The Visegrad Group holds a unique position at the heart of Europe, shaped by its geographical location, intertwined histories and shared values. Comprising countries that have undergone similar transitions on their path to democracy, and united in a common effort to join the European Union and NATO, the V4 is bound by a shared experience that sets it apart.
This common past not only reinforces solidarity among the member states but also positions them as credible voices in shaping the future of European integration and security. United by core democratic ideals, the V4 can offer valuable insights into navigating contemporary challenges, making it a vital contributor to the broader European dialogue.
Today, Central Europe is grappling with significant democratic challenges, marked by a weakened rule of law, compromised media independence and the rise of illiberal governments. These issues erode public trust and the foundations of democracy, fostering political polarisation and societal fragmentation. The situation is exacerbated by external pressures, including the ongoing war in Ukraine, which looms large on the region’s periphery. This conflict not only destabilises neighbouring areas but also amplifies economic strain and security concerns, leaving citizens feeling disoriented and under pressure.
Amid such turbulence, many struggle to reconcile national interests with democratic principles, as governments often exploit crises to consolidate power. This interplay of internal and external threats creates an environment of uncertainty, in which democratic resilience is continually tested. Addressing these challenges requires reinvigorated civic engagement, international cooperation and robust safeguards to uphold democratic norms and institutions.
The Res Publica Foundation, together with its V4 partners, has launched a unique project, The Voices of Visegrad, comprising short videos as well as explanatory texts. The campaign aims to provide media coverage of key issues relevant to the Visegrad region, raising awareness and ensuring greater access to information.
By featuring the voices of prominent stakeholders and emphasising the shared principles and achievements of the Visegrad Group countries, the project fosters a stronger sense of regional identity and solidarity while addressing issues specific to the region. Encouraging citizens to comment on the content and contribute to V4 initiatives boosts civic engagement and promotes a bottom-up approach to collaboration.
Ideas? Comments? Would you like to ask Visegrad Group public opinion leaders a question?
Please do stay in touch via: fundacja@res.publica.pl.
Project partners are:
Visegrad Insight – Res Publica Foundation
EUROPEUM Institute for European Policy
Bratislava Policy Institute
Hungarian Europe Society
Supported by the Visegrad Fund
Mothers of Europe is an initiative that tells the story of the pioneering achievements of women who helped shape modern Europe – women who championed democracy, social progress, and justice, yet remain underrepresented in our knowledge about history.
The way we tell history reveals power relations. Collective memory and (ex)/inclusion of women in history-telling has a direct impact on the roles of women in today’s societies. The general objective of the Mothers of Europe project is to commemorate and raise awareness about notable women, who advanced European integration, brought democratic transition, and shaped EU values. The inclusion of women in history will empower women today.
The project contains of a series of workshops and exhibitions held in three Hungarian cities and fifteen further locations across Europe by the partner organisations showcasing the contributions of the “Founding Mothers”. The exhibitions will be accompanied by a joint publication that delves deeper into the historical background of these women’s important work.
Mothers of Europe has received funding under Grant Agreement no 101143916, from the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) under the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme (CERV) programme.
The Hungarian Europe Society - together with its partners, the 21 Research Center and the Republikon Institute - intends to continue its investigation on the future and renewal of liberal democracy globally and in Europe.
The project is supported by the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom.
The protagonists of liberal democracy and open society – liberal-minded political actors, civil groups and citizens - face ongoing populist ideological attacks against the fundaments of our liberal political system as well as the erosion of shared universal and European values in big portions of the populations. Although an anti-liberal U-turn has not occurred globally, the emergence of authoritarian states, especially Russia and China, and the significant influence of illiberal political entrepreneurs within the international democratic community have recently made the serious challenge more salient. It is still not too late to conceptualise how a wide circle of stakeholders, who believe in the future of liberal democracy and the liberal world order – including the reform capability of the European Union - might and should react assertively to the major political threat of our current era. There are positive examples worldwide which give us hope about the resilience of liberal political regimes. In worse cases – just like in Hungary – the political renewal of pro-European and liberal-minded actors need much more intellectual, visionary, strategic, organisational and communicative innovations in order to regain their dominant role in the political arena and the public spheres.
