Young people’s relationship with politics today is often described in seemingly contradictory terms. On the one hand, they are portrayed as disengaged from traditional institutions and formal political processes. On the other, they are seen as more values-driven, outspoken, and ready to mobilise around global causes than any generation before them—advocating for justice, climate action, and social change.
This apparent paradox becomes clearer when we acknowledge how profoundly the forms and spaces of political engagement have shifted. In a world shaped by digitalisation and globalisation, social media platforms have, for many young people, taken the place of traditional arenas such as party politics or public demonstrations as the primary sites of political expression and activism.
PROGRAM
09:00 – 10:00 AM Guest Registration
10:00 – 10:05 AM Opening Remarks
10:05 – 10:15 AM Opening presentation
Georgina Kiss-Kozma (Deputy Director, Youth Research Institute)
10:15 – 11:15 AM Panel I: International Trends
Brent Buchanan (President & Founder, Cygnal)
Jay Richards (Director of the DeVos Center for Life, Religion and Family, William E. Simon Senior Research Fellow at The Heritage Foundation)
Jennie Bristow (Reader in Sociology, Canterbury Christ Church University)
11:15 – 12:15 AM Panel II: Young Voices on the Ground
Chaya Raichik (Founder, Libs of TikTok)
Virág Gulyás (Gulyás Virág Kimondja)
Fleur Elizabeth Meston (Political commentator and host, Bombshells podcast)
12:15 – 13:15 PM Lunch Break
13:15 – 14:15 PM Panel III: Domestic Perspectives
Péter Pillók (Research Institute Director, Századvég Social Processes Research Institute)
Andrea Szabó (Deputy Director, TK Social Science Research Center)
Ágoston Mráz (Director, Nézőpont Institute)
Levente Székely (Director, Youth Research Institute)
The event is free to attend but requires prior registration.
Registration:
https://mcc.hu/esemenyregisztracio/2025-12-09-when-young-people-take-the-floor-a-generational-shift-in-political-communication
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