Russian Academia between the War and Exile

The beginning of Russia's full-scale aggression against Ukraine dramatically changed the atmosphere of Russian science and education, as well as the level of repression against Russian scholars and students, particularly for those who openly protested the war. Because of this pressure, academics who remained in Russia are feeling what can be described as existential “asphyxia”- the inability to breathe and speak freely. Scholars who left on the other hand, have faced a form of existential “aphonia” – the inability to talk as citizens of the country that is committing crimes against humanity. Dmitry Dubrovsky will examine how Russian science and academics can exist in exile as well as what kind of voice and action is possible and needed in the current context.