Why will the president of Hungary speak at BYU?

The president of Hungary will be in Utah on Tuesday to meet with Gov. Spencer Cox and speak at Brigham Young University.

Katalin Novák, who was elected in 2022, and Cox will discuss Utah-Hungary relations and joint priorities at the state Capitol, according to the governor’s office.

Earlier in the day, Novák will speak at BYU about the roles of women in society.

Last week, Novák spoke at the United Nations. Part of her message centered on the dangers threatening societies when families are broken, schools neglected and churches discredited, according to the Hungarian Conservative. She said that leads to the loss of the moral compass in people’s lives and in humanity, which she called a “fatal mistake.”

Novák, a mother of three, also urged responsible parenting and child-rearing that aligns with the principles of sustainability.

In a meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican last year, Novák talked about the need to support families and to encourage young people to start families as well as the importance of women leaders around the world.

“I think our common message is that traditional families should be safeguarded because family is the cornerstone of our communities and all our nations, and the cornerstone of our future,” she told Vatican News.

Novák said she hopes that “being someone in a responsible position” and who is “keen on her job” can help her to be a credible witness “that having children and having a family is something not worth giving up on.”

“I am not only a woman president, but also a mom … and that makes me understand much easier, I think, what it means, on a daily basis, to struggle with this imbalance … of family life and the professional career,” according to Vatican News.

The first woman and, at 46, the youngest person to be president of Hungary, Novák previously served as Minister for Families, Minister of State for Family and Youth Affairs, Minister of State for International Affairs and member of parliament. She studied economics and law before starting her career with the Hungarian government.

While in the U.S., Novák also met with the governor of Texas.