency needs to be raised, we can off er him/her a tailor-made profi ciency course.’ As far as Hakker is concerned, English academic skills should be taught as a standard in all of the Faculty’s English-language bachelor’s programmes. Aft er all, to write an essay or give an academic presentation you must have mastered a language at academic level. Th e University’s current language policy specifi es that bachelor’s students who register for an English-language general master’s programme are off ered an English test to check their level. In the future, an online course might be developed to help students refresh their knowledge of English grammar and vocabulary. Hakker: ‘A good language policy is essential, because language and content are related. For example, a student giving an incorrect answer in an English-language examination might be due to a lack of knowledge of the material, but it could just as well be due to a poor command of the English language.’

Asian Studies student Gise van den Wildenberg agrees that writing a thesis in English requires academic-level profi ciency. She notes that her fellow students sometimes fi nd it diffi cult to follow lectures in English; something she herself has no trouble with. ‘I follow an internationally oriented study programme that brings together students from diff erent nationalities, so all lectures are taught in English, which is only logical as far as I am concerned.’

fgw•nu // nr7 • december 2016 | 54

Facts and FiguresAbout our students and where they come from

The Faculty of Humanities is home to students from

around the world. How many nationalities do we have in our

study programmes?

7.007

2.116

students enrolled in bachelor’s and master’s programmes*

students with a non-Dutch nationality (sometimes combined

with a Dutch nationality)

113diff erent nationalities

(excluding Dutch)

German

British

Italian

254

198

159

*Status 8 November 2016Source: uSis overview of intke and enrolment 2016

3As of 1 January, NWO research funds for Humanities will be merged with those for Social and Behavioural Sciences. This may lead to more competition, but also to more cooperation. How do the experts view this interdisciplinary approach?

Th e pros and cons of an interdisciplinary approach

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Three questions aboutthe Leiden Asia YearLeiden University has declared 2017 the Leiden Asia Year. We asked Director of the Leiden University Library Kurt De Belder and Professor of Modern China Studies Frank Pieke to tell us a bit more about it.

fgw•nu // nr7 • december 2016 | 7

1. //

WHY A LEIDEN ASIA YEAR? WHAT DO THE UNIVERSITY AND FACUL-TY HOPE TO ACHIEVE WITH THIS INITIATIVE? De Belder: ‘Leiden is an international centre for research, teaching, collections and expertise on Asia. By publicising what Leiden has to off er on such a large scale, we hope to strengthen our position as a national and international Asia hub. Specifi cally, the Leiden Asia Year was prompted by the construction of a new Asian Library on the roof of the University Library, where we will bring together all our Asia collections. Th is new library symbolises Leiden’s Asia knowledge and expertise.’Pieke: ‘Th e Faculty of Humanities, but also other Leiden faculties and museums are all very much concerned with Asia. Unfortunately we do not always know what everyone else is working on, and it is all rather fragmented. Nor can stakeholders outside the University always easily fi nd us. For example, the media oft en interview people with less academic knowledge and expertise than us, which are clearly missed opportunities. With the Leiden Asia Year initiative, Leiden University is putting itself in the spotlight and is contributing to greater national and international recognition for Leiden and the University as Asia experts.’

2. //

WHAT DOES THE LEIDEN ASIA YEAR INVOLVE SPECIFICALLY? WHAT KIND OF ACTIVITIES ARE YOU PLANNING? De Belder: ‘Th e offi cial start and the festive opening of the Leiden Asia Year will take place during the celebration of the University’s Dies Natalis. From that point onwards our agenda is full of activities. An important highlight for me personally is the opening of the Asian Library in September 2017. In the opening week we will organise a lot of extra activities, such as the opening of the Mapping Asia exhibition, an international symposium on the history of cartography with a focus on ancient Asian maps, and an exhibition on Asian cuisine and culinary activities.’Pieke: ‘We are organising the Leiden Asia Year together with the municipality, museums and other Leiden cultural partners. Actually, it is an exceptional joint venture. Starting in January 2017 there will be lectures, exhibitions, theatre performances, music and lots of other activities on the theme of Asia at various Leiden locations. Th e leidenasiayear.nl website gives a good overview of the activities. It is continuously being updated, and it will remain available even aft er 2017. Th ere is a lot on off er, something for everyone. I am personally looking forward to the China and the Netherlands opening conference on 9 February about the relationship between our two countries.’

3. //

FINALLY: WHAT’S IN IT FOR HUMANITIES SCHOLARS?

