Uploaded January 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Bernadett Szel, PhD, is an economist and sociologist with a unique blend of academic and political expertise. She served as a Member of Parliament in Hungary from 2012 to 2022 and held senior political positions. In 2025, she held the George Soros Practitioner Chair at the Department of Public Policy at CEU.
At CEU, Dr. Szel’s work focuses on the study of democratic societies and the challenges they face from autocratic backsliding. Drawing on her extensive experience in parliamentary politics, she provides expert insights into governance, resilience, and the protection of human rights. She taught a course on the autocratic transformation of Hungarian democracy and conducts comparative research on democratic resilience in Taiwan.
Her research in Taiwan is grounded in extensive fieldwork and collaboration with local institutions, having served as an International Visiting Fellow at the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy and a Visiting Fellow at the Chang Fo-chuan Center for the Study of Human Rights at Soochow University.
Learn more:
https://www.ceu.edu/departments/public-policy
About CEU
Central European University (CEU) is a research-focused university offering a wide spectrum of interdisciplinary undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in the heart of Europe. Our ever-growing international community of students, alumni, permanent and visiting faculty and program partners enables you to challenge conventional wisdom, explore diverse perspectives and critically examine the biggest challenges of the 21st century.
More from CEU
Website: https://www.ceu.edu/
Facebook: facebook.com/WeAreCEU
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/weareceu.bsky.social
Instagram: instagram.com/weareceu
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/school/central-european-university
Threads: threads.net/@weareceu
Timestamps
0:15 Introduction – Bernadett Szel’s Background in Economics and Sociology
0:38 Interest in Taiwan – Learning from Nations Near Oppressive Powers
1:37 Course on Defending Democratic Values in Autocratic Regimes
2:26 Autocratization – Understanding How Democratic Backlash Happens
2:59 The Impact on People – Minorities, Corruption, and Society
3:41 Opportunities and Challenges in Defending Democratic Societies
5:06 Navigating a Multi-Crisis World – Education and Community Engagement
#WeAreCEU #democraticsocieties #humanrights #democracyresilience
Bernadett Szel, PhD, is an economist and sociologist with a unique blend of academic and political expertise. She served as a Member of Parliament in Hungary from 2012 to 2022 and held senior political positions. In 2025, she held the George Soros Practitioner Chair at the Department of Public Policy at CEU.
At CEU, Dr. Szel’s work focuses on the study of democratic societies and the challenges they face from autocratic backsliding. Drawing on her extensive experience in parliamentary politics, she provides expert insights into governance, resilience, and the protection of human rights. She taught a course on the autocratic transformation of Hungarian democracy and conducts comparative research on democratic resilience in Taiwan.
Her research in Taiwan is grounded in extensive fieldwork and collaboration with local institutions, having served as an International Visiting Fellow at the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy and a Visiting Fellow at the Chang Fo-chuan Center for the Study of Human Rights at Soochow University.
Learn more:
https://www.ceu.edu/departments/public-policy
About CEU
Central European University (CEU) is a research-focused university offering a wide spectrum of interdisciplinary undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in the heart of Europe. Our ever-growing international community of students, alumni, permanent and visiting faculty and program partners enables you to challenge conventional wisdom, explore diverse perspectives and critically examine the biggest challenges of the 21st century.
More from CEU
Website: https://www.ceu.edu/
Facebook: facebook.com/WeAreCEU
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/weareceu.bsky.social
Instagram: instagram.com/weareceu
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/school/central-european-university
Threads: threads.net/@weareceu
Timestamps
0:15 Introduction – Bernadett Szel’s Background in Economics and Sociology
0:38 Interest in Taiwan – Learning from Nations Near Oppressive Powers
1:37 Course on Defending Democratic Values in Autocratic Regimes
2:26 Autocratization – Understanding How Democratic Backlash Happens
2:59 The Impact on People – Minorities, Corruption, and Society
3:41 Opportunities and Challenges in Defending Democratic Societies
5:06 Navigating a Multi-Crisis World – Education and Community Engagement
#WeAreCEU #democraticsocieties #humanrights #democracyresilience
