The number of people living in an urban environment continues to increase: from nearly 6.3 million in 1998 to nearly 6,9 million in 2006. This is more than 42 percent of the total population. The number of inhabitants in rural areas, on the other hand, fell from 6.6 million to 6.5 million, 40 percent of […]
Fifteen participants from fourteen different countries will follow a PhD programme in the field of public policy and good governance for four to five years next to their fulltime job. As far as is known, the Maastricht Graduate School of Governance (MGSoG) of Maastricht University is the first institute within the Netherlands to offer such […]
In the Emperor’s Room of the council chambers in Rothenburg on the Tauber, there used to hang a painting, three metres high and six metres wide, representing rebels from Liège besieging Maastricht in 1408. [continued…]
The Maastricht City Council has expressed its intention to establish an international education campus in Maastricht that will provide international educational facilities for the international community in the Euroregion and facilitate its physical integration. Now a formal step has been taken by the parties concerned. These are: the Foundation for Limburg Secondary Education (Limburgs Voortgezet […]
Almost all Dutch employees – an astonishing 97 percent – are happy to go to work. That is not the case in Belgium and France, only 61 percent of Belgians go to work with pleasure and some 71 percent of French.
The Dutch are also more likely to say that their colleagues are loyal to each […]
The government has scored an important victory in its fight to keep foreign gambling companies out of the Dutch market. The present monopoly policy is justified, the Council of State ruled yesterday.
The highest administrative court acknowledged yesterday that Holland Casino’s monopoly is in principle a restrictive practice in terms of the EU free market regulations. […]
As part of a series of lectures on Europe and its citizens, Studium Generale bravely hosted a lecture on 28 February on one of the most controversial topics in politics and academia – if and how Islam is reshaping Europe. Hundreds of students poured into the auditorium on the Minderbroedersberg to listen to German journalist and writer Henryk Broder. He didn’t disappoint them and began with a punch: “These are the last days of Europe as we know it.” [continued…]
On March 29, the 3rd Maastricht Debate will be on International responsibilities, what Darfur teaches us. With Jan Pronk, former special UN representative for Sudan, and David Mepham, Associate Director, Head of International Programme of the Institute for Public Policy Research in London. Discussion moderated by James Mackie, European Centre for Development Policy Management.
This debate […]
From March 25 until April 1, Lumière will be the principal venue for the annual Film Festival Maastricht.
Main program
The main program will comprise a mixture of imported films and Dutch avant-premières. New films by renowned directors such as Werner Herzog, David Lynch, François Ozon, Tony Gatlif and Milos Forman will be shown.
The […]
Dutch owners of small and medium-sized businesses are welcome in Russia to help the industry develop more innovative products and improve distribution.
Jevgeni Primakov, chairman of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and former prime minister, said this during a meeting with businessmen from Limburg and Noord-Brabant on Monday, the Financieele Dagblad reports.
The distribution of medicine is […]
I can’t really remember when exactly I first saw a computer, or when I began my relationship with them. What I do remember is when we bought our first computer. It was an Apple, way back in 1987. We were living in Sri Lanka and were, proudly said, one of the first expats to acquire such advanced machinery. [continued…]
A pair of uninvited guests arrived at this year’s European Fine Art Fair. For the first time in the fair’s 20-year history, the auction giants Sotheby’s and Christie’s have muscled their way into what has traditionally been a premier showcase for international dealers.
But neither is using its name. Sotheby’s presence comes under the guise […]
A dying chestnut tree that once comforted Anne Frank while she was in hiding from the Nazis is probably going to be cut down.
The Amsterdam, Netherlands, city council ruled in November that the tree is a hazard. This week it gave the owner permission to remove it. The 150-year-old landmark has been attacked by a […]
Just 90 minutes’ drive from Amsterdam and its temptations is a village so devout that swearing is banned, women refuse to wear trousers and the bank machine does not dispense cash on a Sunday.
The Netherlands, best known abroad for its liberal policies on sex, drugs and homosexuality, is also home to a Protestant “Bible Belt” […]
In Cologne, tourists walking past the quaint shop at Glockengasse No. 4711 will notice a sweet fragrance. But for German perfume maker Mäurer und Wirtz, there is another scent in the air: the smell of success.
