Events

Are you looking to be in conversation with the world of Russian and Eurasian studies? You have come to the right place — pull up a seat.

Davis Center art exhibit

Looking for a recording of a past event? Browse prior listings below, or see all of our event videos on our YouTube channel.

Event Format

Upcoming

White House visit by C5 Central Asian leaders, Thursday, November 6, 2025.

Building a Secure Nuclear Future: US-Central Asia Partnership

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Online

Join us as we discuss the history of U.S.-Central Asia cooperation in non-proliferation, assess the current state, and explore the prospects and obstacles ahead in the nuclear energy sector.

Recording Available
Laura S. Holgate
Laura S. H. Holgate

President, LSHH International Advisors, Arlington, VA

Aidar Tainov
Aidar Tainov

Senior Program Manager, International Science and Technology Center, Astana, Kazakhstan

Nargis Kassenova
Nargis Kassenova

Senior Fellow and Director, Program on Central Asia, Davis Center

Adam Wozniak

A.M. Candidate in Regional Studies—REECA

lake in the mountains of Croatia

30th Annual Undergraduate Colloquium on Russian and Eurasian Studies

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In person

We invite you to join us in celebrating and supporting undergraduate research on Russian and Eurasian studies. The Davis Center has hosted this colloquium since 1996, showcasing work by students from Harvard, Wellesley, and Wheaton. 

Daniel Epstein

Assistant Director, Scholars Without Borders, Davis Center

Thomas Remington
Thomas F. Remington

Goodrich C. White Professor of Political Science (Emeritus), Emory University

Francoise Rosset
Francoise Rosset

Associate Professor of Russian; Chair of Russian Department, Wheaton College

Daria Khitrova
Daria Khitrova

Professor of Slavic Languages and Literatures, Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, Harvard University

Olympiada of Spoken Russian Graphic

Olympiada of Spoken Russian

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In person

Russian language competition for high school students. 

Cris Martin
Cris Martin

Associate Director, Davis Center

Sandra Grudic
Sandra Grudić

Program Administrator, Educator Outreach, Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies

Literacy

Literacy Webinar Series for Educators: Making Writing Manageable

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Online

This webinar explores scaffolding techniques and strategies from "The Writing Revolution" to help educators make social studies writing tasks more accessible and manageable for diverse learners.

H. Nicole Richardson

Psychology/ Social Studies Teacher

Sandra Grudic
Sandra Grudić

Program Administrator, Educator Outreach, Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies

Protests against the law "on foreign influence", Tblisi, 2024

Georgia's Democratic Promise and Crisis: Institutions, Law, and Civic Resistance

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In person

Since regaining independence in 1991, Georgia has been regarded as one of the most promising democratic reformers in the post-Soviet region. Nearly three decades later, Georgia is experiencing significant political and institutional strain. Recent legislative developments, tensions between governing institutions, and large-scale public protests have raised concerns about the resilience of democratic safeguards, and the future of the country’s development.

Mark Dietrich
Mark Dietrich

Vice President, East-West Management Institute (EWMI)

Ana Natsvlishvili
Ana Natsvlishvili

Human Rights and Policy Expert, McCain Institute

Grzegorz Ekiert

Director, Davis Center; Laurence A. Tisch Professor of Government; Senior Scholar, Harvard Academy for International and Area Studies
Harvard University

Semyon Khanin

'In Other Words, It Was About Something Else Entirely': Poetry Reading and Discussion With Semyon Khanin

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In person

Semyon Khanin, one of Latvia’s most prominent Russian-language poets will appear together with Kevin M. F. Platt, who is among his longstanding translators into English. This bilingual reading will be followed by a Q&A and discussion with the poet and translator.


 

Semyon Khanin
Semyon Khanin

Poet and Translator; Founding Member, Orbita Poetry and Multimedia Art Project (Latvia)

Image of Kevin Platt, University of Pennsylvania
Kevin M. F. Platt

Professor of Russian and East European Studies, University of Pennsylvania

Daria Khitrova
Daria Khitrova

Professor of Slavic Languages and Literatures, Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, Harvard University

Museum of Communism

The Cold War and the Mystery of an Anti-Stalinist Intellectual: Josef Guttmann's Two Lives

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In person

Join us for a book talk that uncovers the mystery of Josef Guttmann, a prominent communist dissident. 

Jacques Rupnik
Jacques Rupnik

Center for International Research, Sciences Po (Paris)

Mark Kramer
Mark Kramer

Director, Cold War Studies Project, Davis Center

Protests on 4 November 2024 against the official results of the Georgian parliamentary elections of 26 October 2024.

