Last fall International Studies and Politics & Public Affairs Professor Matthew Slaboch wanted to hold an event to recognize that December 25, 2021 marked 30 years since the fall of the Soviet Union. The whole Eastern Europe and Central Asia region has undergone major transitions in the past three decades. Dr. Slaboch teamed up with Alina Haliliuc(COMM/INTL) and Dr. Zarrina Juraqulova (ECON/INTL) to plan a series to bring light to these changes and the region.
Post-communist Transitions week (March 21-25) will include a dinner, talks, films and a Pysanky Ukrainian egg design workshop. Two guest lecturers will give public presentations via zoom.
Wednesday 3/23 Guest Lecture
Economic History and Social Reality of the Post-Socialist ‘Transition Economies’
7:00 pm, via Zoom
Dr. Aleksandr V. Gevorkyan, Dept. of Economics and Finance, St. John’s University
Moderator: Dr. Zarrina Juraqulova, Assistant Professor of Economics, Denison University
The true tale of the economic transition from a socialist to a capitalist economic model of Central/Eastern Europe (CEE) and the former Soviet Union (FSU) is yet to be heard. As the Berlin Wall fell in November 1989, the CEE and FSU economies began their economic transition—rather, transformation—from a planned socialist model to a market-based economy.
In the current pandemic environment, the smallest of the transition economies may be forced to develop and adopt new socio-economic development models. Will economic history be a reliable guide to the new social reality in the region?