Upcoming Events

	Title	Date	Type	Speakers	Register
	Beyond Hype and Fear	Mon, 08.09.2025, 18:00	Lecture	Virginia Dignum		Beyond Hype and Fear Responsible AI for Societal Transformation Mon, 08.09.2025, 18:00 Speakers: Virginia Dignum Series: Lecture This talk argues that responsibility in AI is not a constraint but the foundation of meaningful innovation. While acknowledging trade-offs and context in decision-making, Virginia Dignum will contend that responsible AI is not optional; it is the only viable path for artificial intelligence if it is to support human prosperity. Read more
Beyond Hype and Fear Responsible AI for Societal Transformation Mon, 08.09.2025, 18:00 Speakers: Virginia Dignum Series: Lecture This talk argues that responsibility in AI is not a constraint but the foundation of meaningful innovation. While acknowledging trade-offs and context in decision-making, Virginia Dignum will contend that responsible AI is not optional; it is the only viable path for artificial intelligence if it is to support human prosperity. Read more
	Small and Middle Powers on the Geopolitical Stage	Tue, 09.09.2025, 13:30 - Tue, 09.09.2025, 18:30	Conferences and Workshops	Ivan Krastev James C. O'Brien		Small and Middle Powers on the Geopolitical Stage Geopolitical Workshop with James C. O’Brien Tue, 09.09.2025, 13:30 - Tue, 09.09.2025, 18:30 Speakers: Ivan Krastev James C. O'Brien Series: Conferences and Workshops James C. O’Brien will moderate the Geopolitical Workshop on strategies for small and middle powers to gain geopolitical significance, focusing on their assets, weaknesses, and UN Security Council ambitions. The discussion will stress-test current approaches and explore opportunities, co-chaired by IWM Albert Hirschman Permanent Fellow Ivan Krastev. Read more
Small and Middle Powers on the Geopolitical Stage Geopolitical Workshop with James C. O’Brien Tue, 09.09.2025, 13:30 - Tue, 09.09.2025, 18:30 Speakers: Ivan Krastev James C. O'Brien Series: Conferences and Workshops James C. O’Brien will moderate the Geopolitical Workshop on strategies for small and middle powers to gain geopolitical significance, focusing on their assets, weaknesses, and UN Security Council ambitions. The discussion will stress-test current approaches and explore opportunities, co-chaired by IWM Albert Hirschman Permanent Fellow Ivan Krastev. Read more
	Emancypantki: The Forgotten Herstory of Poland’s Suffragists	Mon, 15.09.2025, 17:00	Seminars and Colloquia	Ivan Krastev Katarzyna Wężyk		Emancypantki: The Forgotten Herstory of Poland’s Suffragists Fellows' Colloquium with Katarzyna Wężyk Mon, 15.09.2025, 17:00 Speakers: Ivan Krastev Katarzyna Wężyk Series: Seminars and Colloquia In this Fellow's Colloquium Katarzyna Wężyk examines the lives of women’s rights activists who fought for suffrage and broader emancipation in a nation that did not yet exist, navigating the archetype of the “Polish mother” rooted in patriotism and Catholicism. Many of these women defied gender norms through unorthodox lives and intellectual pursuits, moving from Romantic ideals to Positivist calls for independence and finally to suffrage demands. Read more
Emancypantki: The Forgotten Herstory of Poland’s Suffragists Fellows' Colloquium with Katarzyna Wężyk Mon, 15.09.2025, 17:00 Speakers: Ivan Krastev Katarzyna Wężyk Series: Seminars and Colloquia In this Fellow's Colloquium Katarzyna Wężyk examines the lives of women’s rights activists who fought for suffrage and broader emancipation in a nation that did not yet exist, navigating the archetype of the “Polish mother” rooted in patriotism and Catholicism. Many of these women defied gender norms through unorthodox lives and intellectual pursuits, moving from Romantic ideals to Positivist calls for independence and finally to suffrage demands. Read more
	Streaming Illiberalism: Alternative Digital Ecosystems and Democratic Erosion in Central and Eastern Europe	Mon, 22.09.2025, 16:00	Seminars and Colloquia	Misha Glenny Václav Štětka		Streaming Illiberalism: Alternative Digital Ecosystems and Democratic Erosion in Central and Eastern Europe Fellows' Colloquium with Václav Štětka Mon, 22.09.2025, 16:00 Speakers: Misha Glenny Václav Štětka Series: Seminars and Colloquia In this Fellow's Colloquium Václav Štětka addresses the growing prominence of right-wing media ecosystems built around online influencers and amplified by platforms like TikTok and YouTube. The presentation examines how this environment will affect democracy in Central and Eastern Europe, focusing on the Czech Republic ahead of the 2025 elections, and explores the disruptive role of global digital platforms through the lens of platform capitalism. Read more
Streaming Illiberalism: Alternative Digital Ecosystems and Democratic Erosion in Central and Eastern Europe Fellows' Colloquium with Václav Štětka Mon, 22.09.2025, 16:00 Speakers: Misha Glenny Václav Štětka Series: Seminars and Colloquia In this Fellow's Colloquium Václav Štětka addresses the growing prominence of right-wing media ecosystems built around online influencers and amplified by platforms like TikTok and YouTube. The presentation examines how this environment will affect democracy in Central and Eastern Europe, focusing on the Czech Republic ahead of the 2025 elections, and explores the disruptive role of global digital platforms through the lens of platform capitalism. Read more
