Centre for European and Eurasian Studies (CEES)

CERES Name-Change Announcement

The region that we study is changing rapidly and dramatically. Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine is now over two years old. The annexation of Crimea is more than ten years old. The referendum on Brexit occurred nearly 8 years ago. Germany has again become a significant foreign policy actor. There is both unprecedented unity of purpose within most of Europe and an equally unprecedented question-mark looming about US support for NATO. Much of this was unthinkable when CERES came into being in 2006. But, here we are in 2024, and the unthinkable is happening before our very eyes. This cannot help but shift how we conduct research about, teach about, and learn about Europe and Eurasia.

As most of you are aware, over the past years such “real-world” changes have given rise to informal conversations about the Centre’s mission and its name. Gradually, informal conversations became more formal, with a faculty retreat, a series of surveys, and consultations with students, faculty, staff, and alumni, both within CERES and across the university. A proposal to change the Centre’s name emerged, and that proposal was discussed thoroughly and extensively before being subjected to a full governance process. Although the full-scale invasion of Ukraine undoubtedly accelerated these discussions, consideration of new names for our centre began well before February 2022. As a result of these processes, beginning July 1, 2024, our Centre will have a new name: the Centre for European and Eurasian Studies. Correspondingly, our thriving MA program will have a new degree name: MA in European and Eurasian Studies. Our new name aligns with the practices of other regional studies centres around the university, referencing a geographic region rather than highlighting single countries.

A Statement From CEES Director, Ed Schatz

Our community at CEES has been acutely affected by this war. Some staff and faculty members hail originally from Ukraine. Many of our faculty have conducted research in Ukraine, and many of our students have gone to Ukraine on exchange or served as interns in Ukrainian NGO’s. We have welcomed students from Ukraine at the BA, MA, and PhD levels into our academic community. Our Petro Jacyk Program (PJP) for the Study of Ukraine has run over 50 webinars, with hundreds and hundreds of viewers. PJP has mounted an innovative non-residential fellowship program, allowing dozens of scholars based in Ukraine to continue their scholarly activities while building community with fellow scholars in Ukraine and Canada...