Erica Chenoweth
Frank Stanton Professor of the First Amendment
Nonviolent Action Lab
Understanding how nonviolent action can achieve democratic aims.
Related Programs
Crowd Counting Consortium, Nonviolent and Violent Campaigns and Outcomes Data Project, Women in Resistance Data Project
Related Topics
Nonviolent resistance movements defended democratic values and institutions throughout the 20th century and into the 21st. However, the trend seems to have shifted. Over the past decade, authoritarian backsliding has occurred across the globe, and mass movements demanding democracy have been defeated in about 90% of cases since 2010.
The Nonviolent Action Lab is an innovation hub for research on advancing democracy worldwide through civil resistance. The Lab produces and disseminates up-to-date knowledge on nonviolent action, how it works, global trends in success and failure, trends in political violence and state repression, and analysis of these trends.
“Authoritarianism is winning — particularly against pro-democracy movements. Movements need a new playbook for responding to these developments![]()
Erica Chenoweth
Frank Stanton Professor of the First Amendment
AI and Democracy Movements Project
The AI and Democracy Movements Project explores the impacts of AI on the strategy, operations, and outcomes of pro-democratic social movements.
Stay Informed
Join Erica Chenoweth and Steven Levitsky for The Breakdown, a new webinar series on the ongoing struggle for American democracy. Each month, Chenoweth and Levitsky will break down key developments, reflect on this moment’s historical precedents both at home and abroad, and offer evidence-based reflections on the path forward.
Now Streaming: Nonviolent Action Lab Podcast
The new Nonviolent Action Lab Podcast brings you the latest research, insights, and ideas on how nonviolent action can — or sometimes fails — to transform injustice. Each week, Nonviolent Action Lab’s Jay Ulfelder welcomes experts from the field, scholars, organizers, and advocates to discuss nonviolent movements around the world. Find new episodes listed below, via Simplecast, or on your favorite podcast platform.
Meet the Team
Matthew Cebul
Lead Research Fellow for the Nonviolent Action Lab, AY2025-2026
Cassy Dorff
Research Fellow, November 2025-April 2026
Freddy Guevara
Democracy Visiting Fellow, AY2024-2026
Soha Hammam
Research Project Manager, Nonviolent Action Lab
Jonathan Jayes-Green
Democracy Visiting Fellow, AY2024-2026
Jie (Jason) Lian
Democracy Visiting Fellow, Reimagining Democracy Program, AY2024-2025
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Nonviolent Action Lab, AY2025-2026
David Meyer
Senior Fellow, AY2025-2026
Jeremy Pressman
Senior Research Fellow, AY2025-2026
Amelia Roskin-Frazee
Predoctoral Fellow, AY2025-2026
Christopher Shay
Research Associate, Crowd Counting Consortium
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CCC logged more than 13,400 left-wing protests across more than 2,000 different U.S. cities and towns
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Counting Crowds Consortium: Review of Right-Wing U.S. Protest Activity in 2022
CCC logged more than 5,700 right-wing events in 2022
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This is a guest post by Mason Holland, an undergraduate student at the University of Connecticut majoring in Political Science. He also serves as President of the Student Body.
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Crowd Counting Consortium: FIPS Codes!
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Commentary
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