Andrei Kazakevich: Post-Soviet cooperation, security on the agenda at Congress of Belarusian Studies

The largest academic and expert forum dedicated to Belarusian studies will be held in Kaunas, Lithuania 7 - 9 October.

This year annual International Congress of Belarusian Studies will be held for the sixth time already. The program promises to analyze the most interesting and relevant topics related to geopolitics, history and development of civil society. EuroBelarus Information Service asked one of the organizers Andrei Kazakevich, the director of the Institute for Policy Studies Palіtychnaya Sphera (Political Sphere) for more details about the features of this year’s forum and its most interesting events.

- Congress will raise various topical issues related to Belarusian studies. For example, this year the topic of cooperation between countries in the post-Soviet world, integration and disintegration of states will be covered in great detail.

A separate panel will focus on safety issues - how safety has changed in our region over the recent years and what consequences it has for foreign and domestic policies of states.

The theme of civil society will come to the front of the Congress. Plenary discussion, which will be attended by researchers from Poland and other countries, will raise such questions as challenges and opportunities for the Eastern European states. Before the discussion Andrzej Nowak will present plenary report on how Russia views Eastern Europe and what place it occupies in the Russian plans.

Of course, such topics as the history of Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Belarus in XIX century, everyday life of different epochs, culture etc. will be discussed.

Presentations, round tables, exhibitions and presentations of the Congress will cover a wide range of topics from the hybrid to the gender wars and will suggest reflecting on education, history, politics and human rights issues.

In general, the Congress gathers representatives of almost all centres exploring Belarus from abroad. During the Congress scholars exchange opinions and evaluate their colleagues’ achievements over the last year. There will also be a prize awarded for the best publication in 2014 - 2015.

International Congress of Belarusian Studies was established by Belarusian and Lithuanian representatives as an annual public event targeted at both intellectuals and general public of Belarus and other countries such as experts, journalists, public figures, students etc.

The Congress was initiated for researchers and experts in political, social and humanitarian spheres to integrate and to promote a better understanding of Belarus in academic and public circles of the region and in the world at large. Moreover the Congress is designed for discussing promising research and civil projects, exchanging views and ideas and establishing informal contacts.

Disciplinary priorities of the Congress are as follow: political science, sociology, history, intellectual history and the history of ideas. The Congress combines traditional meetings of specialists (within special sections) with joint expert panels and discussions on topical issues of Belarusian politics, culture, society, regional and international cooperation.

A number of additional cultural and social events (concerts, exhibitions, public discussions, presentations) will take place within the framework of the Congress.