About the International Forum for Democratic Studies
The International Forum for Democratic Studies is a leading center for research on global challenges facing democracies around the world. The International Forum seeks to bridge ideas and practice by convening experts and civil society leaders around cross-regional, interdisciplinary, and cross-sectoral learning to deepen understanding of these challenges and identify lessons to reverse the authoritarian wave and accelerate democratic renewal.
The Forum’s interrelated and growing initiatives include the Journal of Democracy, a leading academic journal on the theory and practice of democracy; the Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellowship, a five-month fellowship for activists and scholars; and the Democracy Resource Center, a democracy-oriented library open to NED staff and the public.
Jump To: Research on Global Challenges to Democracy | Journal of Democracy | Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellowship | Democracy Resource Center | Lipset Lecture | Connect With Us | Meet Our Staff
Research on Global Challenges to Democracy
The International Forum convenes and publishes research around four defining global challenges to democracy:
- Countering Authoritarian Influence – Read the concluding report in our Sharp Power and Democratic Resilience series looking at the vulnerabilities and strengths of open societies.
- Combating Transnational Kleptocracy – Read a report on developing a unified democratic response to the challenge of transnational kleptocracy.
- Defending the Integrity of the Information Space – Read a collection of essays on innovative perspectives and new interdisciplinary methods for countering disinformation.
- Emerging Technology and Democracy – Read a report on the global struggle over artificial intelligence-powered surveillance tools.
The Forum’s events, reports, and digital publications contribute to ongoing debates on democracy by elevating and bringing together voices from academia, think tanks, government, the private sector, and civil society. On the Power 3.0 blog and podcast, we invite leading experts to assess how new forms of authoritarian influence are reshaping the playing field on which democratic and illiberal values are contested. The Sharp Power Research Portal’s interactive map and regularly updated resource database illustrates how authoritarian actors have adapted modern domestic repression techniques for application abroad.
Journal of Democracy
The Journal of Democracy is the world’s leading publication on the theory and practice of democracy. Since its first appearance in 1990, it has engaged both activists and intellectuals in critical discussions of the problems of and prospects for democracy around the world. Today, the Journal is at the center of debate on the major social, political, and cultural challenges that confront emerging and established democracies alike.
The Journal includes not only essay packages on important debates and ideas but also articles dealing with every region of the world. In addition, each week it publishes timely and authoritative analysis on the forces fighting for and against the future of freedom.
Statement of Editorial Independence: The Journal of Democracy is housed within NED and published by Johns Hopkins University Press. The Journal’s editors take no editorial positions, but are guided by the mission of providing analysis of the major political, social, and economic challenges that confront democracy. The Journal of Democracy is led solely by the best judgment of its editors, who act freely and independently. No outside party determines, reviews, or endorses the Journal’s choices, and funders do not participate in commissioning authors, developing essays, or editing manuscripts. Each decision is made with the aim of providing a range of viewpoints and analysis that furthers our understanding of democracy today.
Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellowship
Named in honor of President Ronald Reagan and the late Congressman Dante Fascell (D-Fl.), whose bipartisan vision contributed to the founding of NED, the Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellows program was established in 2001 to enable frontline defenders of democracy, civil society leaders, scholars, journalists, lawyers, artists, and others from around the world to deepen their understanding of democracy and enhance their ability to advance democratic change.
During their time in residence at NED’s International Forum for Democratic Studies, fellows conduct research and writing, exchange ideas and experiences in comparative context, share best practices in democratic development, and build ties with a global network of democracy advocates.
Over the past twenty years, the Reagan-Fascell program has offered vital fellowship support to more than 360 Fellows from more than 100 countries—from fledgling democracies to some of the world’s most repressive political environments.
Democracy Resource Center
The Democracy Resource Center (DRC) is a publicly accessible, political science-oriented library housing a collection of materials produced by and about groups and organizations working to strengthen democracy abroad. The Allen Overland collection, named after the DRC’s founding librarian and director, consists of over 20,000 works in 60 languages and features the works of prominent thinkers in the fields of democracy and democracy assistance.
