John Lukacs Research Fellowship

Gergely Máté Balogh

His research program is about the Impact of the Podcast Revolution on American Politics.

Máté Gergely Balogh is a research fellow at the John Lukacs Research Fellowship, assistant lecturer at the University of Debrecen, and senior researcher at the Migration Research Institute of the Mathias Corvinus Collegium. He earned his doctorate at the University of Debrecen, obtained a degree in English from the University of Debrecen, international relations from Corvinus University Budapest, and obtained an MA in history at the Central European University. His research topics are American history and foreign policy after 1945, Hungarian-American relations, and current American politics.
 

Ethan Bourgeois

His research program is about the Impact of the Podcast Revolution on American Politics.

Ethan Bourgeois is a student of European History at Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, Michigan. For the last three years, he has interned as a research fellow at the Otto von Habsburg Foundation, in which he studied Otto von Habsburg's relationships with American conservatives. As research assistant to John Lukacs' biographer, Ethan has studied Lukacs' archival collection at Notre Dame University extensively.

Balázsa Jarábik

His research program is about Drone Project.

Balázs Jarábik is a political and risk analyst, as well as a diplomat, specializing in the domestic and foreign policy developments of Central and Eastern Europe, with a particular focus on Ukraine. Over the course of his career, he has worked for several international institutions, including as the leading Ukraine researcher at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and as the Political Director of the European Union Advisory Mission (EUAM) to Ukraine. Previously, he managed large-scale international development projects across multiple countries in Central and Eastern Europe, primarily related to reform processes and European integration. His writings are regularly published in leading international journals and analytical platforms.

His research program is about European Strategic Narratives and the Technological Modernization of Armed Forces.

Mihai Zodian is a Visiting Research Fellow at the John Lukacs Institute for Strategy and Politics. He is also a Researcher at the Centre for Defence and Security Strategic Studies at the National Defence University “Carol I”, Bucharest, Romania. He is a member of the Group for Advanced Studies in International Relations (GSARI), a framework for academic debates about foreign and security issues. He is specialized in political science, especially the study of nuclear proliferation and in the academic year 2024-2025, he taught seminars on strategic studies at the National University of Political Studies and Public Administration, Bucharest (NUPSPA).

Shaowei He

His research program is about the Impact of Chinese Technology Transfer on the European Economy.

Shaowei He is a Professor of International Business at the University of Northampton, with pioneering research on Chinese overseas investment/acquisitions published in leading international journals including Journal of World Business, Human Resource Management and Human Resource Management Review. Professor He was the Research and Enterprise Lead for the Faculty of Business and Law at the University of Northampton between 2021 and 2023. He also led the China and Emerging Economies Centre as its Director between 2016 and 2022. Professor He has a keen interest in forging a closer business relationship between the UK and China. In 2016 he was appointed Ambassador for International Exchange by the Hunan Provincial Government of China. In that role he helped to forge the sister-region relationship between Hunan Province and Lincolnshire. He has also advised businesses and organisations such as Silverstone Circuits Ltd., Silverstone Technology Cluster and the British Footwear Association. 

Zdeněk  Rod

His research program is about the European Strategic Narratives and the Technological Modernization of Armed Forces

Zdeněk Rod is an assistant professor at the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen, Department of Politics and International Relations, and at CEVRO University in Prague, Department of Security Studies. Zdenek also servers as Co-Director of the Center for Security Consulting in Prague. Zdeněk holds a Ph.D. degree in International Relations with a specialization in Security & Conflict Resolution. He is also a member of various think tanks and institutes such as CEVRO University Center for Security Studies (CEBES) or TOPAZ. Zdeněk's expertise lies in security studies, conflict resolution, hybrid threats, and strategic communication. His academic journey has included studies at universities in Ljubljana and Budapest and the European Security and Defence Colleague in Brussels. He has undertaken research visits, including one to the NATO CIMIC Centre of Excellence in The Hague. Before his academic pursuits, Zdeněk contributed to the Czech Ministry of Defense, bringing practical experience to complement his scholarly endeavours. He has a rich publication history, having authored and co-authored several academic articles, chapters and books (e.g. Oxford, Taylor & Francis, Wiley, Routledge, Palgrave and Macmillan publishers) and policy articles (e.g. RAND, SAIS Review of International Affairs, Defence News, The Diplomat). His contributions extend to active involvement in national and international research projects.