De Belder: ‘Th e Leiden Asia Year is very important for our Faculty – aft er all most Asia knowledge comes from Humanities scholars. It’s fantastic publicity for us! Our Faculty is not only taking part in the Leiden Asia Year, it can also gain a great deal of new knowledge from the symposia and lectures. I look forward to many interesting encounters. We hope to bring together students, researchers and other interested parties as a means of contributing to more and better research.’Pieke: ‘Leiden University, and in particular the Faculty of Humanities, is the place where high-quality knowledge of Asia is brought together in both teaching and research. Th is year off ers us an opportunity to showcase our knowledge and activities for our colleagues and for other parties. It will stimulate recruitment of Dutch and international students and researchers, and help us obtain grants and form partnerships with international partners. A better profi le and more prominence will act as a magnet: it’s interesting to study, work or do research at an institute that you and others have heard of. It all comes together beautifully.’

‘We have to continue to perform our core tasks optimally’

Who: Lieke van EmmerikWhat: NWO Communications Adviser in the fi eld of Humanities

‘NWO’s entire structure is currently being reorganised. Th is change is needed so that we can continue to perform our core tasks optimally. Th is renewed structure centres on our ability to respond more fl exibly to developments in science, and work across disciplines on the basis of a joint programme. In concrete terms this means that Humanities scholars will have to submit their proposals to the new Social Sciences and Humanities domain. NWO will make sure that the organisation retains recognisable contact points for humanities scholars. Since we are aiming at more uniformity both within and across disciplines, a number of procedures surrounding applications and assessment will shift somewhat in the course of 2017.’

‘We have much to gain from an interdisciplinary approach’

Who: Marlou SchroverWhat: A historian who has close research ties with social scientistsAlso: Schrover was a member of NWO’s interdisciplinary VICI committee for a long time

‘We are all familiar with this caricature: the social sciences focus too much on theory and too little on facts, while history on the other hand is all about empirical facts and too little about theory. Th is is, of course, a parody but it does contain a grain of truth.

I think that as humanities scholars we have much to gain from an interdisciplinary approach. We can benefi t from the more theoretical approach of the social sciences. For example: if an ancient Chinese vase is discovered in a renovation, the historians are all in awe of the beauty of the vase while the social scientists wonder what conclusions can be drawn from a single vase. Historians oft en forget about this more analytical aspect. Conversely, we are oft en better able to see recurrence in the empirical than social scientists. What has been tried in the past, and how can we use this knowledge today? Even though every historical comparison is by defi nition incomplete, you can still recognise patterns.

I have collaborated a lot with social scientists and I see clear diff erences between our disciplines. In interdisciplinary research, historians are oft en more than willing to test a theory from social sciences, but they do not take the next step to develop this theory further. Th ere is nothing wrong with simply testing a theory, but it is a pity if this is not followed by an academic debate that takes things to the next level. Aft er all, that is the essence of scientifi c research!’

‘It requires a certain perspective on scientifi c practice’

Who: Erik KwakkelWhat: Book historian and lecturer at the Centre for the Arts in SocietyAlso: Studied early modern books together with Delft engineer Joris Dik using an X-ray scanner

‘It’s important to remain critical. Take for example the study I conducted with Joris: the study may be interdisciplinary, but I am certainly not. I think that you can only call yourself interdisciplinary if you are schooled in two disciplines. In my opinion, as a humanities scholar, you don’t necessarily have to understand a lot about another discipline. I don’t know much about X-rays for example. Nor can I say, ‘If I approach the object of my study in this way, I will come up with something new.’ Th e challenge is to come into contact with people who can. Th is requires a certain perspective on scientifi c practice. You might suspect that there is a small island just beyond the horizon, but there is no guarantee that you will reach it by using an interdisciplinary approach. Joris and I invested in it, and we were lucky that it paid off .

Th e great advantage of an interdisciplinary approach is that it allows you to do something you could not do before. I could not look through the binding of a book, let alone do so systematically, but with an X-ray scanner I suddenly could. And yet, it is important to remain critical. Under the motto of ‘interdisciplinary’ a lot of money is being spent on digital research methods, which is not always justifi ed. In my fi eld I hear people say ‘I am an interdisciplinary researcher because I use digital tools’, but they are just doing what they always did, only in a more effi cient way. Th e soft ware was designed specifi cally for you, so as a researcher you are just as monodisciplinary as ever. I understand why people say things like this: the grant application procedure has made it important to have an ‘interdisciplinary’ label. In that sense, the grant applications culture determines the direction a fi eld takes, and I sometimes wonder whether that is a good thing. Th ere’s a danger that the multidisciplinary trend will lead us to discount non-digital research methods, even though those methods may be much more important.’

A new domain, a familiar faceThe Chairman of the new NWO Social Sciences and Humanities domain is a well-known fi gure at the Faculty of Humanities: he is none other than ‘our’ Wim van den Doel. As of 1 January, Wim will resign from his position as Dean in Leiden and be appointed member of the Supervisory Board of the Netherlands Organisation for Scientifi c Research (NWO). In this position he will share responsibility for NWO’s strategy and policy – including programming, funding instruments and budget assignment. As Chairman of the new Social Sciences and Humanities (SGW) domain, he will further shape the fi elds of Social and Behavioural Sciences and Humanities. Wim van den Doel will retain his position of Professor of General History at Leiden University.