Seymour Martin Lipset Lecture on Democracy in the World
The Seymour Martin Lipset Lecture on Democracy in the World was inaugurated in 2004 by the International Forum and the University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs as an important new forum for discourse on democracy and its progress worldwide. Named for one of the great democratic scholars and public intellectuals of the twentieth century, the annual lecture is an intellectual platform for individuals who, like Seymour Martin Lipset, have made important contributions to our thinking about key issues of democracy through their writings and other accomplishments.
Recent speakers include Anne Applebaum, Ronald Deibert, Minxin Pei, Alina Mungiu-Pippidi, and Anwar Ibrahim.
Connect With Us
Twitter: @ThinkDemocracy | @JoDemocracy | @NEDLibrary | @NEDemocracy
Facebook: @ThinkDemocracy | @journalofdemocracy | @NEDLibrary | @National.Endowment.for.Democracy
Email: [email protected] | [email protected] | [email protected] | [email protected] | [email protected]
Meet Our Staff
Beth Kerley is a senior program officer with the research and conferences section of the National Endowment for Democracy’s International Forum for Democratic Studies. She manages the Forum’s emerging technologies portfolio, which covers the challenges and opportunities for democracy as technological advances such as machine learning, the Internet of Things, and big-data analytics supply new tools of politics and governance. She was previously associate editor of the Journal of Democracy, and holds a PhD in History from Harvard University and a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University
Grayson Lewis is a Program Assistant in the International Forum for Democratic Studies, where he supports the work of the Vice President for Studies and Analysis, as well as the programming of the Forum’s core initiatives. He formerly served as a legislative assistant to a senior member of the Virginia State Senate, and previously completed internships with the National Democratic Institute and the German Marshall Fund’s Alliance for Securing Democracy. He holds an MA in Democracy & Governance from Georgetown University, as well as a BA in Political Science and a certificate in History from Virginia Tech.
Maya Recanati is an assistant program officer at the International Forum for Democratic Studies, where she supports the emerging technology and information space integrity portfolios. Prior to NED, she worked as a Privacy Program and Policy Analyst at Venable LLP, helping clients develop processes and policies that better protect consumer privacy. Maya holds a B.A. in Middle Eastern Studies from Dartmouth College and an M.Sc. in International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Kevin Sheives serves as the director of the International Forum for Democratic Studies at the National Endowment for Democracy. He helps oversee the Forum’s staff and research on authoritarian influence, information space topics, emerging technology, and transnational kleptocracy. Kevin served nearly fifteen years in the U.S. government with the State Department’s China Desk and other positions, and in positions at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, Department of Defense, and the U.S. House of Representatives. Kevin received a Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees in International Relations from Baylor University. He is proficient in Mandarin and often served as a summer English teacher in Xinjiang, China. His writings have appeared in War on the Rocks, The Diplomat, Asia Nikkei, the Journal of Democracy, and the International Forum’s platforms. Follow him on X @KSheives.
Christopher Walker is vice president for studies and analysis at the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), a private, nonprofit foundation dedicated to the growth and strengthening of democratic institutions around the world. In this capacity, he oversees the department responsible for NED’s multifaceted analytical work. He is an expert on authoritarian regimes, and has been at the forefront of the discussion on authoritarian influence on open systems, including through what he terms “sharp power.” His articles have appeared in numerous publications, including the Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Washington Post, Foreign Affairs, and the Journal of Democracy. He is co-editor (with Larry Diamond and Marc Plattner) of the edited volume Authoritarianism Goes Global: The Challenge to Democracy (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2016), and co-editor (with Jessica Ludwig) of the report Sharp Power: Rising Authoritarian Influence (NED’s International Forum for Democratic Studies, 2017) and Sharp Power and Democratic Resilience (International Forum for Democratic Studies, 2021). Follow him on Twitter @Walker_CT.
