”A Week on Academic Freedom", initiated by the Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study and organized in collaboration with the research programs Democracy and Higher Education and Higher Education and Research as Objects of Study, was held for the second time in October 2025. While the previous event, two years earlier, set the stage by discussing the importance and underlying concepts of academic freedom, the focus this time was on a global outlook, emphasizing the current sense of urgency and issuing a call to action. How can and should the research community respond when academic freedom is under attack?

The challenges to academic freedom is a global concern of utmost significance. The democratic index has fallen sharply in recent years: at present, only about twelve percent of the world's population lives in democracies — the lowest in fifty years. Authoritarian regimes are on the rise worldwide, and with them, threats to academic freedom grow. Reports from Africa, Asia, and Europe reveal different contexts but often follow similar patterns—a kind of playbook. These include marketization, with buzzwords like 'innovation', turning education and research into commodities, and students into customers. There is also the threat of losing tenure and, perhaps most worrying, the practice of self-censorship. Many scholars silence themselves out of fear of endangering their careers. In authoritarian regimes, those who dissent can face suspension or even imprisonment. A simple act like signing a petition for minority civil rights can lead to severe personal and professional consequences.

Recent developments in the U.S. call for our attention. Since the Trump administration's takeover in January 2025, there has been an astonishing rapid deconstruction of U.S. higher education—from drastic funding cuts to federal agencies such as NHI, NASA, and NOAA, to a list of forbidden words like ‘gender’ and ‘women’, and an attack on elite universities like Harvard and MIT threatening to withdraw funding unless they comply with government directives. Most recently, nine top universities were presented with the Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education, promising financial benefits in exchange for increased government oversight. While most of these universities have declined, speculations suggest further negotiations are underway, and more institutions may be approached with slightly modified requests that could be difficult to resist given their dependence on federal funding.

The narrative behind this widespread assault on academia is that universities represent a so-called elite, heavily influenced by radical left-wing politics. Ironically, many political leaders criticizing universities are alumni of those same institutions and regard their education highly. The apparent lack of logical consistency in recent events puzzles many scholars, but it may well be part of a strategic effort. It is difficult to predict what will happen next, but American scholars at the event called for increased action and solidarity, especially with state universities that are more vulnerable to funding withdrawal.

Despite the shocking examples from Turkey, Hungary, and the U.S., these situations serve as warnings and indicators of what small changes to watch for. Preparedness is key to resistance. As much as Hungary’s strategies have served as a playbook for the U.S., scholars could consider developing their own playbooks as response plans to attacks on academic freedom.

Studies and reports indicate that, although most academics believe academic freedom is vital and worth defending, few understand its full scope and what it actually entails. The legal protections are often not straightforward. There is a clear need to increase awareness so that academics can better recognize threats—no matter how small they seem at first glance—and know what must be defended.

In this context, it is crucial to create spaces where academics from diverse backgrounds and disciplines can meet, exchange experiences, and organize themselves. Multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches are essential for understanding the mechanisms at play and determining how to respond. Those who are privileged—academics at secure institutions, retired scholars, and those with stable positions—should speak out on behalf of less protected colleagues, both individually and institutionally. Engaging students and their parents, who often pay high tuition fees and have a stake in quality education, is another important strategy. Societal outreach should not be overlooked, as fostering informed citizens is vital for strengthening democracies and enabling educated choices in voting and other aspects of civic life.

Perhaps this is also a time to reimagine and reinvent academia itself—both in teaching and research.

"A Week on Academic Freedom" was a promising start to the discussion on how to protect and promote academic freedom—may this conversation continue.

Written by Natalie von der Lehr