The project aims to mitigate deepening media polarisation in support of voters’ informed decision making in Georgia and V4 states by assessing internal and external political factors that stimulate polarisation after the start of the war in Ukraine, as well as by promoting dialogue and experience exchange between media and civil society of Georgia, Slovakia, Hungary, Czech Republic and Poland. Project proposal focuses on the critical challenges of media polarisation and responds to the questions about how to cope with increasing pressure and make media more accountable. The project also aims to distinguish the mechanisms to mitigate polarisation in the media and find the ways of how media can facilitate political debate to help voters make informed decisions based on the best practices.
The EU-funded DIACOMET project will advance ethical and accountable communication by promoting capacity building for civic resilience against disinformation and civic accountability. The project will generate a concept of dialogic communication ethics, providing a framework for an inclusive model of accountability mechanisms that combine media accountability with civic accountability, bound by a civic code of good communication conduct (a new type of communication ethics).
Funded by the European Union (grant agreement ID: 101094816).
The EUritage project celebrates the 30th anniversary of Central European democratic revolutions as well as the 15th anniversary of their accession to the European Union. The project is led by WiseEuropa, Warsaw, together with the Institut für Europäische Politik in Berlin, Metropolitan University Prague, City of Gdańsk and the Hungarian Europe Society. It is co-financed by the European Commission within the framework of its Europe for Citizens programme.
The project entitled “The Future of Democracy: Strengthening Liberal Values, Institutions and Procedures at Global, European, Regional and National Levels” has been launched in March 2022, supported by the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom.The Future of Democracy: Strengthening Liberal Values, Institutions and Procedures at Global, European, Regional and National Levels
Liberal democracy has been under attack worldwide in national and regional public arenas as well as through the increasing international geopolitical race between the democratic Western world and strengthening (semi)-authoritarian regimes. The beginning of the twenties of the 21st century has brought up new risks and threats to the surface: environmental emergency, an unknown pandemic, migration, growing economic inequalities, the contradictions of a post-truth era, ideological/cultural as well as social/geographic polarisation and fragmentation, extreme right-wing identity politics, and soon.
The Hungarian Europe Society has two particular focuses which comprehensively incorporate the above mentioned themes. First, the Conference on the Future of Europe that was launched in May 2021 works with an open agenda and its settings let participants discuss all kinds of policy issues as well as legal and institutional renovations. Second, the Summit for Democracy, invented by the Biden administration, goes beyond transatlantic relations regarding its more ambitious, global scope in order to bring together democratic states for action worldwide. Both big exercises give civil groups, think tanks and citizens the chance to interfere and influence conceptual considerations and practical outputs before the end of the deliberations.
We intend to deal with the future of democracy globally and the social-political challenges to the liberal world order. Our focus is on the Summit for Democracy initiated by the Biden administration and its potential impacts on political development at global, regional and national levels from the perspective of civil society. We invite high-level speakers and participants from both sides of the Atlantic to an interactive conference to be held in Budapest. It is our intention to analyze the goals and chances of the summit both from theoretical and practical perspectives with experts, scholars, intellectuals, professionals, NGO-s, citizens and other stake-holders as speakers as well as participating audiences. Civil groups still have a chance to interfere and influence the outcome of the summit with recommendations: we emphasize the criteria and significance of human values and liberal principles, minority rights, the rule of law, political liberties, intercultural dialogue, civic education, new methods for citizens’ participation, media pluralism, digitalisation, transparency, green transformation, social justice, and, last, but not least, the importance of securing the international liberal world order.
In our tumultuous times faced with the growing challenges of climate change, great power politics and their security implications, inequality in all its forms, or the economic recovery in the aftermath of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the importance of dialogue and creative, innovative thinking is indisputable. In the era of fake news and disinformation, respectful and fact-based exchange on how we as a transatlantic community want to shape our future is essential. In line with its mission to provoke and promote dialogue on current affairs, the proposed project of the Hungarian Europe Society seeks to provide platform for such an exchange between opinion leaders with conflicting views from Europe and the United States and the wider public - in the form of essays and online discussions - on topics ranging from the future of transatlantic relation, transition to a green economy, the challenges of digitalization or the future of liberal democracy.
Our aim is to improve our understanding of the implications of selected challenges, generate potential common solutions and to facilitate exchange and contacts between American and European (especially Central European) communities. We plan to close the project with a workshop that will function as an idea-incubator and will kick-off new, innovative projects based on the year-long exchange between HES and its partners.
The project is funded by the International Visegrad Fund and implemented by Europe without Barriers (Ukraine) in the partnership with Nasz Wybor (Poland), Poradna pro Integraci (Czechia), Research Centre of the Slovak Foreign Policy Association (Slovakia) and Hungarian Europe Society (Hungary).
