News

Nozizwe Dube’s life reads like a novel. The 27-year-old was born in Zimbabwe and, at the age of 14, was reunited with her refugee mother in Belgium. Determined to fight injustice, she became the chair of the Flemish Youth Council within just a few years. She is now a PhD candidate at the Faculty of...

A stop to migration? Setting aside the nitrogen regulations? Radically countering internationalisation in higher education? Politicians regularly make great pronouncements. To what extent are these promises realistic? Dr Karin van Leeuwen, lecturer of European Political History at the Faculty of...

Daisy Jonkers, scientific director of the NUTRIM research institute and professor of Intestinal Health, is calling for more inclusivity and diversity in scientific research. Why is this important, and how can we make research more diverse? “It’s no longer just about the number of publications or...

After over 23 years of ‘Prof. Nanne de Vries at UM’, our university community gathered at the beginning of November for his farewell lecture. During the lecture, what we already knew was confirmed yet again: with De Vries’ departure, we are saying farewell to an exceptionally intelligent...

For Klasien Horstman, professor of Philosophy of Public Health, science is the “realm of freedom.” Unfortunately, reality is more intractable. She is irritated by the patronising lifestyle interventions imposed top-down on groups that have been epidemiologically classified as high risk. “The ‘you...

Extreme weather events are becoming more frequent because of climate change. Not only does that cause a lot of forced migration, it also puts millions of refugees at risk. UNU-MERIT senior research fellow Sonja Fransen combines two major societal issues.

Inspired by his childhood dream of becoming a professional cyclist, UM alum Dajo Sanders decided to study Human Movement Sciences. His other dream did come true: he ended up working in pro cycling. He is now a trainer/coach for one of the world’s best teams, INEOS Grenadiers. “The magic of cycling...

Vascular biologist Judith Sluimer was appointed professor of cardiovascular pathophysiology in October 2020. In her inaugural lecture, she alluded both to the importance of oxygen in the functioning of the heart and blood vessels as well as to the ‘fresh air’ she believes academia is always in need...

Be it phishing emails or helpdesk employees who ask you to transfer money— digital crime is on the rise and is becoming even slicker. Artificial intelligence can play both a negative and positive role in this. On the one hand, new forms of cybercrime are emerging from AI; on the other hand, AI is...

A new tinnitus treatment using Deep Brain Stimulation is being trialled at MUMC+ ­with promising results. PhD student Jana Devos and Assistant Professor Mark Janssen on the mysterious disease, brain implants and startled rats.