How Young Georgians See the Future, and What We Must Learn

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Online

This webinar is a conversation with young Georgian scholars and activists, who have themselves experienced and resisted the entrenchment of authoritarian rule in Georgia. Focusing on the future, it aims to paint a picture of the constraints and opportunities that they face today, and to articulate a vision for a better tomorrow. 

Recording Available
Markus Vaher

A.M. Candidate in Regional Studies—REECA

Kremlin tower through the small window

The Impact of 4 Years of Warfare on the Russian Federation (Part I)

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Online

Join a workshop on how Moscow's war against Ukraine has impacted the Russian Federation.

Henry Hale
Henry E. Hale

Professor of Political Science and International Affairs, George Washington University; Director, Institute for European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies (IERES), Elliott School

Valerie Sperling
Valerie Sperling

Professor of Political Science, Clark University

Brian Taylor
Brian Taylor

Professor of Political Science, Director of the Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University

Dmitry Gorenburg
Dmitry Gorenburg

Senior Research Scientist, CNA

Mark Kramer
Mark Kramer

Director, Cold War Studies Project, Davis Center

Andrea Graziosi
Andrea Graziosi

Professor of History, Università di Napoli Federico II

a book cover of Magoril journal 1952

The Literary Legacy of Julius Margolin, Gulag Veteran and Public Intellectual

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In person

A reassessment of the literary legacy of Julius Margolin, whose memoir "Journey into the Land of the Zeks" was of the earliest important contributions to the corpus of Gulag literature.

Leona Toker
Leona Toker

Professor Emerita, the Hebrew University (Jerusalem)

Maxim Shrayer
Maxim D. Shrayer

Professor of Russian, English, and Jewish Studies, Boston College; Chair, Seminar on Russian and Eurasian Jewry, Davis Center

Kremlin tower through the small window

The Impact of 4 Years of Warfare on the Russian Federation (Part II)

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Online

Join the workshop on how Russia's war against Ukraine impacted the Russian Federation.

 

Maria Snegovaya
Maria Snegovaya

Senior Fellow, Center for Strategic and International Affairs Studies; Adjunct Professor, Georgetown University

Peter Rutland
Peter Rutland

Professor of Government, Wesleyan University; Vice President, Association for the Study of Nationalities; Associate Editor, Russian Review

Harley Balzer

Professor Emeritus, Georgetown University

Cynthia Buckley
Cynthia Buckley

Professor (Emeritus) of Sociology at the University of Illinois

Mark Kramer
Mark Kramer

Director, Cold War Studies Project, Davis Center

Andrea Graziosi
Andrea Graziosi

Professor of History, Università di Napoli Federico II

Arctic event image

Negotiating Authority: Indigenous Diplomacy Across Arctic and Global Governance

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In person

This roundtable examines Indigenous diplomacy as a form of institutional engagement operating simultaneously across multiple political arenas. 

Photo of Marjorie Balzer
Marjorie Mandelstam Balzer
Photo of Elsa Stamatopoulou
Elsa Stamatopoulou
Photo of Andrey Petrov
Andrey Petrov
Liubov Sulyandziga
Liubov Sulyandziga

Visiting Scholar, Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies (AY 2025-26)

map of post soviet republics

Analyzing Post-Soviet Reforms and Reform Proposals: Results of Comparative Research, Part 2

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In person

Come hear key findings from a unique comparison of institutional reforms enacted or proposed by elites, opposition groups, and other actors in Armenia, Kyrgyzstan; and Russia. 

Irina Busygina
Irina Busygina

Independent Scholar

Aspram Israyelyan
Aspram Israyelyan

A.M. Candidate in Regional Studies—REECA

Matvey Anufriev
Matvey Anufriev

MPP Candidate, Harvard Kennedy School

Zachary Hollis
Zachary Hollis

A.M. Candidate in Regional Studies—REECA

Dried Aral Sea with ship wreck and grazing animals

Elusive Water: The Life and Death of Central Asia's Aral Sea

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In person

 Join us for the talk examining the causes and the consequences of the Aral Sea disaster. 

Sarah Cameron
Sarah Cameron

Associate Professor of History at the University of Maryland, College Park

Nargis Kassenova
Nargis Kassenova

Senior Fellow and Director, Program on Central Asia, Davis Center

Nenets reindeer herder on a winter day

Borrowed Voices: Indigenous Rights, Representation and the Crisis of Legitimacy in Global Governance

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In person

Join us for the annual Davis Memorial Lecture, exploring how Indigenous representation operates under conditions of political constraint, with a focus on the growing repression faced by Indigenous activists in Russia.

