Conference on the Contemporary Russian-Speaking Jewish Diaspora

Conference venue: Cambridge (Massachusetts, USA)
Period: November 14–15, 2011
Deadline for submitting abstracts: May 14, 2010
Deadline for submitting full papers: September 1, 2010

Notification of proposals acceptance: July 1, 2010

The emigration of about 1.5 million Jews from the former Soviet Union since 1970, has changed Jewish life in the host countries. The largest emigration in the sixty-two-year history of Israel is the post-1989 migration from the former URSS, when the largest group of Jews people come to USA and Germany. The conference will analyze how Russian-speaking Jews have influenced the cultures, politics, and economies of Israel, USA, Germany and also of the former URSS. The main questions are: “Do Russian-speaking Jewry constitute a global community?”, and “Has this recent migration changed the concepts of identity and diaspora across national borders?”.

Papers should analyze different disciplinary perspectives that address history, evolution and future of Russian-speaking Jewish communities, cultures, and identities. In particular papers related to problems, paradoxes, contradictions, and challenges involved in thinking about the Russian-speaking Jews are encouraged. The following topics are suggested (even if papers could also deal with any other themes relevant to the contemporary Russian-speaking Jewish diaspora):

Since the working language of the conference will be English, papers must be submitted only in English.
 
Submission of proposal will include:
-A completed online application form;
-A project abstract of approximately 250 words;
-A 2-page curriculum vitae (CV) listing education, publications, fellowships and awards, and recent work and teaching experience.

Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies
American Councils for International Education
Russian Foundation for Humanities

Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies
Harvard University
address: 1730 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, MA 02138
tel: 617.495.4037
fax: 617.495.8319
email: daviscrs@fas.harvard.edu
website: http://daviscenter.fas.harvard.edu/ 
 
American Councils for International Education
address: 1776 Massachusetts Ave., N.W., Suite 700 Washington, DC 20036  
tel: 202.833.7522
fax: 202-833-7523
website: http://www.americancouncils.org/index.php 
 
Russian Foundation for Humanities
address: ул. Ярославская, д. 13, Москва, Россия, 129366
tel: 495.683.5540
email: info@rfh.ru
website: http://www.rfh.ru/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1