	The German Peasants' War 1525	Wed, 24.09.2025, 18:30	Festivals	Misha GlennyLyndal Roper	register here	The German Peasants' War 1525 Vienna Humanities Festival 2025 Wed, 24.09.2025, 18:30 Speakers: Misha GlennyLyndal Roper Series: Festivals At the Vienna Humanities Festival 2025, historian Lyndal Roper revisits the German Peasants’ War of 1525, long dismissed or politically misrepresented, to reveal its deeper historical significance. Drawing on extensive archival research, she explores how the revolt reflected the political agency of a neglected class inspired by Luther’s teachings and how it ultimately marked a turning point in Luther’s own political stance. Read more
The German Peasants' War 1525 Vienna Humanities Festival 2025 Wed, 24.09.2025, 18:30 Speakers: Misha GlennyLyndal Roper Series: Festivals At the Vienna Humanities Festival 2025, historian Lyndal Roper revisits the German Peasants’ War of 1525, long dismissed or politically misrepresented, to reveal its deeper historical significance. Drawing on extensive archival research, she explores how the revolt reflected the political agency of a neglected class inspired by Luther’s teachings and how it ultimately marked a turning point in Luther’s own political stance. Read more
	Love Troubles: How Love Drives Transformation	Thu, 25.09.2025, 19:00	Festivals	Federica Gregoratto, Dessy Gavrilova	REGISTRATION VIA WIENER VORLESUNGEN	Love Troubles: How Love Drives Transformation Vienna Humanities Festival 2025 Thu, 25.09.2025, 19:00 Speakers: Federica Gregoratto, Dessy Gavrilova Series: Festivals In her talk at the Vienna Humanities Festival 2025, philosopher Federica Gregoratto explores how love has been conceptualized throughout Western philosophy—from Plato and Hegel to the Frankfurt School, Simone de Beauvoir, and Audre Lorde. Drawing on this tradition, she offers an original perspective on how eros shapes individual freedom and social transformation in the context of contemporary power struggles. Read more
Love Troubles: How Love Drives Transformation Vienna Humanities Festival 2025 Thu, 25.09.2025, 19:00 Speakers: Federica Gregoratto, Dessy Gavrilova Series: Festivals In her talk at the Vienna Humanities Festival 2025, philosopher Federica Gregoratto explores how love has been conceptualized throughout Western philosophy—from Plato and Hegel to the Frankfurt School, Simone de Beauvoir, and Audre Lorde. Drawing on this tradition, she offers an original perspective on how eros shapes individual freedom and social transformation in the context of contemporary power struggles. Read more
	Central Europe and the Birth of Modern Sovereignty	Fri, 26.09.2025, 18:30	Festivals	Natasha Wheatley, Matti Bunzl	register here	Central Europe and the Birth of Modern Sovereignty Vienna Humanities Festival 2025 Fri, 26.09.2025, 18:30 Speakers: Natasha Wheatley, Matti Bunzl Series: Festivals In her keynote lecture at the Vienna Humanities Festival 2025, American historian Natasha Wheatley will present insights from her acclaimed book The Life and Death of States, exploring how the Habsburg Empire’s legal legacy shaped modern sovereignty and offered a model for new states to claim legitimacy in Central Europe and beyond. Read more
Central Europe and the Birth of Modern Sovereignty Vienna Humanities Festival 2025 Fri, 26.09.2025, 18:30 Speakers: Natasha Wheatley, Matti Bunzl Series: Festivals In her keynote lecture at the Vienna Humanities Festival 2025, American historian Natasha Wheatley will present insights from her acclaimed book The Life and Death of States, exploring how the Habsburg Empire’s legal legacy shaped modern sovereignty and offered a model for new states to claim legitimacy in Central Europe and beyond. Read more
	Who Can Speak? Reflections on Social Movements and Their Limits	Sat, 27.09.2025, 19:30	Festivals	Ivan KrastevDidier Eribon	Purchase ticket	Who Can Speak? Reflections on Social Movements and Their Limits Vienna Humanities Festival 2025 Sat, 27.09.2025, 19:30 Speakers: Ivan KrastevDidier Eribon Series: Festivals At the Vienna Humanities Festival 2025, renowned French sociologist Didier Eribon returns to the themes of his latest book The Life, Old Age, and Death of a Working-Class Woman. Reflecting on the political invisibility of the elderly and others excluded from mobilization, he examines the deeper question of who gets to speak in the public sphere. Read more
Who Can Speak? Reflections on Social Movements and Their Limits Vienna Humanities Festival 2025 Sat, 27.09.2025, 19:30 Speakers: Ivan KrastevDidier Eribon Series: Festivals At the Vienna Humanities Festival 2025, renowned French sociologist Didier Eribon returns to the themes of his latest book The Life, Old Age, and Death of a Working-Class Woman. Reflecting on the political invisibility of the elderly and others excluded from mobilization, he examines the deeper question of who gets to speak in the public sphere. Read more