Profile

The research carried out at the Viadrina Center of Polish and Ukrainian Studies is dedicated to Poland and Ukraine in a broad transregional context, considering the close entanglements – commonalities as well as conflicts – in this multi-layered contact zone. Polish and Ukrainian studies are understood as an integral part of Central/Eastern European studies. Recognizing the cultural and political agency of Poland and Ukraine, we treat our research as an integrative endeavor with a strategic interdisciplinary focus. 

Our goal is to gain a comprehensive understanding of the historical and contemporary social, economic, and cultural processes in Poland and Ukraine against a European and global background. Topics of our Center studies include, e.g., historical experiences of conflict resolution and co-existence, contemporary challenges of migration and decolonization, market transformation since 1989, situational bilingualism and popular culture, memory wars and reconciliation. Special attention is given to the region's multi-ethnic heritage, including Jewish and Muslim communities.

We are seeking a new analytical language to describe the diverse, pluralistic, and fascinating social reality of Central and Eastern Europe, and to critically rethink dominant theoretical approaches. To this end, we plan to launch a new book series both in Germany and in Ukraine.

In direct alignment with its research focus, the Viadrina Center of Polish and Ukrainian Studies pursues the strategy of integrating Polish, Ukrainian, as well as Central and Eastern European studies into as many disciplines and courses at the Viadrina as possible. For this reason, courses are generally offered in English and German, together with a number of seminars in Polish and Ukrainian, and are aimed at students from all three faculties at all levels of qualification – BA, MA and PhD. 

Our Center applies a variety of methods to provide detailed knowledge of Poland and Ukraine in a European and global context, in-depth methodological knowledge from various disciplines, as well as language skills at an academic level. Excursions to the region complement on-site courses. 

BA and MA students of the Viadrina as well as of other universities in Berlin and Brandenburg will be able to obtain a Certificate in Interdisciplinary Ukrainian Studies offered by the Viadrina Center of Polish and Ukrainian Studies and the Ukrainian lectureship at the Language Center of the European University Viadrina. 

We take part in and contribute to online teaching programs for and together with our colleagues from Ukraine. We will also continue a series of Summer/Winter Transregional Academies for PhD students and early career researchers together with our partners from the New Europe College (Bucharest), the Centre for Advanced Study Sofia and the Forum Transregionale Studien in Berlin. The transregional dimension is an important vehicle for developing the inclusive character of Polish and Ukrainian studies.

We want to share the results of our enquiries with the public. Scientifically based, trustworthy knowledge and information, especially about the complex situations and conditions in Central and Eastern Europe, are urgently needed in Germany. In order to transfer the findings of the Viadrina Center of Polish and Ukrainian Studies projects into an enlightened public debate, we will further develop our existing formats: In addition to the book series Interdisciplinary Polish Studies – published both in print and digitally (Open Access) – we maintain a YouTube channel and an academic blog on Polish and Ukrainian studies. Together with the Centre for Historical Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Berlin and the Free Ukrainian University in Munich we publish an academic book series Ukraine-Poland-Germany. A Triangle of Dialogue. We would also launch a book series Viadrina Ukrainian Studies together with the Kyiv-based publishing house Dukh i Litera.

Moreover, the Viadrina Center of Polish and Ukrainian Studies will seek partnerships with leading institutions in the field to maximize the success of the academic knowledge transfer. We are thinking of various institutions in Frankfurt/Oder, in the Berlin-Brandenburg region, but certainly also in the voivodeships beyond the Oder river. Cooperative links are already established with the Prisma Ukraїna Research Network Eastern Europe (hosted by Forum Transregionale Studien in Berlin), with the Pilecki Institute, the Ukrainian Institute London, the Ukrainian Center for Holocaust Studies in Kyiv, and many others.