Manuel Funke is a researcher at the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, where he is Deputy Head of the Research Center "International Finance and Macroeconomics". He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the Free University of Berlin. His research spans the fields of political economy, economic history, and macroeconomic crises. With an empirical approach grounded in a long-run perspective, his work focuses on the intersection of political science and economics. His innovative research on crises, extremism, and populism has been widely cited in academia and the media. He has published in the prestigious American Economic Review and his work has been featured in the New York Times, Le Monde, Der Spiegel, and the Guardian. He has been involved in consulting projects for the German Federal Ministry of Finance and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Policy Project: The Populist Playbook – A Policy Database on Populist Leaders

Populists threaten social cohesion by dividing society into "the people" and "the elite" and claiming to be the true voice of the people. This polarizing rhetoric undermines democracy and stability. While the causes of populism are often studied, there is little systematic research on the consequences of populist governance. This project addresses this gap by examining the policies of 30 populist leaders since 1990. Through closely monitoring the words and actions of leaders such as Orbán, Erdoğan and Trump during their time in power, the project aims to show how populist rhetoric translates into concrete policy actions. Clear categories of political rhetoric and action allow for an in-depth analysis of the populist policies related to the judiciary, media, education, NGOs, and the economy. By synthesizing these findings, the project seeks to construct a "populist playbook" – a blueprint for the typical trajectory that populist leaders follow when in power.