Georgia
Connecting the Caucasus with the World: Railways & Pipelines
April 02, 2013 // 9:00am — 2:00pm
This conference addressed the economic and geopolitical implications of increased connectivity and cooperation resulting from large infrastructure projects in the Caucasus region. Speakers included representatives from the Embassies of Azerbaijan and Georgia, as well as industry, think tank and U.S. government experts. Cosponsored by the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security.
Video from the event is now available.
Explaining the Soviet ‘West’ and ‘Exotic’: Lithuanian and Georgian Writers
March 26, 2013 // 3:30pm — 5:30pm
Soviet writers were some of the most publicly recognizable intellectuals and were tasked by the state to transform society. The presentation outlined Georgian and Lithuanian writers, members of Writers’ Union, focusing on their participation in the establishment and the dynamics of ideas. The perspective of three generations in both countries reveals the rise of ethnic (local) interests and the disconnection of everyday-life from official goals. Both writers’ organizations expressed a clear character of localism (mestnichestvo), but the Georgian case illustrates more active participation at the central level while Lithuanian writers maintained a more peripheral and less active role in the druzhba narodov (“friendship of peoples”) narratives.
Exiting Anarchy: Militia Politics after the Post-Soviet Wars
March 21, 2013 // 4:00pm — 5:30pm
Jesse Driscoll, Academy Scholar, Harvard Academy for International and Area Studies, Harvard University, and Assistant Professor of Political Science, School of International Relations and Pacific Studies, University of California at San Diego discussed his forthcoming book on how political order emerged in Tajikistan and Georgia after the violent chaos of the Soviet collapse.