Russia
Social and Political Challenges of the New Russia
May 23-30, 2009
Itinerary
This 8-day seminar takes place in St. Petersburg.
Seminar Fee
CIEE Member $2,950 Non-Member $3,150
Academic Content (please note this is tentative and subject to change)
Lectures:
- The Nationalities Question in Post-Soviet Space
- Understanding Russia’s Present from a Historical Viewpoint
- Comparative Mafia: The Political Economy and Sociology of Protection-Producing Enterprises
- Contemporary Film and Russian Society
- Russia and NATO: The Challenge of a Multi-Polar World
- Forging a Nation’s Identity: Nostalgia and Utopia in Soviet and Post-Soviet Popular Music
- Small Business in St. Petersburg: Challenges and Opportunities
Co-curricular Site Visits & Field Trips:
- City bus tour to all of St. Petersburg’s most important sights
- Visit to the Museum of Political History
- A trip to Peterhof or the Hermitage
- A night of ballet at the Mariinsky Theater
Rationale
In May 2001, The Atlantic Monthly published a cover article entitled, "Russia is Finished." Seven years later, this thesis needs to be reconsidered. Out of the ashes of the catastrophic 1990s, flush with windfall profits from oil and gas, Russia has emerged as an economic powerhouse on the world stage that seeks, and often gains, greater regional and worldwide influence. In December 2007, Vladimir Putin was named Time magazine's Person of the Year. In August 2008 Russia flexed its military muscle for the first time outside its new post-Soviet borders. The "successful" war with Georgia stands in stark contrast to the humiliating debacles in Chechnya in the 1990s. Many Western observers have declared the start of a "New Cold War." But the picture is more complicated. The negatives include "backsliding" on democracy, the Litvinienko murder, increased media censorship, and disagreements with the West over the proposed missile defense system. On the other hand, most Russians have never enjoyed a higher standard of living; they travel the world in unprecedented numbers. In the past year Russian soccer teams thrilled the world in the European Cup and the UEFA Cup, and Russian pop singer Dima Bilan won the Eurovision contest. Russia has come a long way from "Finished."
This seminar will be held in St. Petersburg (formerly Leningrad). The city is an ideal setting to examine "the new Russia." On the one hand it is the proud hometown of both Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev and an unparalleled cultural treasure house whose entire downtown is a UNESCO world heritage site. And yet the city still houses many of its citizens in communal apartments, and the dividends of "democracy" and "capitalism" are not enjoyed by all. The seminar will investigate the social and political challenges facing the new Russia and critically examine Russia's identity in the reality of the world today. Integrated into the schedule are unique opportunities to meet Russians who are changing the face of their country: intellectuals, small-business owners, graduate students and others who will share their view of Russia's past, present, and future. Through visits to sites of interest and through lectures from experts in political science, sociology, history and culture, this seminar will give participants a first-hand sense of Russia in the new millennium.
Host Institution
The principle host institution will be European University at St. Petersburg founded in 1994. The mission of the University is to satisfy societal needs in raising and expanding professional qualification of specialists and in developing their creative and scholarly potential on the basis of achievements of Russian and international experience and cooperation. The European University is an independent graduate university whose political science department was recently ranked in the top 3 in Eastern Europe and the best in the Russian Federation.
Seminar Leadership
The faculty leader is Dr. Nathan Longan. Dr. Longan received his B.A. in Russian Studies at Dartmouth College in 1982 and his Ph.D. in Slavic languages and literature from the University of Michigan in 1992. One of his central research interests is second language acquisition. He is the author of a number of articles on the topic and was a contributing author to the textbook Russian Stage Two.