scholarly journals Reinventing Urban Identities in Kazan

2021 ◽  
Vol 49 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 63-84
Author(s):  
Aleksandra Turowska
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Economic Transformation ◽  
Global Market ◽  
Social Production ◽  
Production Of Space ◽  
Politics Of Memory ◽  
Social Actors ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
City Space ◽  
Grassroots Initiatives

The paper aims to consider how, since the early 1990s, the city space of Kazan is shaped by different social actors. This paper assumes that a key influence on the process of social production of space in Kazan was the procedure of gaining autonomy after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the lo­cal variant of economic transformation into the global market system. From the beginning of the post-socialist transition, elites’ strategies were related to the politics of memory and the ideas of mul­ticulturalism and federalism. Consequently, Kazan underwent the process of reinventing of urban identity, and indigenization (by Hughes [2007] it was called Tatarazing) of city space. In the capital of Tatarstan the financialization of city space, accumulation through expropriation, and develop­ment by megaevents can be observed. Strategies of development enforced by elites are contested by city inhabitants and grassroots initiatives concentrated around the protection of architectural heritage. Centralized and hierarchical power in Tatarstan makes the grassroots initiatives’ demands possible by a collaboration with local elites.

Cuba's Quest for Economic Independence

2002 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 325-363 ◽  
Author(s):  
WILLIAM M. LEOGRANDE ◽  
JULIE M. THOMAS
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Global Market ◽  
Economic Independence ◽  
Colonial Era ◽  
Fidel Castro ◽  
Trade Relations ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Trade Partner ◽  
The Cold War ◽  
The Cost

Since the colonial era Cuba has been the paradigmatic case of a monocultural export economy, dependent upon the production of one primary commodity – sugar – for sale to one principal trade partner. Overcoming dependency was a high priority for Fidel Castro in 1959, yet despite a promising start, his efforts proved ultimately unsuccessful. Only the collapse of communism in Europe freed Cuba from dependent trade relations with the Soviet Union – albeit at the cost of enormous economic disruption. This article examines Cuba's post-1959 pursuit of economic independence, first to explain why the government's initial successes proved unsustainable in the 1980s, and then to examine Cuba's attempt to reinsert its economy into the global market in the aftermath of the Cold War.

scholarly journals Transformations of traditional land use and settlement patterns of Kosarysche Ridge (Chornohora, Western Ukraine)

2014 ◽  
Vol 24 (24) ◽  
pp. 191-201 ◽  
Author(s):  
Agnieszka Nowak ◽  
Natalia Tokarczyk
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Soviet Union ◽  
Land Use Changes ◽  
Spatial Development ◽  
Economic Transformation ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Western Ukraine ◽  
The Village ◽  
Land Improvement ◽  
Village Centre

Abstract The traditional character of Hutsul villages and their spatial development has been changing slowly but inevitably over the course of time. Historically, single farmsteads were built separately and were mostly self-sufficient, the distance between them being considerable. Nowadays, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the economic transformation brought along many changes, among these the fact that depopulation is taking place and alterations in spatial development are occurring again. The localisation of secluded farmsteads, situated far away from each other is no longer as important as it used to be. Reasons for the abandonment of farmsteads were examined, and factors such as altitude, distance from the village centre and the administration affiliation were taken into account. Land use changes were analysed in relation to the slope inclination. Some of the most important factors influencing the intensity and direction of these processes are high prices of land, improvement in living conditions, better access to services and the general ‘westernisation’ of lifestyles. The depopulation rate has been seen to increase in correlation with the rising altitude and distance from the village centre. On the other hand, there was no unambiguous link between the abandonment of farmsteads and administration affiliation. Mowed areas were localised on the slopes with the smallest inclination. Animal breeding has become unprofitable due to a lack in demand and low product prices, which has led to an increasing number of meadows and pastures lying fallow.

scholarly journals The Collapse of the Soviet Union and the Productivity of American Mathematicians*

2012 ◽  
Vol 127 (3) ◽  
pp. 1143-1203 ◽  
Author(s):  
George J. Borjas ◽  
Kirk B. Doran
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Knowledge Production ◽  
Black Box ◽  
Global Market ◽  
Mobility Rate ◽  
International Differences ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Total Product ◽  
International Data ◽  
The Impact

