In this talk, Lucan Way, a leading scholar in the comparative study of the formation and resilience of democracy and authoritarianism, will explain core concepts and frameworks we can use to understand current political events. He will share his ongoing observations of United States, Europe, Ukrain, and Russia, and the value or limitations of existing models for predicting what’s ahead for our countries, communities, industries, research participants, and jobs.

Two exceptional discussants will extend the conversation. Nichole Carelock leads AI policy implementation, human-centered design, and cross-agency digital transformation at the highest levels of the U.S. government, a position she has held with the United States Digital Service since May 2023. Marta Lorimer is a scholar of European politics and policy who focuses on the European Union and the ascendancy of the far right in France and Italy.

Speakers

Lucan Way is a political scientist and Distinguished Professor of Democracy at the University of Toronto. His research in comparative politics focuses on the emergence and durability of democratic and authoritarian regimes. Way’s award-winning books include Revolution and Dictatorship: The Violent Origins of Durable Authoritarianism (with Steven Levitsky, Princeton University Press), Pluralism by Default: Weak Autocrats and the Rise of Competitive Politics (Johns Hopkins University Press), and Competitive Authoritarianism: Hybrid Regimes after the Cold War (with Steven Levitsky, Cambridge University Press).

Nichole Carelock is an anthropologist and researcher at United States Digital Service who leads AI policy implementation, human-centered design, and cross-agency digital transformation at the highest levels of the U.S. government. She has also worked in the private and nonprofit sectors, including senior positions at Meta, the Tech Talent Project, and Ad Hoc LLC. Nichole is also a past member of the EPIC Board of Directors and holds a PhD in anthropology from Rice University.

Marta Lorimer is a Lecturer in Politics in the School of Law and Politics at Cardiff University and co-editor of Political Research Exchange. Her research focuses on far right politics, particularly in France and Italy and with respect to EU integration. Lorimer is the author of Europe as Ideological Resource: European integration and Far-right Legitimation (Oxford University Press, 2024) and Flexible Europe: Differentiated integration, Fairness and Democracy (Bristol University Press, 2022, with Richard Bellamy and Sandra Kröger).