Some of the best results can be born out of necessity, even in the field of scientific research. In 2024, Hungary launched the Hu-rizon international research funding programme in response to the European Commission’s decision to suspend Hungary’s participation in the Erasmus+ and Horizon Europe programmes in December 2023. Even if operating with a fraction of Horizon Europe’s budget, Hu-rizon has, in just two years, established itself as a respected partner in high-level international collaborations. 

What sets Hu-rizon apart is that it does not impose ideological litmus tests. Unlike many contemporary funding schemes, applicants are not required to embed Critical Race Theory, mandatory Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion frameworks, gender-ideology clauses, or any patriotic or sovereigntist agenda into their proposals. 

This stance is genuinely provocative in the heavily politicized landscape of European research funding, precisely because Hungary’s Hu-rizon program could become a contagious example. 

Yet why not push back against the prevailing Brussels-centric mainstream and create more room for genuinely national approaches within the broader European Research Funding? And why not open entirely new horizons for European science at the very moment when research funding risks being further sidelined in the next Multiannual Financial Framework 2028–2034? 

To explore these questions in depth, Mathias Corvinus Collegium is pleased to host a dedicated discussion on the emergence of Hu-rizon and its implications for the future of European research. The event will bring together leading voices, including Rodrigo Ballester, Head of the Center for European Studies, delivering the opening remarks; as well as Dr. Katalin Deme, Senior Researcher at MCC Brussels and Damille Devenyi, Researcher at the Center for European Studies. Together, they will offer a substantive examination of how national research frameworks can preserve scientific neutrality while fostering international excellence. Their insights will shed light on whether Hungary’s alternative model can inspire a broader rethinking of research funding priorities across Europe. 

The event will be held in English.

Program: 

15:30 – Opening Remarks 

  • Rodrigo Ballester, Head of the Center for European Studies at MCC and Ministerial Commissioner for Higher Education in the Hungarian Ministry for Culture and Innovation 

15:45 – Panel Discussion: A New Academic Model: Curbing Ideological Overreach on Scientific Neutrality 

  • Dr. Katalin Deme, Senior Researcher at MCC Brussels
  • Damille Devenyi, Researcher at the Center for European Studies at MCC
  • Moderator: Stephen Sholl, Head of International Partnerships at Mathias Corvinus Collegium

16:45 – Conclusion of Event 

 

The event is open to the public and press, but prior registration is required: https://mcc.hu/esemenyregisztracio/2025-12-08-egy-uj-akademiai-modell-a-tudomanyos-semlegesseg-vedelme-az-ideologiai-tulkapasokkal-szemben.