Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law is part of the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies
“The one bright light in this darkening landscape is that Poles remain committed to democracy,” writes Anna Grzymala-Busse in Current History. Read the full article here.
Please join visiting scholar Sviatoslav Vakarchuk and Mosbacher Director of CDDRL Francis Fukuyama for a conversation on Ukraine's future success.
Encina Hall, C148
616 Jane Stanford Way
Stanford, CA 94305
Francis Fukuyama is the Olivier Nomellini Senior Fellow at Stanford University's Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (FSI), and a faculty member of FSI's Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law (CDDRL). He is also Director of Stanford's Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy, and a professor (by courtesy) of Political Science.
Dr. Fukuyama has written widely on issues in development and international politics. His 1992 book, The End of History and the Last Man, has appeared in over twenty foreign editions. His book In the Realm of the Last Man: A Memoir will be published in fall 2026.
Francis Fukuyama received his B.A. from Cornell University in classics, and his Ph.D. from Harvard in Political Science. He was a member of the Political Science Department of the RAND Corporation, and of the Policy Planning Staff of the US Department of State. From 1996-2000 he was Omer L. and Nancy Hirst Professor of Public Policy at the School of Public Policy at George Mason University, and from 2001-2010 he was Bernard L. Schwartz Professor of International Political Economy at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University. He served as a member of the President’s Council on Bioethics from 2001-2004. He is editor-in-chief of American Purpose, an online journal.
Dr. Fukuyama holds honorary doctorates from Connecticut College, Doane College, Doshisha University (Japan), Kansai University (Japan), Aarhus University (Denmark), the Pardee Rand Graduate School, and Adam Mickiewicz University (Poland). He is a non-resident fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Rand Corporation, the Board of Trustees of Freedom House, and the Board of the Volcker Alliance. He is a fellow of the National Academy for Public Administration, a member of the American Political Science Association, and of the Council on Foreign Relations. He is married to Laura Holmgren and has three children.
(October 2025)
Vakarchuk is a Ukrainian civic activist, musician and the lead vocalist and founder of the band “Okean Elzy.“ He will be in residence at CDDRL this fall to attend courses and study with some of the leading intellectuals and academics at CDDRL. He holds a doctorate degree in theoretical physics from the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv.
Vakarchuk is also the founder of a charity fund called “Lyudi Maybutnyogo” (People of the Future) and co-founder of the Center for Economic Strategy, an independent policy think tank dedicated to supporting reforms and sustainable economic growth in Ukraine. He served as a Yale World Fellow in 2015.
"There is growing consensus that populism constitutes a grave threat to liberal democracy, and to the liberal international order on which peace and prosperity have rested for the past two generations," writes Francis Fukuyama in the World Economic Forum. The fate of the global liberal order could be jeopardized due to rising populist powers and movements. Read the full article here.
"For those who believe that liberal democracy constitutes the best form of government, the rise of populist nationalism is a very worrying phenomenon," writes Francis Fukuyama in Credit Suisse Research Institute's "The Future of Politics." Read the full article here.
"The Polish Law and Justice Party (PiS) government has a new prime minister: Mateusz Morawiecki. In a particularly Polish political twist, the government of Beata Szydło survived a vote of no confidence on the morning of Dec. 7 — only to have Szydło summarily resign later that day. So what happened, and what does it mean?" Anna Grzymala-Busse breaks it down what is really behind this power change in Poland. Read the article here.
"Mr. Fukuyama warns that Europe is weak and divided, distracted by Brexit, the festering euro crisis, and the new autocrats of Eastern Europe. That includes Germany, in political paralysis and stymied by the rise of its own populist right. Those who once complained about Berlin’s hegemony may soon discover worse: a weak Germany. For all the praise heaped on Chancellor Merkel abroad, Mr. Fukuyama sees this as a serious problem. “If I had a criticism of Germany, it is that Angela Merkel has not been very tough on people like Viktor Orbán,” he said. “We need strong leadership in defense of these liberal values.” - writes Handelsblatt in their latest interview with CDDRL Mosbacher Director Francis Fukuyama. Read the interview here.
"The problems with our democracy—ever-deepening polarization, incivility, gridlock, dysfunction, conflicts of interest, and disregard for democratic norms—are not just problems of political culture and behavior. Politicians are driven by incentives, especially the desire to get re-elected. Institutions heavily shape these incentives, and our institutions are in need of reform. Unless we reform our democracy, we will be increasingly hard-pressed to improve the health of democracy globally." Listen to Larry Diamond, Senior Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, explains in this podcast what are the options from here, by Hoover Institution.
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3
8:45-10:30 Panel 1: Populism as a Threat — Chaired by Anna Grzymala-Busse
— 10:30-10:45: Coffee break —
10:45-12:30 Panel 2: American Populism — Chaired by Didi Kuo
— 12:30-1:30: Lunch —
1:30-3:15 Panel 3: Comparative Perspectives — Chaired by Matthias Matthijs
— 3:15-3:30: Coffee break —
3:30-5:00 Panel 4: International Linkages — Chaired by Michael McFaul
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 4
9:00-11:00 Panel 5: Inequality, Investment and Economic Strain — Chaired by Francis Fukuyama
— 11-1 pm Lunch and concluding discussion —
CISAC Central, 2nd Floor, Encina Hall at Stanford University, 616 Serra Street, Stanford, CA 94305
Draper Hills Summer Fellowship Program at CDDRL is now accepting applications. Deadline is 5:00 pm PST on Wednesday, November 15, 2017.
Launched in 2005, the Draper Hills Summer Fellowship on Democracy and Development Program (DHSFDD) is a three-week academic training program that is hosted annually at Stanford University's Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law. The program brings together a group of 25 to 30 mid-career practitioners in law, politics, government, private enterprise, civil society, and international development from transitioning countries. This training program provides a unique forum for emerging leaders to connect, exchange experiences, and receive academic training to enrich their knowledge and advance their work.
For three weeks during the summer, fellows participate in academic seminars that expose them to the theory and practice of democracy, development, and the rule of law. Delivered by leading Stanford faculty from the Stanford Law School, the Graduate School of Business, and the departments of economics and political science, these seminars allow emerging leaders to explore new institutional models and frameworks to enhance their ability to promote democratic change in their home countries.
Guest speakers from private foundations, think tanks, government, and the justice system provide a practitioners viewpoint on such pressing issues in the field. Summer Fellows also visit Silicon Valley technology firms such as Benetech, Google and Twitter to explore how technology tools and social media platforms are being used to catalyze democratic practices on a global scale.
The program is funded by the generous support from Bill and Phyllis Draper and Ingrid von Mangoldt Hills.
Learn more here.
