Center for Emerging Democracies

Wednesday, September 9 | 4-6PM Kuenzel Room, Michigan Union

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About the Center for Emerging Democracies The Center for Emerging Democracies promotes scholarship to better understand the broad historical, political, economic, and societal conditions under which democracies emerge—and autocracies endure.

Student Initiatives We offer funding to students who are studying emerging democracies, as well as a workshop for graduate students.

Events We sponsor and co-sponsor lectures, conferences, symposia, and roundtables on a regular basis. Visit our events page to see what’s coming up, or watch video of past events.

Democracy and Autocracy Newsletter Democracy and Autocracy is the official newsletter of the American Political Science Association’s Democracy and Autocracy section. It is published three times a year by the Center for Emerging Democracies under executive editors Dan Slater (emerging democracies director, political science) and Rob Mickey (political science).

Emerging Democracies Book Series The Center for Emerging Democracies series published by U-M Press strives to collect a balance of titles on emerging democracies and enduring dictatorships, as one cannot understand the conditions under which democracies live and thrive without comprehending how they die and remain unborn.

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Announcing a new Issue of the "Democracy and Autocracy" Newsletter

Democratic Resilience | Democracy and Autocracy Vol. 23(2) December 2025

Reimagining Democracy: New Partnerships Tackle Global Challenges to Democratic Futures

The Center for Emerging Democracies teams up with democracy-focused groups at the Brookings Institution, Cornell, and Vanderbilt.

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The Center for Emerging Democracies (@umichDemocracy) promotes engaged public interdisciplinary scholarship to better understand the conditions and policies that foster worldwide transitions from autocratic rule and the deepening of democratic governance – in the past, present, and future. Emerging Democracies has been housed in the International Institute at the University of Michigan since 2008, making us one of the world’s longest-established centers for the study and advancement of democracy.

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