ÌÇÐÄvlog¹ÙÍø

Democratic backsliding has become a growing concern worldwide, affecting countries that were once considered stable democracies. While the process varies across regions, common patterns emerge—executive overreach, judicial capture, restrictions on civil liberties, and weakening democratic institutions. Some societies have successfully resisted backsliding, while others have struggled to contain it. What lessons can be learned from these experiences?

This four-part series gathers leading scholars and activists to examine the dynamics of democratic backsliding, and the strategies employed to resist it. The series will investigate, through comparative case studies and evidence-based research, how democracies decline, how opposition movements and institutions have reacted, and what insights can be drawn to protect democracy better. The discussions will also help frame an ongoing project at the Nonviolent Action Lab to develop strategies to counter democratic backsliding and strengthen resistance efforts worldwide.  

Session Two: Thursday, April 10 from 3 – 4:30 PM (Democracy Lab 414-B)

Learning from Others: Case Studies from Israel, Poland, and Hungary

This session will feature a conversation with speakers from Israel, Poland, and Hungary—each bringing extensive experience in public leadership, legal advocacy, and democratic defense.

Speakers include:

Naomi Beyth-Zoran, Israeli Educator and Lawyer; Visiting Democracy Fellow at the Ash Center

Kamila Gasiuk-Pihowicz, Member of the European Parliament (Poland); Vice-Chair of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection

András Kádár, Co-Chair of the Hungarian Helsinki Committee; Attorney-at-Law

Dana Schleifer, Research Fellow at the Taubman Center for State and Local Government; Former Chief Innovation Officer of Tel Aviv

Event Details:

This seminar series will consist of four sessions. Attendees are not required to attend each session, but we strongly encourage those who are interested in contributing to the broader project to attend multiple discussions. Registration is required, and you must register individually for each session that you plan to attend. This seminar is in-person and open to Harvard ID holders. Please register using your Harvard email address.

Following the series, we will hold an additional discussion with those who have participated in most sessions to gather further input and collaboratively draft key lessons learned. This will help shape a broader effort to develop strategies for countering democratic backsliding as part of an ongoing project at the Nonviolent Action Lab.