In December 2006, the small company bought one of Germany’s oldest perfume brands, 4711 “Original Eau de Cologne.” Its previous […]
If you are a lover of Spain’s culture, its language, its traditions and its cuisine or if you are a Spanish expatriate feeling a little homesick in Maastricht, Círculo Cervantes is the organisation you are looking for. [continued…]
Women in the age group 25–34 years now have a higher level of education than their male peers. The level of education of young women is increasing rapidly. Indeed there are more women than men students in higher education.
Majority of graduates are women
Among graduates from university and higher professional education (hbo), women are […]
Bulgarian exhibition, called “Thracian Enigma”, was opened Thursday in the historic city of Maastricht, the Netherlands.
The local citizens will be given the exclusive opportunity to see 41 original exhibits as well as copies, which are part of the precious Thracian heritage.
The exhibition, which is held in the Spanish Government’s Museum, was organized to mark Bulgaria’s […]
The Netherlands has ratified an accord to open a long-secret archive of Nazi death camp records, a step toward giving scholars access to a vast collection of historically invaluable Holocaust documents.
The Dutch became the fourth member of the archive’s 11-nation governing body to complete the legal procedures, after the United States, Israel and Poland. Most […]
Students from UM Student Media feel that there is not enough news in English about Maastricht University, the city of Maastricht, the Netherlands and the European Union. This recently founded student organisation is hoping to launch a weekly Internet newspaper in April.
The group receives a subsidy from the UM, but also from the European […]
In the elections in the Netherlands for the 12 provincial parliaments, the governing coalition of Christian Democrats, Labour and the Christian Union has narrowly held on to its majority in the Upper House.
The three parties will take 40 of the 75 seats, when the provincial parliments elect a new Upper House in just over […]
Brussels has been the capital of Europe for 50 years and to celebrate the jubilee, the city has planned a year-long series of events and exhibitions.
The celebratory year is due to start on March 24 with a spectacular outdoor concert of fanfares and fireworks.
For more information on the festivities, contact the Belgian […]
Leftwing Green (GroenLinks) politicians have started a website to promote cannabis. They want the drugs to be accessible to everybody. “Because smoking cannabis is pleasant”.
Wietkaart.nl (cannabis map) is an initiative by GroenLinks politicians David Rietveld and Koen Martens. The site has a search tool that locates all of the Netherlands’ ‘coffee shops’, as the tolerated […]
The Netherlands will be pleased if there is a new EU treaty to replace the rejected European Constitution before the European elections in 2009. But the content of the treaty is more important than the timing, said Foreign Minister Maxime Verhagen in the Lower House.
Verhagen said he considers it “understandable” for a new treaty to […]
The EU is 22 years behind the US on economic growth according to a new study, with several other economic indicators showing further gaps despite Europe’s ambitious reform agenda to be praised by leaders at this week’s summit.
A report by Eurochambers, the Brussels-based business lobby, published on Monday (5 March) argues that the US reached […]
The average score on the standardised CITO test was slightly higher this year than last. The average score was 535.1, one tenth of a point higher than last year, CITO announced on Tuesday.
Nine children managed to complete the test without a single error. Forty-five made only one error. All students must answer 200 questions […]
The Christian Democrats and the Labour Party believe children of parents holding dual nationality should no longer automatically be granted dual citizenship. Legislation is being drawn up to allow parents to decide that their newborn children should only hold Dutch nationality.
Double nationality has been a hot topic in the Netherlands recently. Last week, a small […]
A new specialized and innovative art and antiques fair… this is an exclusive international sculpture event, presenting a select number of works of art, from antiquities to contemporary sculptures, by renowned art dealers from all over the world. Each dealer is an authority in his or her own discipline. The fair is presented in the […]
Maastricht will host the first edition of the “ Maastricht Antiquarian Book & Print Fair” on 15, 16 and 17 March. This is an international fair that will be held at three major locations in the old heart of the city while TEFAF is taking place. These locations are a few hundred metres walking apart. […]
“TEFAF Maastricht offers an unrivalled chance to view and to buy genuine masterpieces, presented by the world’s most prestigious dealers. The paintings, from Bruegel to Bacon, and objets d’art which reflect 6,000 years of excellence in the world of applied art, put TEFAF Maastricht in a class of its own.” (source: TEFAF website)
From the 9th […]
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From the moment Janet Lindgren first noticed the large communal “leestafels”, or reading tables, in Dutch cafés, bars and restaurants, she intuitively sensed that they were a part of the way life is lived in the Netherlands. She would sit down at the tables and feel as if she belonged. Her interest for them even brought her to Maastricht, where she discovered “the diva of all reading tables”. [continued…]
