2025 Denver Democracy Summit

Dean of the Korbel School, Fritz Mayer, and University of Denver Chancellor Jeremy Haefner will provide opening remarks for the Denver Democracy Summit.

Moderated by Professor Rachel Sigman, researchers and experts will discuss important trends, challenges, and opportunities facing democracy in 2025 and beyond.

Panelists:

• Joan Hoey, Editor, The Democracy Index, Economist Intelligence
• Yana Gorokhovskaia, Research Director, Strategy and Design, Freedom House
• Alex Hudson, Senior Adviser, Democracy Assessment, International IDEA

Join Dean Fritz Mayer for a compelling conversation with Anne Applebaum, Staff Writer at The Atlantic. Anne will share her insights on conflict between democracies and autocracies, as well as other pressing challenges shaping the world today.

Moderated by VP for Technology and Strategy at the Atlantic Council, Graham Brookie, this conversation will dive deep into various issues around disinformation, misinformation, and challenges facing democracies in 2025.

Panelists:

• Mark Scott, Senior Resident Fellow, Digital Forensic Research Lab’s Democracy & Tech Initiative, The Atlantic Council
• Roberta Braga, Founder and Executive Director, Digital Democracy Institute of the Americas

Moderated by Professor Rachel Epstein, this panel will discuss how the European continent addresses current conflicts and challenges.

Panelists:

• Clara Volintiru, Regional Director, Black Sea, German Marshall Fund
• Oxana Shevel, Associate Professor, Political Science & Director, International Relations Program, Tufts University
• Vera Messing, Research fellow at Democracy Institute, CEU; Professor at Center for Social Sciences, Budapest; and Fulbright fellow at University of Denver

Dean Fritz Mayer will interview Ambassador Heraldo Muñoz, Chilean diplomat, political scientist, and Korbel School Alum, in a deep dive on how Latin American democracy and politics are shifting in a time of social change.

Moderated by Professor Aaron Schneider, Director of the Institute for Comparative and Regional Studies at the Korbel School, national and global experts will explore how democracies and nations respond to modern migration issues.

Panelists:

• Yael Schacher, Director for Americas and Europe, Refugees International
• César Cuauhtémoc García Hernández, Gregory H. Williams Chair in Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, The Ohio State University
• Rebecca Galemba, Professor, Korbel School & Co-Director, Center for Immigration Policy & Research

George Packer, Staff Writer at The Atlantic, will discuss the polarization of America and how our democracy might rise to the occasion.

Heidi Williams, Executive Director of the Metro Mayors Caucus, will moderate a discussion on how mayors and civic leaders help move local communities forward in a time of polarization and change.

Moderated by Professor Naazneen Barma, Director of the Korbel School's Scrivner Institute of Public Policy, this panel will explore the interconnected challenges of climate change and democratic decline. This is a special edition of the Denver Dialogues, an event series in partnership with premier American think tanks to model civil discourse about major issues facing the nation and the world.

Panelists:

• Vann R. Newkirk II, Senior Editor, The Atlantic & Fellow, Political Reform Program, New America
• Roger Pielke Jr., Senior Fellow, AEI
• Laura Schifter, Senior Fellow, This Is Planet Ed, Energy and Environment Program, Aspen Institute
• Fritz Mayer, Dean, Josef Korbel School

Join Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, Former Douglas County Sheriff Tony Spurlock, State Senator Lisa Cutter, and Former Colorado Secretary of State Wayne Williams as they discuss what is required to work across the political divide in Colorado.

Professor Naazneen Barma, Director of the Korbel School's Scrivner Institute of Public Policy, discusses the role of soft power in global democracy promotion with several of the Aspen Strategy Group's Rising Leaders.

Panelists:

• Tyra Beaman, Foreign Service Officer, U.S. Department of State
• Phillip Davis II, Foreign Affairs Officer, U.S. Department of State
• Sofia Economopoulos, ASG Rising Leader
• Cedric Habiyaremye, Food Systems Policy Director, Food Systems for the Future

Moderated by Professor Lynn Schofield Clark, Media, Film and Journalism Studies, University of Denver

Panelists:

• Laura Frank, Executive Director, Colorado News Lab (COLab)
• Corey Hutchens, Journalist, Colorado College
• Johanna Ulloa Girón, The Colorado Trust

Moderated by Dr. Landon Mascarenaz

Panelists:

• Stephen Heintz, President and CEO, Rockefeller Brothers Fund
• Lee Drutman, Senior Fellow, Political Reform Program, New America