Abstract It has been difficult to open up the black box of knowledge production. We use unique international data on the publications, citations, and affiliations of mathematicians to examine the impact of a large, post-1992 influx of Soviet mathematicians on the productivity of their U.S. counterparts. We find a negative productivity effect on those mathematicians whose research overlapped with that of the Soviets. We also document an increased mobility rate (to lower quality institutions and out of active publishing) and a reduced likelihood of producing “home run” papers. Although the total product of the preexisting American mathematicians shrank, the Soviet contribution to American mathematics filled in the gap. However, there is no evidence that the Soviets greatly increased the size of the “mathematics pie.” Finally, we find that there are significant international differences in the productivity effects of the collapse of the Soviet Union, and these international differences can be explained by both differences in the size of the émigré flow into the various countries and in how connected each country is to the global market for mathematical publications.

Introduction

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gail Kligman ◽  
Katherine Verdery
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Social Relations ◽  
Industrial Development ◽  
Economic Transformation ◽  
Mass Action ◽  
Communist Regime ◽  
Industrial Facilities ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Party State

This introductory chapter provides a background of the collectivization of agriculture in Romania. The collectivization of agriculture was the first mass action, in largely agrarian countries like the Soviet Union, Bulgaria, and Romania, through which the new communist regime initiated its radical program of social, political, cultural, and economic transformation. Collectivizing agriculture was not merely an aspect of the larger policy of industrial development but an attack on the very foundations of rural life. By leaving rural inhabitants without their own means of livelihood, it radically increased their dependence on the Party-state. It both prepared and compelled them to be the proletarians of new industrial facilities. Moreover, it destroyed or at least frayed both the vertical and the horizontal social relations in which villagers were embedded and through which they defined themselves and pursued their existence.

Ukraina: 30 lat bez ZSRR

2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 99-123
Author(s):  
Hanna Bazhenova
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Soviet Union ◽  
Economic Transformation ◽  
Sovereign State ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Time Period ◽  
Current Attitude ◽  
New States ◽  
Strategic Goals ◽  
Ukrainian Society

The collapse of the Soviet Union was a momentous event for the entire world, but it was Soviet citizens for whom it was of the greatest importance. The fall of the USSR changed the geopolitical and economic map of the world and led to the emergence of fifteen new states. An independent Ukraine has become a significant component of this new geopolitical reality. The dissolution of the USSR gave the citizens of Ukraine a chance to build a sovereign state, consistent with the national interest, the state which could independently pursue its strategic goals in the area of domestic and foreign policy. Thirty years have passed since those events, which is a long enough time period to analyse changes made and to define how Ukraine has taken advantage of its historic opportunity. This paper examines the political and economic transformation of Ukraine, as well as the evolution of its foreign policy. The article also questions whether it is appropriate to compare the post-communist development of Ukraine to certain Central European countries. It also highlights the current attitude of the Ukrainian society towards the collapse of the USSR and to the Soviet past of this country.

Antifascism as the Renewed Social Consensus Under Putin

2021 ◽  
pp. 43-61
Author(s):  
Marlene Laruelle
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Critical Thinking Skills ◽  
The Other ◽  
Social Consensus ◽  
Soviet Culture ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Grassroots Initiatives ◽  
Legislative Activity ◽  
Invented Traditions

This chapter delves into Russia's positioning as the antifascism power par excellence toward its domestic audience. It cultivates the memory of the Great Patriotic War as the cornerstone of social consensus, a powerful reservoir of meaning that allows celebrations of individuals' adhesion to the nation and its myths. The chapter argues that the memory of the war epitomized the good sides of the Soviet Union and integrated well within the current nostalgia for late Soviet culture and daily life. It then discusses how Vladimir Putin's policy of rehabilitating Soviet symbols contributed to relegitimizing the war as a critical moment in the nation's history. The chapter highlights the emergence of new commemorative practices and invented traditions, such as the Immortal Regiment and the St. George's Ribbon, as genuine grassroots initiatives. It analyses how the narrative on the war gradually coalesced, reinforced by legislative activity aimed to erase any questions about the state's historical legitimacy. The chapter also evaluates why textbooks, which seek to shape future citizens rather than build critical thinking skills, remain quite traditional in their analysis, even if some historically ambivalent moments such as collaborationism are briefly described. Ultimately, the chapter assesses the other consequence of the war's role as a foundational memory myth for Russia.

