A public panel series that brings together frontline activists, civic leaders, institutional actors, and field‑informed scholars to examine how democratic actors have responded to, resisted, and learned from democratic backsliding across countries. The series aims to identify practical lessons and comparative insights for those defending democracy today.

 

Organized by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in collaboration with the Ash Center for Democratic Governance at the Harvard Kennedy School; the Cornell Center on Global Democracy; Perry World House at the University of Pennsylvania; the Kellogg Institute for International Studies at the University of Notre Dame; the Democratic Futures Project at the University of Virginia; Stanford’s Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law.

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Venezuela: Lessons from Venezuela: Electoral Resistance to Popular Autocrats (2007–2013)

South Korea: Democratic Backsliding and Resilience: South Korea’s December 3 Martial Law Crisis

Israel: Cross-Sectoral Mobilization in Defense of Democracy: Insights from Israel’s Judicial Reform

Poland: Poland’s Civil Society, Electoral Strategies, and Institutional Levers

Brazil: Democratic Resistance in Brazil: Institutions, Leadership, and Responses to Attempts of Rupture

India: Mobilizing for Protest in India: Lessons from the Anti-CAA and Farmers' Movements

Hungary: How Fidesz Lost: Cross-Sectoral Mobilization in Hungary’s 2026 Election

Türkiye: Türkiye’s Democratic Breakdown: Authoritarian Consolidation and the Sources of Resilience​

Hosted by: Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation

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https://ash.harvard.edu/events/the-breakdown-with-erica-chenoweth-and-steve-levitsky-april-23-2026/

Hosted by: Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation

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https://ash.harvard.edu/programs/american-politics-speaker-series/

Hosted by: University of Virginia, Karsh Institute of Democracy

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https://karshinstitute.virginia.edu/touchstones-democracy

Hosted by: Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation

 

https://ash.harvard.edu/terms-of-engagement/

Hosted by: Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation

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https://ash.harvard.edu/programs/global-challenges-to-democracy-seminar-series/