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A unified Hungarian research network under the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (MTA) could be established as early as October – Joint press release from the Ministry of Science and Technology and MTA

On 14 July, the leadership of the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Hungarian Academy of Sciences met at the Academy’s headquarters to discuss the establishment of a unified Hungarian research institute network and a proposed timetable for its implementation. Based on both the previous and latest round of discussions, the Ministry will draft legislation for the reorganisation and submit it for public comment in early September. The legislation is scheduled to take effect by the end of October, which means that the research network – which was separated from the Academy in 2019 – could be reunited with MTA before the end of this year.

EASAC, the Leading Advisory Body of Europe’s Scientific Academies, Marks its 25th Anniversary

On 11 June 2001, the European Academies Science Advisory Council (EASAC), was established by the academies and academic organisations of the European Union to provide policy-makers with jointly formulated, science-based, unified and independent expert advice. The Hungarian Academy of Sciences joined EASAC in 2004, following Hungary's accession to the EU, enabling Hungarian researchers to make their voice heard on the most pressing policy issues together with European scientists.

Meeting of the Visegrad Group Academies at Smolenice Castle

The annual forum of the academies of sciences of the Visegrad Group (V4) countries was held in Smolenice, Slovakia on 17-18 June 2026, bringing together representatives from the Czech, Hungarian, Polish and Slovak national academies of sciences.

Boundless History:1833 – Count István Széchenyi’s work Stadium, a summary of his reform plans, is published and dedicated to the nation’s legislators

On 5 May 2025, as the opening event of the 199th Ceremonial General Assembly of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, the public artwork titled The Boundless History was unveiled. The installation was commissioned by the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and the Municipality of Budapest to mark the 200th anniversary of the Academy’s founding. In this series, we highlight key events featured on the timeline composed of 200 slabs of Tardos limestone.

Featured Lendület Researcher: Karolina Lendák-Kabók

Karolina Lendák-Kabók, a lecturer in the Department of Minority Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences, at Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE), has been researching ethnic groups living in Vojvodina and mixed marriages for many years. She first examined the topic as a Marie Skłodowska-Curie postdoctoral fellow, before placing it in a broader regional context: with the support of the János Bolyai Research Fellowship, she analysed mixed Hungarian–Serbian families in Hungary and mixed Hungarian–Serbian families in Serbia. In her current research project, funded by the Lendület (Momentum) Programme, she is exploring the subject from a historical perspective.

Boundless History: 1832 – Publication of the principal work of mathematician and Academy member Farkas Bolyai, Tentamen, as well as the work of his son, János Bolyai, entitled Appendix

Boundless History: 1826 – Count József Teleki donates his family library “for the use of the Learned Society and all citizens of the nation”

Boundless History: 1831 – The Hungarian Learned Society adopts the motto “Sunshine After Rain”. The institution’s first General Assembly

Boundless History: 1825 – Count István Széchenyi’s donation to the National Assembly for the establishment of the Hungarian Learned Society

Boundless History: 1827 – Law on the establishment of a learned society or Hungarian academy for the cultivation of the national language

Featured Lendület Researcher: Boldizsár Szentgáli-Tóth

Artificial intelligence (AI) is making its presence felt in every aspect of life, and this trend is only expected to accelerate in the future. The legal profession is no exception, though alongside new opportunities, AI may also entail significant risks. For this reason, the legal profession must prepare now for the challenges posed by AI. This goal underpins the research conducted by Boldizsár Szentgáli-Tóth, senior research fellow at the Institute for Legal Studies of the ELTE Centre for Social Sciences, researcher at the National University of Public Service, and adjunct lecturer at Eötvös Loránd University, together with his colleagues. Their work has received support through the Lendület (Momentum) Programme.

Results of the Second Call of the Momentum MSCA Programme

The Momentum MSCA Premium Postdoctoral Fellowship Programme, coordinated by the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, has launched its call for applications for the second time, inviting international postdoctoral researchers to pursue independent research projects in Hungary. By joining established Lendület (Momentum) research groups, fellows develop professionally, acquire new skills and gain international experience, whilst also contributing to scientific excellence and broader research collaboration in Hungary.

