Past Events

	Title	Date	Type	Speakers
	Cossacks and Enlightenment	Mon, 05.10.2020, 16:00	Seminars and Colloquia	Volodymyr Sklokin	Cossacks and Enlightenment Between Orientalization and Republican Reappropriation Mon, 05.10.2020, 16:00 Speakers: Volodymyr Sklokin Series: Seminars and Colloquia The talk dealt with the impact of Enlightenment ideas on rethinking the image of Cossacks in the Ukrainian peripheries of the Russian Empire in the second half of the eighteenth century. The mechanisms through which eighteenth century West European Enlightenment political and historical thought provided intellectual resources for both orientalizing the Cossack political tradition and empowering it were examined. Orientalist discourse was introduced by Voltaire, used by Saint Petersburg enlightened absolutists to justify the elimination of Cossack autonomies, and accepted by a segment of the local elite. On the other hand, Enlightenment political thought, exemplified in particular by Rousseau and Montesquieu, was used to go beyond traditional estate and regional particularism, to rethink the Cossack political tradition in more universalist categories of republicanism and to set it against Catherine II’s supposed ‘despotism’. Read more
Cossacks and Enlightenment Between Orientalization and Republican Reappropriation Mon, 05.10.2020, 16:00 Speakers: Volodymyr Sklokin Series: Seminars and Colloquia The talk dealt with the impact of Enlightenment ideas on rethinking the image of Cossacks in the Ukrainian peripheries of the Russian Empire in the second half of the eighteenth century. The mechanisms through which eighteenth century West European Enlightenment political and historical thought provided intellectual resources for both orientalizing the Cossack political tradition and empowering it were examined. Orientalist discourse was introduced by Voltaire, used by Saint Petersburg enlightened absolutists to justify the elimination of Cossack autonomies, and accepted by a segment of the local elite. On the other hand, Enlightenment political thought, exemplified in particular by Rousseau and Montesquieu, was used to go beyond traditional estate and regional particularism, to rethink the Cossack political tradition in more universalist categories of republicanism and to set it against Catherine II’s supposed ‘despotism’. Read more
	The Compatriots	Mon, 28.09.2020, 16:00	Seminars and Colloquia	Andrei Soldatov Clemena Antonova Irina Borogan	The Compatriots The Tricky Relationship Between the Kremlin and Russian Exiles Mon, 28.09.2020, 16:00 Speakers: Andrei Soldatov Clemena Antonova Irina Borogan Series: Seminars and Colloquia The Russian diaspora is the third-largest in the world. The Russians fled the country in troves for more than one hundred years. First the Tsar’s crazy politics towards Jews, then the Revolution and Civil War, the Second World War and anti-Semitism in the Soviet Union forced millions to emigrate.In the 90-s, emigration was in the spotlight of society because the borders got opened for the first time in many decades. People started moving in both directions – many of them were leaving the country, but some of the emigrants came back to Russia to capture the new opportunities. Read more
The Compatriots The Tricky Relationship Between the Kremlin and Russian Exiles Mon, 28.09.2020, 16:00 Speakers: Andrei Soldatov Clemena Antonova Irina Borogan Series: Seminars and Colloquia The Russian diaspora is the third-largest in the world. The Russians fled the country in troves for more than one hundred years. First the Tsar’s crazy politics towards Jews, then the Revolution and Civil War, the Second World War and anti-Semitism in the Soviet Union forced millions to emigrate.In the 90-s, emigration was in the spotlight of society because the borders got opened for the first time in many decades. People started moving in both directions – many of them were leaving the country, but some of the emigrants came back to Russia to capture the new opportunities. Read more
	Philosophische Miniaturen	Sat, 26.09.2020, 15:30	Visual and Performing Arts	Jan Frei Ludger Hagedorn Michaela AdelbergerJakob Rendl	Philosophische Miniaturen Jan Patočka - Ein ketzerischer Europäer aus Prag Sat, 26.09.2020, 15:30 Speakers: Jan Frei Ludger Hagedorn Michaela AdelbergerJakob Rendl Series: Visual and Performing Arts Die “Philosophischen Miniaturen” stellten in Lesungen und Gesprächen das Werk des Philosophen Jan Patocka vor. Patocka ist nicht nur der wichtigste tschechische Philosoph des 20. Jahrhunderts, sondern war auch eng mit der Charta 77 verbunden. Read more
Philosophische Miniaturen Jan Patočka - Ein ketzerischer Europäer aus Prag Sat, 26.09.2020, 15:30 Speakers: Jan Frei Ludger Hagedorn Michaela AdelbergerJakob Rendl Series: Visual and Performing Arts Die “Philosophischen Miniaturen” stellten in Lesungen und Gesprächen das Werk des Philosophen Jan Patocka vor. Patocka ist nicht nur der wichtigste tschechische Philosoph des 20. Jahrhunderts, sondern war auch eng mit der Charta 77 verbunden. Read more
