Description

CIUS’s hallmark event for its fortieth anniversary in 2016 was a two-day conference held at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, bringing together scholars and community members from across Canada, the United States, and Europe, as well as hundreds of online viewers. Edited by Dr. Volodymyr Kravchenko, Ukrainian Studies in Canada: Texts and Contexts; Proceedings of the CIUS Fortieth Anniversary Conference, 14–15 October 2016 is a direct product of the transcripts, submitted papers, discussions, questions, and opinions that came out of this milestone Ukrainian studies event. The 170-page softcover publication documents the five round-table sessions of the conference, as well as greetings from Exc. Andriy Shevchenko, Ukraine’s ambassador to Canada, and a keynote speech by Rt. Rev. Dr. Borys Gudziak, head of the Department of External Church Relations of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.

Round Table I describes the foundation and gradual legitimization of Ukrainian studies in the West, with presentations by founding CIUS director Manoly Lupul and luminaries in the field such as Paul Robert Magocsi, Frank Sysyn, and Zenon Kohut. Round Table II considers new challenges for Ukrainian studies in a worldwide context, including contributions by Martha Bohachevsky-Chomiak, Rory Finnin, and Mark Von Hagen. Round Table III focuses on Ukrainian-Canadian studies, while Round Table IV discusses the challenges of teaching Ukrainian studies in the context of evolving academic priorities. And Round Table V highlights the work of funding organizations that support Ukrainian studies.

The presentation texts are complemented by fully transcribed discussions, conveying the lively exchanges that occurred among the scholars and conference attendees. Scholarly additions to the volume include an introductory essay by the editor and footnotes and index by Ksenia Maryniak. The Proceedings texts were also published online by CIUS, with links to the video recordings of the conference; managed by Oleksandr Pankieiev, this open-access publication enables the continued dissemination of the ideas and analysis of Ukrainian studies in CIUS’s Texts and Contexts, with thousands of views worldwide.