Renegotiating Stability, Security and Identity in the Post-Soviet Borderlands: The Experience of Russian Communities in Uzbekistan

2007 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 267-288 ◽  
Author(s):  
Moya Flynn
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Russian Federation ◽  
Economic Transformation ◽  
Soviet Period ◽  
Russian Regions ◽  
Physical Movement ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Political Borders ◽  
Analysis Of Narratives ◽  
Post Soviet Period

In 1991 the ethnic Russian and Russian-speaking communities, who had migrated to and been resident in the non-Russian regions of both the tsarist empire and Soviet Union, found themselves located beyond the borders of the newly independent Russian Federation. Despite an absence of actual, physical movement, the communities experienced a form of stationary or figurative displacement as the Soviet Union broke up and political borders demarcating their homelands moved over them. This displacement was furthered in subsequent years due to the nature and security of the environment where they lived and their often secure sense of ethnocultural and socio-economic identity being challenged through processes of political and economic transformation and increased levels of instability and uncertainty. This article focuses on members of those Russian communities who are living in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Through an analysis of narratives of their everyday lives it explores how they perceive and understand the “displacement” which has occurred, and how they are responding and actively renegotiating relationships with both their physical homeland—Uzbekistan—and their “historical” homeland—Russia. Furthermore, the article assesses how through these processes of displacement and renegotiation they are reshaping their own identities in the post-Soviet period.

Reinscribing the Aesthetic: Cuban Narrative and Post-Soviet Cultural Politics

PMLA ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 120 (2) ◽  
pp. 362-374 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Buckwalter-Arias
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Cultural Politics ◽  
Social Practices ◽  
Global Market ◽  
Cultural Institutions ◽  
State Institutions ◽  
Foreign Companies ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Literary Art ◽  
The Aesthetic

With the collapse of the Soviet Union, Cuba's revolutionary paradigm encounters its greatest crisis to date. As the state's cultural institutions struggle to cope with severe material limitations and strive to square socialist ideology with world events, Cuban writers increasingly publish their work with foreign companies. Not uncommonly these authors reassert the aesthetic priorities that state institutions are said to have repressed or subordinated to political imperatives. It may appear, superficially, that Cuban writers are out to revive some notion of an autonomous literary art. In situating aesthetic discourse in profoundly dialogic, historically specific, and politically charged narrative contexts, however, these writings challenge traditional universalizing formulations of the aesthetic category. Such historico-narrative rearticulation of social practices and theories of art is prerequisite to a more progressive cultural politics than the socialist state has managed to implement and than an uncritical reengagement with the global market can bring about.

Kazakhstan: modernizing government in the context of political inertia

2008 ◽  
Vol 74 (3) ◽  
pp. 477-496 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colin Knox
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Public Management ◽  
Public Services ◽  
New Public Management ◽  
Economic Transformation ◽  
Political Reforms ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Public Sector Reforms ◽  
New Public ◽  
Progressive Agenda

Kazakhstan declared its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991 and joined the Commonwealth of Independent States. Since then it has witnessed a remarkable economic transformation under the leadership of President Nursultan Nazarbayev. Pursuing a policy of `economy first and then politics', Kazakhstan is under growing pressure to engage in political reforms which include a modernization agenda to improve public service provision. Recent constitutional reforms have received a lukewarm reaction from the international community that Kazakhstan is keen to become part of. At the same time a progressive agenda of public services reform is well under way rooted in new public management and a desire to become much more customer focussed in their orientation. This article examines the parallel themes of political reforms and public services modernization in Kazakhstan. Points for practitioners This article offers two key points for practitioners. First, it describes the detail of public sector reforms taking place in a developing country which secured its independence approximately 16 years ago, and the significant progress since then. Second, it poses questions about the political context in which administrative reform can take place. Has the existence of a highly centralized and autocratic form of presidential leadership resulted in a top-down imperative which has helped the pace of public services modernization in Kazakhstan?

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