Author: imkava

Seminar with Mikhail Suslov

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RUCARR seminar on February 14

Dr. Mikhail Suslov: Fantasy and Politics in Contemporary Russian Science Fiction
When: February 14, 13.15
Where: Niagara Building, Nordenskiöldsgatan 1, Room: NIC:1029

Abstract
This talk inquires into the ways in which utopian narratives interact with political discourses and facilitate identity-making in post-Soviet Russia. The paper brings together various academic perspectives, including literature studies, cultural studies, and studies of ideologies and politics in order to comprehensively analyze the syncretic genre of science fiction. Works of science fiction condense political myths, metaphors, concepts and emotions, thereby giving us a better understanding of Russian political culture. I argue that the study of sociopolitical science fiction and utopias exposes the ideational tracks on which Russian society in Putin’s third presidency glided smoothly into the annexation of Crimea, the war in Donbas, and confrontation with the West. At the same time, post-Soviet science fiction addresses such issues of international pertinence as the rise of nationalism, right-wing populism and imperial revanchism and attempts to strike a balance between modernization and cultural authenticity.

Mikhail Suslov is Assistant Professor of Russian History and Politics at the University of Copenhagen. His research focuses on Russian intellectual history, conservative, right-wing and religiously-motivated political ideas, geopolitical ideologies and socio-political utopias. His most recent papers dealing with (geo)political imagination include “The “Russian World” Concept: ‘Spheres of influence’ in the post-Soviet geopolitical ideology,” Geopolitics 23, no. 2 (2018) and  “The Production of ‘Novorossiya’: A Territorial Brand in Public Debates,” Europe-Asia Studies 69, no. 2 (2017). Recently he edited Digital Orthodoxy in the Post- Soviet World: The Russian Orthodox Church and Web 2.0 (Stuttgart: Ibidem Verlag, 2016) and co- edited (with Mark Bassin) Eurasia 2.0: Post-Soviet Geopolitics in the Age of New Media (Lanham: Lexington Books, 2016).

RUCARR Caucasus Conference 2018

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Thank you to all participants at the conference ‘Promoting International Dialogue and Protecting Cultural Heritage in the Caucasus’ December 5-6 at RUCARR, Malmö University. It has been two days of most interesting presentations and engaging discussions and comments with participants from all parts of the Caucasus! And many thanks to the Swedish Institute for making this event possible.

New horizons of internationalisation – new project

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Strengthening internationalsation in a new project: New horizons of internationalisation – a partnership between universities in Armenia, Georgia, Moldova, Sweden and Ukraine (funded by the Swedish Institute for 2019).  Partner universities are:

  • Aleco Russo Balti State University, Balti, Moldova
  • Batumi Shota Rustaveli State University, Batumi, Georgia
  • Malmö University, Malmö, Sweden
  • Odessa I.I. Mechnikov National University, Odessa, Ukraine
  • Yerevan State University, Yerevan, Armenia

Project leader: Dr. Tom Nilsson, Dept. of Global Political Studies. Other members of the Malmö team are Cecilia Christensson, Pro Vice-Chancellor with responsibility for Global Engagement and Challenge based Learning; Dr. Tobias Denskus, School of Arts and Communicaton; Prof. Karina Vamling, Co-Director of the research platform Russia and the Caucasus Regional Research (RUCARR); Niklas Nannskog, Malmö University International Office.

 

Attending the recent RUCARR conference

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We were very glad to see one of our Caucasus Studies II students at the recent Third Annual RUCARR conference.

Joseph Schloesser came all the way from Arizona:

It was an honor to be invited to participate in this third RUCARR conference. To be alongside with passionate academics and to hear them share their knowledge was quite humbling and truly inspiring. Being able to hear from the several speakers expound upon the various issues concerning the Caucasus region allowed me to gain new perspectives on the issue that affect the region today. Having among those present and among the key speakers, representatives of the Caucasus region helped create an engaging atmosphere with a palpable dialogue.

Invitation to student conference in Copenhagen

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Invitation to take part in ”Young Russia Experts”:
Second International Student Conference, 22-23 November 2018

Time: 22-23 November
Place: ToRS, University of Copenhagen, Karen Blixen plads 10, Copenhagen

We are glad to invite you to the Third International Student Conference, which will take place on 22-23 November at the Department of Cross-Cultural and Area Studies, University of Copenhagen. The conference will bring together future Russia experts and professors from four universities: University of Copenhagen, Århus University, Lund University and the University of Malmö. This event is the continuation of the First Student Conference in Århus in November 2017, which was the result of successful collaboration between the universities of Copenhagen and Århus. In this year, on top of the collaboration between these two Danish universities, we are inviting Russia students from the Swedish side as well.

The purpose of this event is to introduce you to each other, to enhance your future professional networking, and to give you the possibility to receive feedback for your ongoing research/study projects from both your peers and your teachers. This is, however, a conference of students and for students, and we will only arrange and structure the event.

Presentations can be made in two forms. First, it can be an oral paper of 10-15 minutes with or without a PowerPoint, followed by 5-10 minutes of questions and answers. Second, it can be a ‘poster presentation’, that is an A3 format poster, on which you lay out and visualize your research problem and main results.  Poster presentations will also be discussed in groups. The conference will have four ‘official’ languages: English, Danish, Swedish and Russian, while the ‘by default’ language is English, so, for example, if you chose to present your paper in Danish, please prepare your PowerPoint slides in English.

If we have too many applications, we may not be able to accommodate everyone, so we kindly ask for your understanding.