	The EU Periphery and Revisionist Powers	Wed, 23.09.2020, 14:00	Seminars and Colloquia	Dimitar Bechev Ivan Vejvoda	The EU Periphery and Revisionist Powers Wed, 23.09.2020, 14:00 Speakers: Dimitar Bechev Ivan Vejvoda Series: Seminars and Colloquia Starting with the annexation of Crimea in the spring of 2014, scholars and analysts have been debating the standoff between the West and competitors such as Russia, Erdogan’s Turkey, and lately China on Europe’s periphery. “The return of geopolitics” has become a standard phrase to describe the new moment in the international politics of Eastern and Southeast Europe. A contrast is drawn with the 2000s, the highmark of the European Union’s “transformative power” and NATO’s eastward expansion. But the top-down view highlighting the preferences and actions of big players, including core EU member states like Germany and France, Russia, Turkey etc. overlooks the critical role played by peripheral countries and their elites. Rather than being the object of great powers’ decisions, they manipulate rivalries in pursuit of political advantage. Though the domestic arena provides entry points for external actors’ influence it also empowers incumbent elites in the target countries. The talk drew on examples from Southeast Europe (the Western Balkans, Bulgaria, Romania, Greece) but drew parallels to the post-Soviet space. Read more
The EU Periphery and Revisionist Powers Wed, 23.09.2020, 14:00 Speakers: Dimitar Bechev Ivan Vejvoda Series: Seminars and Colloquia Starting with the annexation of Crimea in the spring of 2014, scholars and analysts have been debating the standoff between the West and competitors such as Russia, Erdogan’s Turkey, and lately China on Europe’s periphery. “The return of geopolitics” has become a standard phrase to describe the new moment in the international politics of Eastern and Southeast Europe. A contrast is drawn with the 2000s, the highmark of the European Union’s “transformative power” and NATO’s eastward expansion. But the top-down view highlighting the preferences and actions of big players, including core EU member states like Germany and France, Russia, Turkey etc. overlooks the critical role played by peripheral countries and their elites. Rather than being the object of great powers’ decisions, they manipulate rivalries in pursuit of political advantage. Though the domestic arena provides entry points for external actors’ influence it also empowers incumbent elites in the target countries. The talk drew on examples from Southeast Europe (the Western Balkans, Bulgaria, Romania, Greece) but drew parallels to the post-Soviet space. Read more
	COVID-19 and Democracy: A New Mode of Governance?	Tue, 22.09.2020, 18:00	Lecture	Wolfgang Merkel	COVID-19 and Democracy: A New Mode of Governance? The German Case in Comparison Tue, 22.09.2020, 18:00 Speakers: Wolfgang Merkel Series: Lecture The Berlin Republic of today is neither Weimar (1918–1932) nor Bonn (1949–1990). It is by all standards the best democracy ever on German soil. Nevertheless, during the COVID-19 crisis there was a shift from democracy as a mode of governance to what the controversial legal theorist Carl Schmitt (1922) affirmingly described as a “state of exception”; a state that is desired and approved by the people. It was the hour of the executive. Parliament has disempowered itself. There was very little, if any, contestation or deliberation during the first eight weeks of the COVID-19 crisis – neither in parliament nor in civil society. Will the state of exception emerge as the new mode of governance during deep crises in the 21st century? If this is the case, it would erode, de-parliamentarize and illiberalize our democracies as we have hitherto known them. Read more
COVID-19 and Democracy: A New Mode of Governance? The German Case in Comparison Tue, 22.09.2020, 18:00 Speakers: Wolfgang Merkel Series: Lecture The Berlin Republic of today is neither Weimar (1918–1932) nor Bonn (1949–1990). It is by all standards the best democracy ever on German soil. Nevertheless, during the COVID-19 crisis there was a shift from democracy as a mode of governance to what the controversial legal theorist Carl Schmitt (1922) affirmingly described as a “state of exception”; a state that is desired and approved by the people. It was the hour of the executive. Parliament has disempowered itself. There was very little, if any, contestation or deliberation during the first eight weeks of the COVID-19 crisis – neither in parliament nor in civil society. Will the state of exception emerge as the new mode of governance during deep crises in the 21st century? If this is the case, it would erode, de-parliamentarize and illiberalize our democracies as we have hitherto known them. Read more
	Jean Améry Prize Awarded to Ivan Krastev	Thu, 17.09.2020, 19:30	Lecture	Ivan Krastev	Jean Améry Prize Awarded to Ivan Krastev Thu, 17.09.2020, 19:30 Speakers: Ivan Krastev Series: Lecture The Allianz Kulturstiftung and the Klett-Cotta publishing house awarded the prize, founded in memory of Jean Améry for important contemporary essays, to IWM Permanent Fellow Ivan Krastev on September 17, 2020. The jury, chaired by Robert Menasse, explained their decision by stating »The clarity of thinking against the appointments of the time: That is, among other things, what Ivan Krastev has in common with Jean Améry«. The prize is awarded every two years for outstanding achievements in the field of contemporary, progressive essays. The award winner talked to IWM Rector Shalini Randeria. Read more
