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Project Partner HUN-REN Centre for Social Sciences showcases research at International Conferences

09 Sep 2025

Presentation at the 38th Annual Conference of the Italian Political Science Association (SISP) in Naples, Italy

At the SISP Annual Conference in Naples, Márton Gerő presented “Layers of Social Recognition: Cognitive Networks and Identity Building of Pro-Government Organisations in Hungary.”

His presentation examined how Hungary’s governing party outsources its interactions with society to pro-government civil society organisations. He highlighted how these organisations are woven into a broader network that strengthens the group identity of conservative and right-wing actors in a polarised society—primarily by offering recognition and visibility to participating groups.

Presentations at the Contemporary History Conference in Pécs, Hungary

In a panel on environmentalism, organised by Szabina Kerényi and Róbert Balogh, two project members shared new research:

Alida Szalai delivered a presentation titled “A Criminological Examination of the Social Control of Environmental Harm in Light of a Hungarian Case Study.” Drawing on the case of the Samsung SDI EV battery factory in Göd, she applied a social control perspective to examine how resistance to environmentally harmful projects is suppressed. Szalai outlined the combination of local and national factors at play, including Hungary’s authoritarian political climate, state-backed support for uninterrupted industrial investment, and control-oriented responses to grassroots mobilisation.

Szabina Kerényi and Csilla Zsigmond presented “Parallel Institutions, Parallel Structures: Institutional Representation of Environmental Protection in an Authoritarian State.” Their paper explored how, after Hungary’s autocratic turn in 2010, environmental protection has been represented through parallel structures—such as newly created civil society and research institutions—whilst existing bodies were dismantled or restricted. The discussion shed light on how power holders have sought to control the environmental field institutionally.

These contributions highlight the project’s ongoing engagement with debates on civil society, environmental governance, and social control in authoritarian contexts, and underline the importance of connecting Hungarian case studies with wider European discussions.