At www.leidenasiayear.nl you can fi nd all Leiden Asia Year activities. Don’t miss the latest developments: follow the Leiden Asia Year on Facebook and Twitter.

Column The personal vision of a Humanities scholar. This time

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Launch of the Leiden Islam Academy

The Leiden Islam Academy was launched in early December with a symposium. The Academy meets a social need and draws on Leiden’s expertise in the fi eld of Islam. It off ers a varied programme, both digitally and in person. Alongside short modules for students, the Academy off ers workshops for schools and the media. A learning pathway has been developed for diplomats, and workshops are off ered to medical experts on medical ethics in health care in the light of diff erent religions. Director Maurits Berger: ‘Our Academy plays a role in averting a completely polarised debate and off ers a forum for discussion. The meetings themselves also form the data for an investigation into how we can link teaching to research and vice versa. The power of our programme lies in our very diverse audience, which in turn allows us to provide a safe learning environment for the often intense discussions.’

International Studies moving to Wijnhaven

At the end of this year the International Studies programme will move from Lange Voorhout to Wijnhaven. The building that will be the department’s new premises has recently been completely renovated and the fi nishing touches are now being added. The majority of the lectures for International Studies will be given in the new premises from the start of 2017. Other Leiden University programmes in The Hague will also be located in the same building.

On surprise and networks As a business expert within the Faculty of Humanities, I might have a di� erent perspective, ask di� erent questions, and be surprised by di� erent things. For example, when students appear to have a one-sided view of organisations and think of NGOs and governments as angels, and corporations as demons.

When a presentation style that looks like a normal professional standard to me is referred to as ‘slick’. When fi gures and tables are viewed as childish and unnecessary, while endless stretches of text are considered legible. Or when students fi rst see my course as something they could pick up from a YouTube tutorial, only to fi nd themselves facing real-life examples of leadership, organisational culture and structure in their internship.

I shape and I am being shaped. I have a real contribution to make, including network links with large organisations and prepare students for the substantive side of their career. I learned how to build bridges at the previous university I worked for. In fact, this was the topic of my PhD dissertation. Here at the Faculty of Humanities, I invite my students to think. What are the artefacts and values of Leiden University’s organisational culture? Th e Leiden quarter (Leids kwartiertje) and the University’s motto Praesidium Libertatis are mentioned most oft en. I regularly use the latter when teaching consultancy projects to third-year Bachelor’s students in International Studies: ‘We don’t tell organisations what they want to hear. We make critical objective analyses that take into account all stakeholders.’ A guest lecture intended to inspire applied research should not hold back from expressing criticism of its partner organisations. On the other hand, this investigation will benefi t from me placing this criticism in its proper context and not letting my students get lost in the sensation and chaos inherent to teaching methods such as consultancy projects.

We recently celebrated the Faculty opening of the academic year. Yet another cultural artefact, one that I really enjoyed. I clearly don’t yet know everything about all seven institutes within the Faculty of Humanities but I notice that they all share an incredible passion for knowledge. I see the Faculty as one large network. A PhD dissertation shapes your view of the world: that was one of my propositions. I see International Studies as a programme that consists of many small networks in a matrix structure. Manager Jaap Kamphuis and Chair Joost Augusteijn energetically steer these networks of people and resources: I see links between Linguistics and History, between Th e Hague and Leiden. I, too, have a contribution to make. I shape and I am being shaped. Th e world has become so much bigger than organisations, stakeholders or inter-organisational networks. Humanities students compete with ease on the labour market, where networking is just as important as in your study time. I really enjoy my role as the interface between the Faculty and organisations, and will gladly help you out. If you want to know more or if you need any help, don’t hesitate to contact me!

Dr. Sarita Koendjbiharie, since 2014 lecturer in Management and Organisation, academic internship supervisor and researcher in the Bachelor’s programme in International Studies //

The renovation of the monumental PJ Veth building marks an important step towards the realisation of the Humanities Campus. The building will be ready to welcome the staff of the Institute for Philosophy in the summer of 2017. The PJ Veth building was originally intended in 1908 as a research and lecture building for the Botany department, as well as a depot building for the National Herbarium. This explains the building’s structure: large square halls for laboratories and lower-ceilinged fl oors for the herbarium depots. The renovation will involve creating fully equipped offi ce spaces in the herbarium part. The ‘old’ lecture halls and library of the Botany part will be preserved, and the remaining space will be organised to meet the needs of the Humanities Campus project staff .

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