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“Pushing the world in the right direction.” A powerful message from Javier El-Hage of the Human Rights Foundation at last night's event in London, where researchers and democracy activists came together to discuss authoritarianism, the fight for freedom and some encouraging signs of change. Hosted by the Human Rights Foundation and Action for Democracy at the historic National Liberal Club, the evening marked the relaunch of the Authoritarian Collaboration Index, now drawing on HRF's Tyranny Tracker. I had the privilege of speaking with Javier, HRF's Chief Legal and Policy Officer, about the rise of authoritarianism, the importance of protecting individual freedoms and the work his team is doing through the Tyranny Tracker. The project examines 179 countries and territories, assessing electoral competition, freedom of dissent and institutional accountability to determine whether governments are democratic, hybrid authoritarian or fully authoritarian. Its findings are sobering. According to HRF, around three quarters of the world's population lives under authoritarian rule. Javier spoke about the importance of protecting individual freedoms and understanding how governments restrict them. Despite the scale of the challenges, he remains optimistic that progress is being made. I also interviewed Domonkos Kovács of Action for Democracy, whose Authoritarian Collaboration Index uses AI-assisted research to track cooperation between authoritarian actors across borders. Domonkos pointed out that although authoritarianism has been advancing globally, recent political developments offer reasons for optimism. Hungary and just days ago, Serbia have both seen entrenched political leaders defeated at the ballot box. Some of the most moving contributions came from people who have experienced repression firsthand. A Hong Kong democracy activist, now living in exile in Britain, described the dramatic erosion of freedoms in her home city. Hong Kong's governing authority is now classified as fully authoritarian by the Tyranny Tracker. Despite everything, her message was hopeful: “Hong Kong is not a lost cause.” Then there was Jesús Armas, the Venezuelan opposition activist and former political prisoner who spent more than a year in detention after standing up for democracy. He spoke with remarkable optimism about Venezuela's future and praised the people who continue fighting for freedom. “One day Venezuela will be free.” It's always a privilege to interview people working on questions of freedom and human rights, particularly when those discussions bring you face to face with people who have paid such a personal price for defending them. Understanding how authoritarianism takes hold, how technology can strengthen state control and how we protect our freedoms before they're lost has never felt more important. Last night's discussions were a reminder that authoritarianism is not inevitable and neither is its permanence. Thank you to @HRF and Action For Democracy for bringing everyone together and for the opportunity to hear these perspectives firsthand.