News & Events

A conference, "Российская политика снизу-вверх" (Russian Politics from Below) supported by CRCEES will be held at the University of Edinburgh on 26 April 2013.

In the post-Soviet era, a great deal of attention has understandably been paid to the study of formal and institutional politics in Russia, particularly at federal level. Scholars have rigorously analysed the country's evolving constitutional framework, the expanding power of Yeltsin's and Putin's presidencies, the composition of party politics, and the level of control exerted by the regime over the media. Of course, a vast range of 'bottom-up' social movements have also been studied. The aim of this conference, however, is to shift emphasis towards a bottom-up approach in order to examine the complex interactions between social movements, organisations, opinion, and activism on the one hand, and the incumbent regime on the other.

Papers will be presented on the topics relating to:

• The political significance of social movements and organisations (youth, regional, ethnic, religious, minority, nationalist, gender-based, or otherwise)
• Analysis of the successes and failures of the Russian authorities' attempts to create and co-opt social movements
• The salience of recent protests and their significance for the regime
• Opportunities and constraints facing the protest movement in Russia
• Methods of communication, including the use of the internet and social networking, in coordinating political activism
• Examination of extremist social groupings and their relationship with both the protest movement and with the Putin regime
• The development of civil society
• Specific instances of civic activism and their wider significance
• How political parties interact with social movements
• How Russian social movements interact with global counterparts

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Date: Friday 26 April 2013, 10am - 6pm
Location: University of Edinburgh
Register: Ammon.Cheskin@glasgow.ac.uk

First published: 26 April 2013