The deadline for submitting your applications is 1 November.

Mikhail Suslov, Vera Skvirskaja (Copenhagen University)
Tomas Sniegon (Lund University)
Bo Petersson (Malmö University)

In order to apply for the conference participation, please send us the following questionnaire:

  1. Name:
  2. University:
  3. Study program:
  4. Email address:
  5. Mobile phone:
  6. I want to: ___ present a paper

___present a poster

  1. Title of your paper/poster:
  2. I need an overnight stay in Copenhagen 22 to 23 November, yes or no:
  3. I am from Copenhagen, and I can offer a possibility to stay overnight in my place for ____(number of) student/s, yes or no:

Please send your questionnaire to Mikhail Suslov (mikhail.suslov@hum.ku.dk ) and Vera Skvirskaja (bdq883@hum.ku.dk) with a cc to the responsible person(s) at your university:

Århus University:  Birgitte Beck Pristed birgitte.pristed@cas.au.dk and  Jeremy Morris jmorris@cas.au.dk

Lund University: Tomas Sniegon tomas.sniegon@eu.lu.se

University of Malmö: Bo Petersson bo.petersson@mau.se

 

Preliminary Program

Thursday, 22 November

Arrival in Copenhagen
11.30-12.00 keynote by Gigi Gigiadze, Georgian ambassador in Denmark
12.00-13.00 lunch
13.00-14.30 4 papers
14.30-14.45 coffee break
14.45-16.15 4 papers
16.15-16.30 coffee break
16.30-18.00 6 posters

Friday, 23 November
09.00-11.00 Excursion in Copenhagen / free time
11.00-12.15 lunch
12.15-14.00 4 papers
14.15-15.00 guest lectures: Jeremy Morris and Maria Guzikova
15.10-17.00 film screening

Departure from Copenhagen

Visit to University of Kabardino-Balkaria

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University of Kabardino-Balkaria (KBSU) is one of the major universities in Russian North Caucasus and the State University of the Republic of Kabardino-Balkaria.

Prof. Karina Vamling, Malmö University, had meetings with Rector of KBSU, Professor Yuri K. Altudov and colleagues at the Department of Kabardian language and literature. She visited the sections for language and culture of the three main ethnic groups of the Republic – the Kabardians, Balkars and Russians. At the Kabardian section Prof. Madina Ezaova showed a Kabardian ethnographic exhibition prepared by the students. The final meeting during the visit to KBSU was with students of Kabardian Philology, including a musical performance of Kabardian songs and a declamation in Kabardian.

Take a virtual tour of the https://eng.kbsu.ru/3d-tour-virtual-tour/

 

Putins fjärde presidentperiod – och sedan då?

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RUCARR på Almedalsveckan – 6/7 2018 14:00 – 15:20

Program, mer info. (gemensamt med Statsvetenskapliga förbundet)

Moderator: Eleonora Narvselius, docent, Lunds universitet

Deltagare: Kjell Engelbrekt, professor, Försvarshögskolan. Kalle Kniivilä, journalist, Sydsvenska. Bo Petersson, professor, Malmö universitet. Anke Schmidt-Felzmann, forskare, Foreign Policy Research Institute.

I mars 2018 valdes Vladimir Putin till Rysslands president för fjärde gången. Landet har under hans snart tjugo år vid makten utvecklats i alltmera auktoritär riktning. Utåt har Ryssland allt oftare talat ett hårdhänt maktspråk såsom vid annekteringen av Krim samt krigen i Ukraina och Syrien. Landet gör nu tydligt anspråk på att utmana USA och spela en global roll. En förklaring till Putins starka stöd på hemmaplan är att han upplevs som garant för Rysslands starka ställning i världen och för intern stabilitet. Samtidigt är hans position i rysk politik så unik att frågor uppkommer om vad som kan hända när han lämnar presidentposten. Enligt konstitutionen måste så ske senast 2024, men presidentvalet visade att det knappast finns några trovärdiga utmanare idag. Inte heller har Putin pekat ut någon efterträdare. Vilket agerande kan förväntas av Ryssland under kommande år? Och hur påverkas Sverige och dess närområde av allt detta?

Arrangör: Russia and the Caucasus Regional Research, RUCARR, Malmö universitet (Bo Petersson, 0722-464660).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Foto: Hugo Holmkrantz

Seminar – Declarations of Independence in the Caucasus 100 years

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Thank you to all presenters and participants for a very interesting and rewarding day with the whole Caucasus present – Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia and the North Caucasus Mountain republic.
RUCARR seminar May 22: “Declarations of Independence in the Caucasus – 100 years Anniversary”-

Programme: http://wpmu.mah.se/rucarr/2018/05/15/preliminary-programme-100-years-anniversary-seminar/
Photos: Elnur Aliyev

Book release – Parliamentary Elections in Russia, by Derek Hutcheson

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Congratulations to the new book! Release of Parliamentary Elections in Russia: A Quarter- Century of Multi-Party Politics by RUCARR researcher, Ass. Prof. Derek Hutcheson.

Russia is often in the news at the moment. As a nuclear power, permanent UN Security Council member, emerging Arctic hegemon and the largest state in the world, the country is of extreme importance in global politics. In the first long-term analysis of Russian parliamentary elections, Derek Hutcheson explores the country’s seven rounds of election since 1993, and also sets Russian politics into a wider context. Through the twists and turns of political reform, he combines official data, primary material and in-depth analysis to investigate the changes in Russia’s political system.