Month: January 2022

Seminar Febr 8: Protecting children in the name of ‘traditional values’ in Russia and Germany

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Welcome to the seminar on February 8 with Dr. Maria Brock, Postdoc at Malmö University: Protecting children in the name of ‘traditional values’ in Russia and Germany.
When: February 8, 3.15-5.00 pm (CET)
Where: Sign up here for zoom link

Abstract

The recent rise of illiberal, conservative and right-wing populist movements poses an acute threat to democracy and equality in Europe. One pervasive but underresearched strand of these movements advocates ‘traditional family values’, in particular conservative sexual and gender politics, in the name of protecting children. With my project, l plan to fill this research gap through interdisciplinary research examining the discursive construction of the child as the ultimate site of vulnerability and risk, and hence in need of protection and policy intervention. The research is characterised by a significant comparative dimension, analysing discourses by conservative, ‘pro-traditional family values’ actors, from politicians to activists, in Germany and Russia. In my presentation for RUCARR, I will focus on Russian actors’ ‘traditional values’ discourse and -policies as they pertain to children.

Bio

With a Phd in Psychosocial Studies from Birkbeck (University of London), and a background in Russian Studies, much of my research is preoccupied with the discursive and psychosocial dynamics of transitional and post-transitional societies, often focusing on Russia. Another, connected strand of my work examines misogynist, anti-feminist and anti-LGBTQ violence. Previous and upcoming publications have for example looked at the material and psychic remains of socialism, Camp and post-Soviet pop, Pussy Riot and negative societal mobilisation, the vicissitudes of queer (in)visibility in Russia, and networked misogyny and right-wing extremism (with our own Tina Askanius).

 

Seminar with Dr. Kamal Aliyev, February 1

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The role of Azerbaijan in the Non-Aligned Movement through the lens of international law and security

Welcome to the Spring semester’s first seminar with Kamal Makili-Aliyev, LL.D. Senior Lecturer at the Dept. of Global Political Studies, Malmö University: The role of Azerbaijan in the non-aligned movement through the lens of international law and security.

When: February 1, 3.15-17.00
Zoom: sign-up here for zoom link

Abstract

This research paper is an attempt to explain the role of Azerbaijan in the Non-Aligned Movement through a rarely used perspective or lens of international law and international security. In a scholarly discourse on Azerbaijan’s ascension to the full membership in the Non-Aligned Movement, there are two distinct camps that argue either from the perspective of the non-relevance of the Non-Aligned Movement in the contemporary international community and subsequent low significance of Azerbaijan’s move or from the perspective of the theory of international relations and present it as a foreign policy adjustment or a continued strategy. This study departs from the continued (albeit adjusted) relevance of the Non-Aligned Movement as a subject of international law and seeks to complement the existing theories proposed by the international relations scholars with an alternative view based on Azerbaijan’s paradigmatic perceptions of international law and international security. By taking an alternative viewpoint, this paper utilizes a multidisciplinary angle to tackle so far only narrowly researched topic.
 

Seminar with Victor Kipiani: Georgia’s 30 years from regaining the independence

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February 15: Georgia’s 30 years from regaining the independence: accomplishments, challenges and opportunities

RUCARR seminar with Victor Kipiani, chairman of the think tank Geocase: Georgia’s 30 years from regaining the independence: accomplishments, challenges and opportunities. Welcome!

When: February 15, 3.15-5.00 (CET)
Where: Sign up here for zoom link


Short bio

Victor Kipiani is the Chair of a Georgian think tank organization Geocase. His interests include international relations, security, governance, implications of the global order for Georgia and for its neighborhood and macro economy. Victor Kipiani is the author of various articles and surveys on Georgian legal system and related matters in domestic and foreign periodicals.  He is also a frequent commentator on recent political developments in Georgia as well as on various global geopolitical trends and events. Victor Kipiani is a member of Georgian Bar Association, a member of International Advisory Board for the Association of International Politics and Security Studies, a board member of the Independent Directors’ Association, and an advisory council member at the Service for Accounting, Reporting and Auditing Supervision Service.