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Selling the Past
How Populists Turn Nostalgia into Political Gain
Speaker:
Dr. Simon Morris-Lange, DAAD/AGI Research Fellow, American-German Institute; Head of Research, Allianz Foundation
Moderator:
Dr. Eric Langenbacher, Senior Fellow and Director of the Society, Culture, & Politics Program, American-German Institute
Populist mobilization is often associated with anti-elite rhetoric, fearmongering, and xenophobia. But appeals to return society to an idealized, often only vaguely defined past can be just as powerful. They can offer a subtler way to legitimize these narratives, reaching audiences who may otherwise not respond to more overt forms of populist messaging
Across Europe—particularly on the far-right—populist movements have increasingly tapped into this potential. Many of them pair nostalgic appeals with radical tactics, from online trolling and disinformation to hate and violence, aimed at challenging the political status quo and pushing society toward an idealized past. But how widely does this form of mobilization resonate, and who is most susceptible to it?
This webinar presents the first full results of a representative public opinion study conducted across France, Germany, Italy, Poland, and Spain—the EU’s five largest countries, together home to nearly two-thirds of its population. At the heart of the survey is a novel diagnostic tool designed to measure individual susceptibility to the above combination of retrograde messaging and radical mobilization tactics. The tool was co-developed by Dr. Morris-Lange with political scientists at the WZB Social Science Center Berlin and the SINUS Institute, with support from GESIS – Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences
Dr. Simon Morris-Lange is a DAAD/AGI Research Fellow in Fall 2026. He is Head of Research at Allianz Foundation in Berlin, where he leads the Foundation’s research and knowledge-sharing portfolio. His work focuses on civic action and democratic resilience across Europe, with a particular emphasis on younger generations. Prior to joining Allianz Foundation, he served as Deputy Head of Research at the Expert Council on Integration and Migration (SVR), a leading non-partisan think tank on migration and immigrant integration.
This event will convene via Zoom. Please contact AGI Program Coordinator Mr. Evan Thomas at ethomas@aicgs.org with any questions.
This event is supported by the DAAD with funds from the Federal Foreign Office.
