Leiden Asia Centre

Leiden Asia Centre The Leiden Asia Centre is the Netherlands’ expertise centre for socially relevant and applicable knowledge on modern East Asia.

It actively aims to expand its expertise and to use this in collaboration with a growing number of diverse societal partners, in particular the business sector, the social midfield, the media, governments and academic and non-academic knowledge centres. The Leiden Asia Centre achieves this by:
• Consulting with the societal field in identifying research questions.
• Conducting original academic re

search, taking into account the needs of partners in society.
• Building and expanding a broad network within the Dutch government, the media, educational institutions, the business sector and the social midfield.
• Disseminating knowledge by means of lectures, conferences, intensive training courses and publications, including web publications. The Leiden Asia centre organises its research projects within wider core themes. This allows projects to deal with specific questions in context with related projects. Our core themes for 2024-2026 are:
- Regional and Global (Re)Ordering
- Technological Transformations
- Evolving Environments

If you are interested in our research or in a possible partnership, we invite you to contact us via [email protected], or visit our website: www.leidenasiacente.nl

Ports are critical infrastructure. As the new EU Port Strategy writes, they are ‘vital gateways for trade, logistics, en...
08/06/2026

Ports are critical infrastructure. As the new EU Port Strategy writes, they are ‘vital gateways for trade, logistics, energy, and military mobility’. Ports are also at the midst of US-China geopolitical rivalry, as shown by the ongoing dispute over Chinese investments in ports in Panama. A key question for the EU is how to deal with foreign direct investment and related strategic dependencies. As such, Chinese FDI in EU-seaports has become a topic of heated debate.

This new CKN report analyses the impact of Chinese direct investment in EU seaports on port competitiveness and national security interests. What should we know about the three main Chinese investors in EU seaports: COSCO Shipping Ports, China Merchants Port Holdings (CMPort), and Hutchinson Ports? Is there a tipping point where an increase in Chinese FDI no longer leads to increased economic competitiveness? And how to balance economic and national security interests?

📅 24 June 2026
🕒 15:30 - 17:00
📍Wijnhaven Building Room 2.19, Turfmarkt 99, The Hague | or online 🖥️
📝 Link: https://leidenasiacentre.nl/event/ckn-report-presentation-chinese-investment-in-eu-seaports/

We have something to celebrate, and we'd love for you to join us. 🎊This year, the Leiden Asia Centre turns 10. A decade ...
05/06/2026

We have something to celebrate, and we'd love for you to join us. 🎊

This year, the Leiden Asia Centre turns 10. A decade of research, dialogue, and bridge-building between Europe and Asia.

To mark this milestone, we're hosting a two-day anniversary conference: "Decade of Dialogue: Asia and Europe in a Changing World."

The event takes place on 30 September in Leiden (evening opening) and 1 October in The Hague (full-day symposium), bringing together policymakers, researchers, and business leaders to discuss the issues shaping our shared future. From Indo-Pacific security to AI, climate, and beyond.

Registration opens in June. More details to follow soon!

Op 29 mei presenteerden onderzoeker en correspondent dr. 𝗔𝗻𝗼𝗺𝗮 𝘃𝗮𝗻 𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗩𝗲𝗲𝗿𝗲 en voedselhistorica prof. 𝗞𝗮𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘇𝘆𝗻𝗮 (𝗞𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗮)...
02/06/2026

Op 29 mei presenteerden onderzoeker en correspondent dr. 𝗔𝗻𝗼𝗺𝗮 𝘃𝗮𝗻 𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗩𝗲𝗲𝗿𝗲 en voedselhistorica prof. 𝗞𝗮𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘇𝘆𝗻𝗮 (𝗞𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗮) 𝗖𝘄𝗶𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗸𝗮 hun boek 𝘚𝘶𝘴𝘩𝘪 𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘫𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘵 𝘫𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘯. Tijdens de bijeenkomst vertelden de auteurs hoe het boek tot stand is gekomen en deelden zij hun kennis over de Japanse eetcultuur. Het publiek kreeg meer inzicht in bekende producten zoals sushi en matcha, maar ook in de veranderingen en uitdagingen binnen traditionele voedselculturen.

De auteurs vertelden hoe het boek in nauwe samenwerking tot stand kwam en hoe het tot een samenhangend geheel is geworden waarin persoonlijke ervaringen en historische context elkaar aanvullen💡

Vaak vormden de verhalen en observaties van dr. Van der Veere het vertrekpunt, waarna prof. Cwiertka deze verrijkte met historische achtergronden en wetenschappelijke inzichten. Door teksten vervolgens meerdere keren gezamenlijk te herzien, ontstond stap voor stap het uiteindelijke boek🙌

Lees verder over theegeschiedenis, de 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘥, vegetarisch eten in Japan en meer in het artikel van LeidenGlobal👉 https://www.leidenglobal.org/highlight/van-matcha-tot-sushi-een-culinaire-reis-door-japan

Ten years ago, we started with a simple but powerful idea: that understanding Asia means listening to Asia. 🌏None of wha...
29/05/2026

Ten years ago, we started with a simple but powerful idea: that understanding Asia means listening to Asia. 🌏

None of what we've built would have been possible without the partners who believed in that mission from the very beginning, and those who joined along the way.

This week we're highlighting our Academic Bridge: a decade of connecting researchers, expanding scholarly horizons, and making sure that academic exchange between Europe and Asia goes both ways.

