Aims
Russia's headlong transition from communist superpower to
petro-state has been traumatic for its people, unsettling for its
neighbours and often perplexing for the rest of the world. Now, in the
wake of its war with Georgia, international relations have reached a
new level of tension, leading to claims of a new cold war or
accusations of great game ambitions.
In this charged atmosphere,
openDemocracy Russia offers a thoughtful platform for people concerned
about the future of Russia and her desire to establish a new place in
the world. Here, you will find passionately held views: Russians
writing about the issues that matter to them across a wide range of
subjects, from the economy to culture; Western experts exchanging views
with their Russian counterparts; Russian historians debating its past
with one another, and joining with historians from elsewhere in
exploring the parallels between Russia's experience and that of other
countries. You will read about everyday life in remote parts of Russia.
You will find perspectives from countries which were once part of the
Soviet empire.
At the core of openDemocracy Russia's offering lies its
partnership with the distinguished Moscow ezine polit.ru, affording us
access to informed Russian thinking. This is the starting point of a
network which aims to stretch outwards across the whole post-Soviet
space.
openDemocracy Russia will strive to broaden the global debate on
the main openDemocracy website so as to include Russia. It will be
introducing into Russia's debates some of the best, open minded
coverage of world affairs published in the openDemocracy network. It
will also be translating and introducing to the world a wide spectrum
of lively and intelligent Russian writers and commentators whose views
and voices we think the world needs to hear.
Susan Richards &
Zygmunt Dzieciolowski
People
Advisory Board
russia.opendemocracy.net has an advisory board composed of:
Floriana Fossato is former Moscow correspondent for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Her openDemocracy
authorprofile is here.
Susan Richards is a non-executive director and founder of
openDemocracy. She has produced a number of feature films and written a prize-winning book,
Epics of Everyday Life,
about the lives of ordinary Russians in the transition from communism.
Her next book which covers the period 1992-2008, will be published by
I.B.Tauris later this year.
Maria Lipman, fellow of the Carnegie Moscow Centre, is the Editor-in-Chief of Pro etContra. Her
Carnegieprofile is here.
Andrei Zorin is Professor of Russian and Fellow of New College, Oxford. His
Oxfordpage is here.
Manana Aslamazyanis a director of Internews. Her
Internewsprofile is here.
Zygmunt Dzieciolowski is a print and TV journalist with 20 years' Russian experience. He is a regular contributor to openDemocracy on Russian topics. His openDemocracy
authorprofile is here.
Tony Curzon Price is Editor-in-Chief of openDemocracy. His openDemocracy
author profile is here.
