This article is part of the Ellison Center blog Series on Sochi. Click here to read more as we cover the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Russia!    By Sarah McPhee The shores of the Black Sea rise to meet the picturesque mountains of the Caucasus in Sochi, and it is universally agreed that this is a

The Ellison Center Blog will be following the Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia. Click on the Series on Sochi logo for special coverage of REECA Olympic history, analysis of the Games and medal updates!

The 2014 Herbert J. Ellison Memorial Lecture with CNN’s Jill Dougherty is now available to watch online from start to finish. Read a brief preview of the event here.  

By Jennifer J. Carroll Just a few short weeks ago, walking through the EuroMaidan encampment would bring me joy. In December and early January, it was an organic gathering of people filled with music, dancing, food, and art. There were children in costume, gathering choirs, and community building the likes of which I have never

by Jennifer Carroll Read Jennifer’s powerful stories of EuroMaidan here. (Click to scroll through photos.)  

Richard Youngs, a senior associate in the Democracy and Rule of Law Program, will present talks on European crises today, Jan. 29, and Friday, Jan. 31. He is an expert on the foreign policy of the European Union, in particular on questions of democracy support. He has published widely on the Middle East, the European neighborhood, the current EU crisis, and energy

by Ellison Center Staff I regrettably announce that Allison Dvaladze, who has been the Assistant Director for Outreach for the Ellison Center since 2005, left the Center this month to move to the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance’s Global Oncology unit. In the time she worked at the Center, Allison was instrumental in enhancing all aspects

By Indra Ekmanis As a panel of scholars analyzed Ukraine’s Euromaidan protests Tuesday night at UW, 5,000 miles away in Kyiv, events turned deadly. At least two protestors were killed by gunshots as pro-European/anti-government forces clashed with riot police. These are the first reported fatalities of Euromaidan. The protests began Nov. 21, 2013, when Ukrainian

A wave of demonstrations and civil unrest erupted in Ukraine in November 2013 when the Ukrainian government suddenly suspended preparations for signing an Association Agreement with the European Union. The protest quickly transformed into a social movement called “Euromaidan” calling for stronger democratic institutions, rule of law and independence from Russian dominance. Crowds have reached

By Veronica Muskheli Together with a few other Eastern European nations, Russians have a concept that is strange to Americans, the Old New Year. It is celebrated the night of January 13th to 14th because, according to the Julian-style Eastern Orthodox Church calendar, January 14th is actually January 1st. Russians, Georgians, Macedonians, and so forth, whether