The SRAS Newsletter
A Resource for Students, Educators, and Anyone Curious about Russia Welcome from SRAS!
Our last several newsletters have focused on politics and the elections in Russia. This month we begin to move away from that - but not too far. This month's double issue of the SRAS newsletter focuses on professions that use the Russian language and on the vast expanse of Siberia. Russia is not just politics. It's also a booming consumer economy; it reflects a history and culture that stretches back a millennia; it's 144,000,000 highly diverse people spread across Russia and around the world.
It's reemergence in the global community is why Russia has become an important issue of foreign policy in questions asked of US presidential candidates. It's why the Bush administration is making Russia a priority before leaving office. It is also one reason why the media seems to be becoming increasingly polarized in their coverage of Russia - advocating an approach of "leave Russia to the Russians" or an approach of treating Russia as we have traditionally advocated treating dictatorships - with interventionist policies and punitive diplomacy. Our newsletter also continues to follow politics with original articles and in our extensive "obzori." As always, we've tried to keep our focus wide, our information specific, and our stance neutral. If you have views or material you would like to contribute to the newsletter, please contact us. To subscribe to this free newsletter, send an email with "Subscribe SRAS" in the subject field to jwilson@sras.org.  News and Announcements
Its already time to start thinking about Fall 2008! The application deadline for most of our fall study abroad programs is May 1st! SRAS can still accept late applications for summer enrolments into the following programs: Kyrgyz Summer Adventure and custom programs in Kyrgyzstan; custom Russian as a Second Language Programs starting June 30th or later; Russian Studies Semester II; and Intensive Russian Summer. These will be open for a limited time! Apply today! Application deadlines have been extended for the Charles Braver Language Exploration Grant and the SRAS Work Study Program to April 7th, 2008. Get your applications in today! SRAS advises History Channel for an episode of "Cities of the Underground." View the episode on April 21st, 2008, at 9pm, EST. SRAS has hosted many FLAS scholarship recipients on our programs over the years. If you are a FLAS recipient, contact us about how we can design a program for you! WAC/WID Mapping Project at UC-Davis is a survey that aims to identify, compile, analyze, and facilitate activity and interest in writing in higher education around the world. The European Reading Room of the Library of Congress is planning to close indefinitely. The room has been invaluable to Slavic scholars for years. Write your congressman to express your support for the facility! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | Обзоры: Learn About Russia and Eurasia through the News | These news reviews strive to paint an accurate and balanced picture of life in Russia and to deliver information on important events affecting Eurasia that do not receive heavy coverage in the Western news. | Russian Politics in Review
A look at various institutions vying for power and influence. Extensive coverage given to Medvedev's coming government and possible political changes. Russian Business and Economy
This obzor will be published in approximately one week as part of the the USRCCNE newsletter.
| Russia-Related events in: UK, 2; NS; AZ; DC, 2; HI; IN; IL, 2, 3, 4; MA, 2; NY, 2, 3, 4, 5; OH; OK; PA, 2 Find More Cultural Events
in the US! |
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  The Accidental Translator
Nora Favorov is a freelance, professional translator who took some time from her piles of manuscripts to talk about how she came to be a translator and what it's like to work in a profession that often must bridge art and science.
Teaching High School Russian
Michele Whaley told us about traveling the USSR, the many paths her students have taken, and what makes a good teacher. Translation: Buying a Non-Commodity (PDF)
This brochure from the American Translator's Association seeks to dispel the common myth that buying a translation is like buying a packet of sugar. Good translations are rare - and bad translations can be very, very expensive... Language as Profession
Study pedagogy, translation, or journalism in Moscow or St. Petersburg. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  Eastern Siberia
If Eastern Siberia declared independence, it would be the world's seventh largest country. Find out more about this vast region of Russia in this new article from SRAS!
Russian Resources
This fully updated and expanded library entry gives you a full tour of Russia's resources - from oil and gas to steel and uranium to agriculture and timber. Herein lies the real power of Siberia! Life in a Reindeer Collective
Former SRAS student Joshua Blackwelder spent two and half months living and working with a group of Evenk reindeer herders to study their ethnography. He's shared some of his field notes and pictures with us. Bordertalk: Sino-Russian Relations
Explore the history, economy, politics, and languages of both Russia and China from the excellent vantage point of Siberia, where Russia literally meets China. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Scholarships and Grants
An updated list of current Russia-related scholarship cycles. New Internship Offered
Beginning in summer, 2008, a new, paid internship will be offered in Moscow, Russia. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  The World According to Zhirinovsky
This ongoing series on Russia's political nationalism continues with the addition of section two to the translation of V. V. Zirinovsky's political manifesto (the original publication included only sections one and three) more sections will be added in future editions of this newsletter.
Russia's New Political Field (PDF)
The US Russia Business Council has issued this document discussing what we might expect from the new Putin-Medvedev tandem. Include is a brief synopsis of the constitutional powers of the Russian president and prime minister. The Kremlin and the World
In this four part BBC series, Tim Whewell looks at the recent conflict of issues that could re-draw the old fault lines that once divided East and West. Russian Studies Semester
Submerge yourself in the language, history, current events, culture and the arts, economy, and politics of Russia and the former Soviet Union. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  Iconic Children's Literature
Diafilm was a cultural icon of the Soviet Union - a series of children's books produced as slide shows. A new site reproduces some of those slide shows in flash format.
Tour of a Luxury Trans Siberian Train
This site, from Russian Railways, allows you to explore a Trans Siberian Train, meeting interesting people and seeing a little of the country side out the windows. Что на завтрак?
As agriculture begins to revive (finally) in Russia, breakfast food brands are beginning to diversify to meet the needs of a faster-moving population. On the Train - На поезде
Trains are the most popular form of travel in Russia and a part of Russian culture. Find out more about the language you will need to use this transport in this month's Russian Mini Lesson. Russian as a Second Language
The best way to learn Russian? Study abroad! | 
