In September 2020, the Hungary Foundation together with Mathias Corvinus Collegium (Budapest, Hungary) established the Budapest Fellowship Program, a full-time, fully-funded transatlantic fellowship opportunity in Budapest, Hungary, for young American scholars and professionals. Among the four selected fellows who accepted the commitment of immersing themselves in Hungarian history and culture, we welcome Nicole Nemeth, Senior Fellow. Nicole’s host institution for the duration of her Fellowship is the National Policy Research Institute, with the research topic of Hungarian minority rights in neighboring countries. Her mentor to guide her on the journey will be Zoltán Kántor.
Nicole Nemeth
Nicole Nemeth is an attorney from San Diego, California, practicing primarily in civil litigation spanning a multitude of legal disputes. She is a graduate of the University of San Diego and the prestigious Pepperdine University Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution, Mediating the Litigated Case, as well as the Women’s Negotiations Academy. While Ms. Nemeth’s concentration has been in civil and criminal litigation, she actively applies this experience to mediation and looks forward to bringing this knowledge and practice to teaching at Mathias Corvinus Collegium and working with the Hungary Foundation.
Nicole Nemeth
Ms. Nemeth applied to become a Fellow based on her desire to reconnect with her Hungarian roots, to assist minority Hungarians living in the neighboring countries, and to lay the foundation for a prosperous relationship with Hungary that will extend far beyond this program through the development of linguistic skills, culture, history and the present beauty of Hungary as it moves into an optimistic future for such a resilient country and determined people. The opportunity provided through the Budapest Fellowship Program is unparalleled, and the ability to meet and interact with experts of every field while learning the language is without equal.
“I am very excited to be here, and this really is an incredible opportunity. I think the US-Hungary relationship is currently solid, and it is very important moving forward to foster and to forge the US-Hungary relationships to grow even stronger.” – Nicole Nemeth
Ms. Nemeth’s father was born and raised in Hungary and escaped the Soviet communist regime in the late 1960’s, but always instilled a love and pride of Hungary. Ms. Nemeth joined the ReConnect Hungary and ReConnect Transylvania Program in the inaugural 28+ year program in 2018, and fell in love with Hungary and Transylvania. She made a decision at that time to come back and help minority Hungarians in the future, and to reconnect with Hungary to create a bridge and replant roots for generations to come.
While in Hungary, Ms. Nemeth is accompanied by her husband, who has come to Hungary with an initial love of its folklore and cuisine, namely chicken paprikash. They very much look forward to exploring the country together and visiting Hungarian communities in neighboring countries.
Ms. Nemeth will be working with Nemzetpolitikai Kutatóintézet (NPKI) to assist in completing focused research and academic writings on the rights of minority Hungarians in neighboring countries and furthering the rights of the autochthonous Hungarian diaspora communities, especially in Transylvania.
Like all of the Budapest Fellowship Program participants, Nicole is working with a trusted mentor, Zoltán Kántor, award-winning sociologist, and university professor. Mr. Kántor is very much looking forward to working with Nicole, he spoke highly of Nicole right after their first few meetings:
“I haven’t seen this level of will towards learning and understanding with many scholars that Nicole posesses. She is committed to Hungarian minorities, and she has a tremendous thirst for knowledge and working capacity that is paired with sophisticated methodology. She deserves respect for approaching questions from multiple angles, and for staying humble, not thinking that after a few books and conversations she would know everything. The the first meeting with Nicole already created a mutual sympathy between her, and her coworkers.” – Zontán Kántor