International Forum for Democratic Studies

06/08/2026

June 22 | 9:30am ET

Join us for the launch of our latest report, “Testing the Limits.” Written by authors from civil society and think tanks, the report analyzes how Russia and China are taking advantage of growing digital tools and an eroding international system to export their models of authoritarianism abroad.

Event panelists will explore new trends in authoritarian influence strategies and ways that democracy actors can respond.

Register here: https://natendowment.zoom.us/j/95636472511

06/03/2026

"The technology that has been provided by China has been used for social control, repression, and surveillance, and not to modernize Venezuela."

At the Special Competitive Studies Project 2026 , former mayor of El Hatillo city in Venezuela, David Smolansky Urosa, joined National Endowment for Democracy, International Republican Institute (IRI), and Center for International Private Enterprise to discuss how the Venezuelan government- in partnership with PRC companies- used digital technology to advance authoritarian control- and why technology remains central to a future democratic transition.

06/02/2026

In times of war, Ukrainian civil society and its commitment to total democratic resilience plays a vital role in strengthening national defense.

Watch highlights from a compelling conversation with National Endowment for Democracy's Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellow Andriy Shevchenko, joined by Damon Wilson, Peter Van Praagh of Halifax International Security Forum and Melanne of Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security

05/21/2026

⛏️ Demand for nickel, lithium, and other critical minerals is expected to quadruple by 2040. But authoritarians are exploiting vulnerabilities in many mineral-rich countries, pushing through corrupt deals benefiting elites at the expense of everyday workers and host communities.

🗒️ In our latest , Sef Ashiagbor of
National Democratic Institute underscores how democratic guardrails ensuring transparency and accountability stand as the difference makers between entrenched corruption and widespread prosperity.

Full the piece here ➡️ https://bit.ly/4wTDw7E

05/06/2026

In a new Democracy’s Horizons Substack piece, Michael Caster describes how the theocratic regime in Tehran is importing both hardware and normative frameworks from China to more effectively close off the open internet. He helps us understand what it means for the rest of us, too.

https://substack.com/home/post/p-195757188

05/05/2026

During his fellowship presentation, Ambassador Andriy Shevchenko, Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellow at the National Endowment for Democracy, reflected on launching Media Center Ukraine.

Ukraine’s media coverage efforts were built at the grassroots level and pivoted from peacetime to serve as an “iron shield” against the Kremlin’s aggression.

05/05/2026

Join us this Thursday (1:00 - 4:20 PM) at the Special Competitive Studies Project's AI+ Expo in Washington to hear some of the world’s leading experts on freedom technology lay out a blueprint of AI for democracy – and not repression. National Endowment for Democracy, International Republican Institute (IRI), and Center for International Private Enterprise will convene two panels, and lightning talks moderated by the Forum’s director Kevin Sheives.

Location: Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Room 154A/B

Register (for free) to attend: https://expo.scsp.ai/register/

05/04/2026

Following this past weekend’s , we recognize the indispensable and fundamental rights of journalists to report the facts free from censorship or coercion. In autocracies, journalists and civic actors use novel, creative means to expose and bypass government propaganda.

We look back to a panel we held in October, featuring the voices of several courageous journalists and activists working to break thorough censorship in autocratic settings like Iran, Nicaragua, and Tibet. Today and every day, we stand with them and their work.

4 likes, 1 comment. "Breaking Through: How Citizens Are Fighting Modern Authoritarian Censorship"

04/27/2026

Ukrainian civil society has become an “iron shield” — a powerful force for national defense in the face of war.

The Forum hosted Ambassador Andriy Shevchenko's Reagan-Fascell Fellowship presentation at the National Endowment for Democracy, where he discussed how Ukraine’s civil society resilience provides a path to sustain democratic strength and deterrence in the face of authoritarian adversaries.

03/31/2026