Jean Améry Prize Awarded to Ivan Krastev Thu, 17.09.2020, 19:30 Speakers: Ivan Krastev Series: Lecture The Allianz Kulturstiftung and the Klett-Cotta publishing house awarded the prize, founded in memory of Jean Améry for important contemporary essays, to IWM Permanent Fellow Ivan Krastev on September 17, 2020. The jury, chaired by Robert Menasse, explained their decision by stating »The clarity of thinking against the appointments of the time: That is, among other things, what Ivan Krastev has in common with Jean Améry«. The prize is awarded every two years for outstanding achievements in the field of contemporary, progressive essays. The award winner talked to IWM Rector Shalini Randeria. Read more
	How to Be a Climate Change Journalist in Ukraine and Why Environmental Storytelling Can Help Spread Important Ideas	Mon, 14.09.2020, 16:00	Seminars and Colloquia	Ludger Hagedorn Mariana Verbovska	How to Be a Climate Change Journalist in Ukraine and Why Environmental Storytelling Can Help Spread Important Ideas Mon, 14.09.2020, 16:00 Speakers: Ludger Hagedorn Mariana Verbovska Series: Seminars and Colloquia Since Ukraine is an agrarian country, the importance of knowledge about climate change cannot be overestimated. In fact, today we already have regions where we harvest potatoes and corn twice a year, and regions where grapes and peaches ripen, which have not even been cultivated before. It is very important to talk not only about climate change as a global catastrophe, but also about the new challenges and opportunities that come with it. Read more
How to Be a Climate Change Journalist in Ukraine and Why Environmental Storytelling Can Help Spread Important Ideas Mon, 14.09.2020, 16:00 Speakers: Ludger Hagedorn Mariana Verbovska Series: Seminars and Colloquia Since Ukraine is an agrarian country, the importance of knowledge about climate change cannot be overestimated. In fact, today we already have regions where we harvest potatoes and corn twice a year, and regions where grapes and peaches ripen, which have not even been cultivated before. It is very important to talk not only about climate change as a global catastrophe, but also about the new challenges and opportunities that come with it. Read more
	ERC Mentoring Initiative September	Fri, 04.09.2020, 10:00 - Sat, 05.09.2020, 14:00	Conferences and Workshops	Ylva Huber	ERC Mentoring Initiative September Fri, 04.09.2020, 10:00 - Sat, 05.09.2020, 14:00 Speakers: Ylva Huber Series: Conferences and Workshops Read more

	A New World (Dis-)Order	Wed, 02.09.2020, 18:00	Panels and Discussions	Timothy SnyderLubomir Zaoralek, Dagmar Rychnovská	A New World (Dis-)Order Current Political and Social Challenges Wed, 02.09.2020, 18:00 Speakers: Timothy SnyderLubomir Zaoralek, Dagmar Rychnovská Series: Panels and Discussions The Czech Embassy in Vienna, in cooperation with the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM) generously supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, invited for an evening discussion at the Czech Embassy in Vienna. The debate addressed the growing geopolitical insecurity and the new challenges posed by the global pandemic. Read more
A New World (Dis-)Order Current Political and Social Challenges Wed, 02.09.2020, 18:00 Speakers: Timothy SnyderLubomir Zaoralek, Dagmar Rychnovská Series: Panels and Discussions The Czech Embassy in Vienna, in cooperation with the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM) generously supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, invited for an evening discussion at the Czech Embassy in Vienna. The debate addressed the growing geopolitical insecurity and the new challenges posed by the global pandemic. Read more
	Public Health & Migrant Workers	Fri, 21.08.2020, 14:30	Conferences and Workshops	Ayşe Çağlar Ranabir Samaddar Shalini Randeria	Public Health & Migrant Workers Research Symposium Fri, 21.08.2020, 14:30 Speakers: Ayşe Çağlar Ranabir Samaddar Shalini Randeria Series: Conferences and Workshops This symposium on migrants and public health was a platform to investigate and integrate some of the primary concerns arising from the state of public health in India, privatisation of the health care system, the skewed nature of governance in addressing public health concerns in our cities’ poor, overcrowded neighbourhoods, and the fact that workers leading the response against the pandemic are rendered disposable for fear of disease and contamination. How do these binaries coexist and become new sites of discrimination? Read more
Public Health & Migrant Workers Research Symposium Fri, 21.08.2020, 14:30 Speakers: Ayşe Çağlar Ranabir Samaddar Shalini Randeria Series: Conferences and Workshops This symposium on migrants and public health was a platform to investigate and integrate some of the primary concerns arising from the state of public health in India, privatisation of the health care system, the skewed nature of governance in addressing public health concerns in our cities’ poor, overcrowded neighbourhoods, and the fact that workers leading the response against the pandemic are rendered disposable for fear of disease and contamination. How do these binaries coexist and become new sites of discrimination? Read more