Liubov Sulyandziga
Liubov Sulyandziga

Visiting Scholar, Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies (AY 2025-26)

Steven Solnick
Steven Solnick

Executive Director, Davis Center

Anti-war and anti-NATO graffiti in Valladolid, 1986

The Cold War, Spain's Entry Into NATO, and the 1986 Referendum: The Political Dynamics

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In person

Join us for a seminar on Spain’s 1986 referendum on NATO membership. Drawing on multinational archival research and interviews, the talk explores how Spain navigated allies' expectations and domestic political pressures while defining its role in NATO. 

Recording Available
Marina Pérez de Arcos
Marina Pérez de Arcos

UKRI Global Fellow, Yale University

Mark Kramer
Mark Kramer

Director, Cold War Studies Project, Davis Center

"The First Social Democracy" book cover.

Book Talk: Georgia, 1918-1921, The World's First Social Democratic State?

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In person

The book asks questions about how the great ideologies of the twentieth century such as nationalism, socialism and liberalism both clashed and fused in Georgia to establish something no one was expecting, a social democratic state on the periphery of Europe.

Stephen Jones
Stephen Jones

Chairman, Advisory Board, Program on Georgian Studies, Davis Center; Professor of Modern Georgian History, Ilia State University (Tbilisi, Georgia)

Natia Chankvetadze
Natia Chankvetadze

Director, Program on Georgian Studies, Davis Center

Lottery ticket issued by Avtodor, 1930

Introduction to Blavatnik Archive's Open-Source Digital Collections

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Online

Join us for a presentation on the Blavatnik Archive’s digital collections and tools. 

Sandra Grudic
Sandra Grudić

Program Administrator, Educator Outreach, Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies

Julie Reines Chervinsky

Director, Blavatnik Archive

Brandon Schechter

Historian, Blavatnik Archive

Past

We’ve hosted dozens of events, many of which we’ve recorded. Search past events for the topics you care about.

Soviet-hosted 1980 Olympics with Olympic rings as chains

Visualizing the Cold War: New Tools for the Classroom

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Online

This webinar offers history and social studies teachers practical, classroom-ready ways to work with Cold War primary sources in a short professional learning session.

Adnan Džumhur

Associate Director of the UNC Center for Slavic, Eurasian, and Eastern European Studies at University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill

Sandra Grudic
Sandra Grudić

Program Administrator, Educator Outreach, Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies

18th National Congress of the CCP

Power, Coercion, and Loyalty: The Chinese Communist Party Hierarchy During the Cold War and After

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In person

Join us to hear Joseph Torigian tell the life story of Xi Zhongxun, a man who spent his entire life struggling to balance his own feelings with the Party's demands.

Recording Available
Joseph Torigian
Joseph Torigian

Associate Professor, American University (Washington DC)

Mark Kramer
Mark Kramer

Director, Cold War Studies Project, Davis Center

Monument to Genghis Khan on Sukhbaatar Square, Ulaanbaatar.

Retrospective Bordering: Genghis Khan, Central Asia, and Soviet Historical Imagination

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In person

Join us for the talk examining Soviet historical novels about Genghis Khan by Vasily Yan and Aleksei Kalashnikov as a site of ideological struggle over the meaning of the Mongol conquest and its place in Central Asian history. 

Ivan Peshkov
Ivan Peshkov

Head, Center for Central Asian Studies, Adam Mickiewicz University (Poznań, Poland)

Nargis Kassenova
Nargis Kassenova

Senior Fellow and Director, Program on Central Asia, Davis Center

The Man Who Loved Literature Very Much, by Guram Dochanashvili’s Book Cover

Provincializing National Literatures: Imperial Canon Formation in Multinational Soviet Literature and Georgian Counter-Models

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In person

The talk shows how late Soviet claims of cultural equality masked a Russocentric canon-making regime and how Georgian writers and critics both enabled and resisted it through competing strategies of universality and national self-assertion.

Zaal Andronikashvili
Zaal Andronikashvili

Research Fellow, Center for Literary and Cultural Research (Berlin); Professor, Ilia State University (Tbilisi)

David Damrosch
David Damrosch

Ernest Bernbaum Professor of Comparative Literature; Chair, Executive Committee, Institute for World Literature, Harvard University

Allison Hart

Coordinator, Program on Georgian Studies, Davis Center

Natia Chankvetadze
Natia Chankvetadze

Director, Program on Georgian Studies, Davis Center

drawing of the red blood stain

Alevtina Kakhidze: 'Drawing the War' Exhibition Opening Reception

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In person

Join us at the exhibition by the Ukrainian artist Alvetina Kakhidze, "Drawing the War" opening reception. 

See more past events