The new leaders of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences

At its 200th general assembly held on Tuesday, the Hungarian Academy of Sciences elected Mihály Pósfai as the 22nd president of the Academy, which was founded in 1825. The Academy’s highest decision-making body also elected Gábor Kecskeméti as secretary general and Ilona Kovács as deputy secretary general. The Hungarian Academy of Sciences, which celebrated the bicentennial of its founding last year, elected a new president, secretary general, deputy secretary general, vice presidents, and members of the Presidium because the terms of the current officers are expiring. The elected leaders will take office on 1 June 2026.

Featured Lendület Researcher: Szilvia Zita Tóth

Szilvia Zita Tóth, Director of the Institute of Plant Biology at the HUN-REN Biological Research Centre in Szeged and Head of the Laboratory for Molecular Photobioenergetics, is now conducting research on the hydrogen-producing capacity of green algae in her second Momentum (Lendület) grant project. This capacity may be harnessed for human energy generation in the future. In the long term, it may even become possible to utilise the direct electrical current production of algae. This would enable energy to be generated without the emission of greenhouse gases, while the algae would also absorb carbon dioxide through photosynthesis. In addition, the biomass of the algae could also be utilised.

Featured Lendület Researcher: Balázs Reizer

Hungarian workers still earn significantly less than their Western counterparts. In order for this situation to change, it is essential to uncover the underlying causes of this phenomenon. This is the task undertaken by Balázs Reizer, Senior Research Fellow at the ELTE Centre for Economic and Regional Studies and Head of the Momentum Technology and Inequality Research Group, together with his colleagues. With his team, he is investigating what Hungarian workers actually do during their working hours and how the innovative transformation and robotisation of production affect workers in different job roles.

Hungarian Academy of Sciences: Supporting women’s advancement through targeted grants

On 11 February 2026, the International Science Council (ISC), in collaboration with the InterAcademy Partnership (IAP) and the Standing Committee for Gender Equality in Science (SCGES), published the report “Towards Gender Equality in Scientific Organisations: Assessment and Recommendations”. It offers the most comprehensive global review to date of gender equality in scientific organisations.

Featured Lendület Researcher: Edit Mátyus

Although quantum electrodynamics is considered a well-established theory in physics, in chemistry – in the world of atoms and molecules – it still raises a number of unresolved questions. Edit Mátyus, Doctor of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Professor in the Department of Physical Chemistry at Eötvös Loránd University, and head of the Molecular Quantum Electrodynamics Research Group, and her colleagues are attempting to answer these questions with the support of the Momentum Programme.

EASAC: Restoring Europe’s natural habitats would deliver a tenfold return on investment

The European Academies Science Advisory Council (EASAC) has presented its official scientific opinion on the European Union’s Nature Restoration Regulation. According to EASAC’s professional commentary, restoring nature and halting biodiversity loss are among the most important tools for mitigating the harmful effects of climate change, which can be measured in hundreds of billions of euros. The implementation of EU directives at the national level represents a strategic investment that will pay off handsomely in terms of the security, well-being, health, ecological stability and economic resilience of Member States. For this reason, the full implementation of the EU Nature Restoration Regulation is not merely a legal obligation.

Featured Lendület Researcher: Péter Nemes-Incze

Often, the simplest models are needed to understand the most complex laws of nature. This is especially true for interacting electron systems, about which we still know relatively little today because, until now, we have not had access to sufficiently simple model crystals. Despite this, Péter Nemes-Incze, head of the Momentum Topology in Nanostructures Research Group at the Institute of Technical Physics and Materials Science of the HUN–REN Centre for Energy Research, and his colleagues believe that this model could be rhombohedral graphite, which they are investigating with the support of their Momentum grant.

Bicentenary Celebration of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris

On 11 December 2025, a commemorative ceremony was held at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris to mark the 200th anniversary of the founding of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (MTA) and its Library and Information Centre (MTA KIK). The event, hosted by UNESCO, brought together nearly one hundred guests to celebrate two centuries of scientific, cultural and intellectual achievement.

Boundless history: 1840 – The first issue of Magyar Academiai Értesítő, the official gazette of the Hungarian Learned Society, is published

Boundless history: 1835: Academy member Sándor Kőrösi Csoma sends fifty copies of his Tibetan–English dictionary to the Academy

Featured Lendület Researcher: Gábor Feigl