Latest blog articles

  • Genocide in Gaza?

    A brief explainer about the ICJ case brought by South Africa against Israel

    On 29 December, almost three months after the 7 October Hamas attacks on Israel and the ensuing Israeli military strikes on the Gaza Strip, which had by then resulted in the deaths of more than 21,000 people and more than...

    international law
  • McDonaldizing the fight against organised crime?

    Why it is so challenging for Dutch authorities to effectively implement the government policy against serious drug related organized crime? Recently, my colleagues and I from Maastricht University and Erasmus University Rotterdam published an article in the Dutch Tijdschrift over Cultuur en...

    crime
  • How do the Dutch deal with their colonial past?

    The debate on the implications of Dutch colonial rule in Indonesia recently intensified after a report concluded that the Dutch forces had used extreme violence. Reactions to the report reveal that the issue remains controversial and challenging to discuss. The findings in the report do however...

    law_blog_dutch_deal_with_their_colonial_past
  • The technique of academic research: on research lines and second brains

    An important part of becoming a fully-fledged academic is the development and curation of a research line. A research line is the main research topic and the thread throughout (large parts of) a career. It could be law and technology in private law, globalisation in public law, human rights in...

    law_brain-building_a_second_brain_bram_akkermans
  • Hugo Grotius

    To any international lawyer, Hugo de Groot (10 April 1583 – 28 August 1645), usually referred to by his Latin name as Hugo Grotius, does not need any introduction. He is generally seen as the “father of public international law”, often together with Francisco De Vitoria (1483-1546) and Alberico...

  • Warming up to PBL

    I teach the introduction to biology course, which is probably one of the first courses that you will take at the MSP. I also coordinate the practical courses, so the first time that you go to the lab, you will encounter me as well. I’m one of the first faces you will see here, and I want you to feel...

    Linnea van Griethuijssen
  • How do you counter the denial of the Genocide against the Tutsi?

    25 years after the Genocide Against the Tutsi, the denial of this genocide still poses a serious challenge to prevention and reconciliation. How to address this problem was one of the central questions discussed during a recent commemorative conference in the Peace Palace.

    Nature-reserve blog genocide Tutsi
  • Sustainability and private law?

    The biggest challenge of the 21st century is undoubtedly the question of how to tackle the effects of a rising population, expanding industrialisation and growing environmental degradation. Apart from an ever complex world, there are externalities that are the result of the way humankind has been...

    SD goals_development_MLR