Michael Ignatieff is a Canadian historian, writer, and former politician with a career spanning academia, journalism, and public life. He has held prominent positions at Harvard, Cambridge, and Central European University — which he led from Budapest to Vienna after its expulsion by Viktor Orbán — and currently teaches at CEU in Vienna. He served as Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and Leader of the Official Opposition between 2006 and 2011, and is a recipient of the Order of Canada. A prolific author of eighteen books, his work spans human rights, political ethics, and moral philosophy. He has been recognised with numerous honours including the 2024 Princess of Asturias Prize, Spain’s highest distinction in the social sciences, and holds fourteen honorary degrees.