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UTENRIKS-Internasjonale forhold - utenriks- og sikkerhetspolitikk og norske interesser

Accommodation of Regional Diversity in Ukraine (ARDU)

Alternative title: Håndtering av regional ulikhet i Ukraina (ARDU)

Awarded: NOK 4.0 mill.

In ARDU we have examined how ethnicity, language and regional-local identity interact within the context of political reform in Ukraine. The project's main aim has been to find out to what extent, and how, current Ukrainian decentralisation, education and language policies affect social cohesion among ethnocultural groups in two very different border regions: Kharkiv in the east and bordering Russia, has a sizable Russian ethnocultural population, while the western region of Chernivtsi borders Romania and comprises a substantial Romanian minority. Since ethnic issues in Ukraine tend to be highly politicized and with international repercussions, the project also studies how Ukraine's ethnic policies affect relations with neighbouring states. By focusing on current political reforms, ARDU adds to the emerging research on identity and politics in Ukraine, an issue which is highly important for the country's stability. In the autumn of 2019 we carried out systematic field work in the two regions: Semi-structured and focus group interviews with key stakeholders. In December 2020 we conducted population surveys in the two regions, and a nation-wide telephone survey. To build research competence among young researchers, a 4-week summer course was arranged in the summer of 2019 for 10 Ukrainian research students. Five young researchers were recruited for subsequent involvement in data collection and analysis under supervision of ARDU's senior researchers. The project was conducted by an international interdisciplinary team of researchers with complementary competence from Norway, Ukraine and Germany. NIBR (OsloMet) and the Department of Sociology at V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University are the project's main partners. In September 2021 a book (Palgrave) with results from the project (9 chapters) was published, with Aadne Aasland and Sabine Kropp as editors. All senior and junior researchers contributed chapters. Among several important findings, we highlight the following: Although the decentralisation reform has made previously ethnically homogeneous communities being merged into larger multiethnic territorial units, this has not resulted in more ethnic conflict. Economic conditions by far outweigh ethnic concerns among the population. The education reform, making the Russian language less prominent in Ukrainian schools, is more divisive.

Main academic impact: insights into how Ukraine's regional and ethnocultural diversity is dealt with by national, regional and local authorities, and perceived by ordinary Ukrainians. Dissemination via an academic book (being translated into Ukrainian), numerous academic and popular articles, conference papers, targeted presentations for Ukrainian and Norwegian policy-makers (e.g. Ministry of Foreign Affairs/Norwegian Embassy in Ukraine) informs different types of audiences in Ukraine, Norway and internationally about highly relevant findings, given Ukraine's nation-building process and current conflict with Russia. New insights brought about by the project on how ongoing reforms affect social cohesion could potentially impact on their further development. Also, the involvement of junior Ukrainian researchers in all phases of the project has given them a possibility to network and to develop skills that enable them to publish in well reputed international journals and books.

Accommodation of Regional Diversity in Ukraine (ARDU ) ARDU examines how ethnicity, language and regional-local identity interact within the context of political reform in Ukraine. The project's main aim is to find out to what extent, and how, current Ukrainian decentralisation, education and language policies affect social cohesion among ethnocultural groups in two very different border regions. The Kharkiv region in eastern Ukraine borders Russia, has a sizable Russian ethnocultural population, and the majority uses Russian as their mother tongue, while the western region of Chernivtsi borders Romania and has a substantial Romanian minority. Since ethnic issues in Ukraine tend to be highly politicized and has international repercussions, the project also studies how Ukraine's ethnic policies affect relations with neighbouring states. By focusing on current political reforms, ARDU will add to the emerging research on identity and politics in Ukraine, an issue which is highly important for the country’s stability. We will carry out systematic field work in the two regions: Semi-structured and focus group interviews with key stakeholders, population surveys in the two regions, and a nation-wide telephone survey. To build research competence among young researchers, a 4-week summer course will be arranged for 10 Ukrainian research students. Three of them will be recruited for subsequent involvement in data collection and analysis under supervision of ARDU's senior researchers. The project will be conducted by an international interdisciplinary team of researchers with complementary competence from Norway, Ukraine and Germany. NIBR at Oslo Metropolitan University and the Department of Sociology at V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University will be the project’s main partners.

Publications from Cristin

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UTENRIKS-Internasjonale forhold - utenriks- og sikkerhetspolitikk og norske interesser