Key to open society, target of political hostilty?

Public debates about fake news, alternative facts, and the role of universities came to a head recently when Budapest’s Central European University (CEU) came under political attack. CEU’s future is currently at risk following an amendment of the Hungarian higher education act.

In the past few months, thousands of students, academics, and researchers took to the streets around the world to protest some of these developments: The March for Science was held in over 500 cities worldwide to send out a strong signal in support of science. The Vienna march ended with the words, “Any threat to the freedom of science is also a threat to democratic freedom.” At the upcoming panel discussion, WU Rector Edeltraud Hanappi-Egger and CEU Rector Michael Ignatieff (Canadian author, academic, and former politician) will talk about the role of universities in today’s society and their functions, responsibilities, challenges, and opportunities in the future. What does academic freedom actually mean today?

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