The project is aimed at widespreading in popular media of detailed and argumentative data about the new labour legislation in V4 countries, methods of legal employment, sources of statistical data and expert interpretation.
International team of researchers from Ukraine, Poland, Czechia, Slovakia and Hungary will create a guide “Myths and stereotypes about Ukrainian labour migration to V4 countries”, covering media image of labour migration from Ukraine in media of 5 countries, analyzing the most common mistakes and myths, providing sources of trusted data for journalists, state officials and public persons who intend to make public statements about labour migration.
Project includes a workshop-presentation for Ukrainian journalists and experts in Kyiv with participation of foreign co-authors of the guide, and a series of presentations of the guide in V4 countries’ capitals.
Also Europe without Barriers will coordinate a 3-month competition for Ukrainian journalists in 5 categories: the best analytic publication, best explainer (“how to”), best reportage, best interview, best TV/radio program about labour migration to V4 countries.
The Hungarian Europe Society started a series of events focusing on the Central European region in order to give floor to alternative concepts and ideas challenging illiberal, populist narratives about the role of Visegrad countries inside the European Union. HES wants to create a network of like-minded think tanks, NGO-s and individuals in the region and beyond.
Where Does the PERC-index Stand? or from EU Destructivists to Federalists: the Relationship of Hungarian Parliamentary Parties towards the European Union& is the title of the project by the research team of the Hungarian Europe Society.
The European Union is facing up to the mistrust of European citizens. The Maison de l’Europe de Paris and its partners are convinced that, by stimulating the knowledge of the history and the current role of the European Union, the distrust which prevails these days might disappear. Therefore, the Maison de l’Europe de Paris developed the EUbyCITIZENS project, which aims to reach many citizens from various groups through partners established in 10 countries. The project takes place in Member States (France, Bulgaria, Spain, Hungary, Poland, Slovenia, Romania) and candidate countries (Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbia), from East to West in Europe. This political and geographical diversity represents the wealth of European culture. It
allows having a contrasting outlook of the EU and its issues and guarantees the relevance of the project. The goal is to give the keys for a better understanding of European history and current European policies in order to better involve the citizens in the democratic process.
The HES is a member of the Visa-free Europe Coalition which aim is to promote visa-free status for the citizens of Eastern Partnership countries and Russia. Declaration of Coalition
A vast gap exists between the rights guaranteed by the EU and the exercise of these rights. Unclear laws, disempowerment or fear of reprisal can prevent people from knowing and enjoying their rights. In the Citizen Rights project the European Alternatives wants to look at how, when and where people in the EU can individually and collectively protect and advance rights. It also wants to see where they are limited from exercising their rights and how transnational collaboration can imagine and build a future where rights are actively protected. The European Alternatives is implementing the project in partnership with eleven organisations across Europe, including the Hungarian Europe Society.
This project reviews and analyses the response of the V4 countries to the refugee crisis. These countries' behaviour vis-a- vis the crisis has markedly differed from the reactions of the other EU countries. Even taking into consideration individual differences between them, the Visegrad countries stood out for their xenophobia with regards to the migrants and their reluctance towards the emerging EU quota system. This position shocked other EU countries, which called it non-European, and it has caused the emergence of an East/West rift within the Union. The project aims to identify the causes for this behaviour, describe its evolution, compare the similarities and difference across the V4 countries and make related policy recommendations.
The collection of signatures ended one year after the European Citizens' Initiative (ECI) on Media Pluralism and Press Freedom had been approved by the European Commission on 19 August 2013. The Hungarian campaign was led by the coalition of the Hungarian Europe Society, Milla (One Million for the Freedom of the Press in Hungary), the Standards Media Monitor, the South East European Network for Professionalization of Media (SEENPM), the Hungarian branch of the Association of European Journalists and the National Association of Hungarian Journalistson the initiative of HES.
'Public Administration Reform in Visegrad Countries: Lessons Learned for Belarus and Ukraine'- HES is the Hungarian partner of the Czech AMO(Association for International Affairs) in the international coorporation that aims to contribute to building a modern and efficient public administration system based on democratic values in two countries of the Eastern Partnership. The project was running from October 2012 to March 2014 and supported by the International Visegrad Fund. The HES organized a short study trip for Belarusian experts in Budapest, April 2013.