Swipe through to see who has been part of this journey, and stay with us as we celebrate 10 years of dialogue! 🎉

What does a think tank actually look like from the inside?As we celebrate 10 years of the Leiden Asia Centre, we want to...
22/05/2026

What does a think tank actually look like from the inside?

As we celebrate 10 years of the Leiden Asia Centre, we want to take a moment to show you what makes us tick, not just our research or our events, but the people and the place behind it all.

Bridge #8 in our LACLustrum series is the Practical Bridge: the idea that real dialogue needs a real space. Our office in Leiden is where expertise meets practice, where our team of researchers, coordinators, and board members work every day to ensure that Asian perspectives are heard in European debates.

Swipe through to meet them. From China and Taiwan to Indonesia, from Korea and Japan to Vietnam and India, our staff cover the full breadth of Asia with depth, dedication, and genuine curiosity.

None of this would be possible without them. Here's to the team. 🙌

What do Chinese yuan, Dutch semiconductors, and cobalt mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo have in common? They're...
13/05/2026

What do Chinese yuan, Dutch semiconductors, and cobalt mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo have in common? They're all part of the economic story connecting Europe and Asia, and they've all been the subject of Leiden Asia Centre research.

Over the past ten years, we've worked to build an Economic Bridge: producing analysis that helps businesses, policymakers, and institutions understand what's happening in Asian markets and what's coming next. Our researchers don't just react to events, they anticipate them.

Some examples:
📄 Internationalization of the RMB - Bert Hofman & Johannes Petry
📄 The Netherlands and South Korea: From Semiconductors to Universities - Anoma van der Veere
📄 Chinese Approaches to Overseas Responsible Business - Stacey Links, Tycho de Feijter & Jonas Lammertink

Ten years of connecting research to economic reality. That's the LAC Economic Bridge. 🔟🎉

🎯 Op zoek naar een stage?Per 1 juli is het Leiden Asia Centre op zoek naar een enthousiaste stagiair die ons kan onderst...
11/05/2026

🎯 Op zoek naar een stage?
Per 1 juli is het Leiden Asia Centre op zoek naar een enthousiaste stagiair die ons kan ondersteunen bij onze communicatiewerkzaamheden.

Lijkt het je nou leuk om bij een onderzoekscentrum mee te draaien? Heb je affiniteit met Aziëonderzoek, ben je leergierig en communicatief en leg je graag nieuwe contacten? Kijk dan snel op onze website voor meer informatie!

👉 https://leidenasiacentre.nl/vacancy/stage-communicatie-leiden-asia-centre/

Did you know that the Leiden Asia Centre has spent 10 years training the people who shape how Europe understands Asia?Ou...
08/05/2026

Did you know that the Leiden Asia Centre has spent 10 years training the people who shape how Europe understands Asia?

Our Training Bridge has brought Asia expertise directly to those who need it most: diplomats from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs attending our annual trainings, journalists sharpening their lens through our China media course, professionals getting tailored briefings, and student delegations from Asian universities connecting with the Dutch academic world.

Because knowing Asia isn't just academic, it shapes policy, informs reporting, and builds the partnerships that matter.

How can a generation be more connected than ever and yet feel increasingly alone? South Korea offers a striking example....
06/05/2026

How can a generation be more connected than ever and yet feel increasingly alone? South Korea offers a striking example. Its young people are among the most digitally connected in the world, but many are also facing growing isolation, uncertainty, and political disillusionment.

On 21st of May, Yoonai Han explores how youths in South Korea is navigating this tension. From the rise of high-risk cryptocurrency investing among young people, to Gen Z-led protests powered by digital infrastructure and pop culture (with use of K-pop lightsticks), she examines how new forms of engagement and disengagement are reshaping society. This talk looks beyond Korea to ask what these trends might mean for global communities facing similar challenges.

📆 Thursday, May 21st 2026
🕓 15:30 - 17:00 (networking drinks afterwards)
📍 Leiden University, Wijnhaven Building, room 2.19 | or online (hybrid event)
📝 Register:
https://leidenasiacentre.nl/event/asia-academy-26-from-crypto-dreams-to-lightstick-protests-korean-youths-hyperconnected-but-fragmented/

What makes the Leiden Asia Centre different? Look at the people behind the research.Our experts include scholars who hav...
01/05/2026

What makes the Leiden Asia Centre different? Look at the people behind the research.

Our experts include scholars who have spent decades studying China, Japan, Korea, Indonesia, India, and the broader Indo-Pacific, and researchers who were born and raised in the very places they study.

They bring lived experience, linguistic fluency, and regional insight that you simply can't get from the outside.

We've always believed that meaningful dialogue between Europe and Asia requires more than good intentions. It requires the right voices in the room.

Over 10 years, this community has grown into one of the most diverse and accomplished Asia research networks in the Netherlands. And we're just getting started.

Swipe through to meet some of the experts shaping the conversation. 🌏

Adres

Doelensteeg 16
Leiden
2311VL

Telefoon

+31715272541

Website

https://www.linkedin.com/company/leidenasiacentre, https://www.instagram.com/leidenasia

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Wees de eerste die het weet en laat ons u een e-mail sturen wanneer Leiden Asia Centre nieuws en promoties plaatst. Uw e-mailadres wordt niet voor andere doeleinden gebruikt en u kunt zich op elk gewenst moment afmelden.

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