We're back to Belarus with this episode, but this time we take an in-depth look at the still-thrumming situation from the dictator's perspective with one of the foremost experts on the region, Dr. David Marples. Dr. Marples talks about the potential end of the dictator while rounding out the context for the current revolution, allowing us to see just how and why Alexander Lukashenko came into power. Follow Dr. Marples on Twitter @drmarples.
ABOUT THE GUEST
Dr. David R. Marples is a former President of The North American Association for Belarusian Studies and was formerly Director of the Stasiuk Program on Contemporary Ukraine at the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies, University of Alberta. In 2014 he was a Visiting Professor at the Slavic and Eurasian Research Center, Hokkaido University, Japan. At the University of Alberta he is a recipient of the J. Gordin Kaplan Award for Excellence in Research (2003) and the University Cup (2008), the university's highest award. He is regarded as one of the leading Western authorities on the Chernobyl nuclear catastrophe (social and political aspects), Lukashenko's regime in Belarus, and contemporary Ukraine. In 2014 he published Our Glorious Past': Lukashenka's Belarus and the Great Patriotic War', the product of an Insight Grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. In 2017, he published 'Ukraine in Conflict' with E-International Relations Publishing. In 2020, he co-edited a book with Aya Fujiwara entitled Hiroshima-75: Nuclear Issues in Global Contexts," published by Ibidem-Verlag, and the result of a conference at the University of Alberta. As a historian Marples has written extensively on Eastern European history of the 20th Century including such major historical events as the Russian Revolution 1917-1920, Ukrainian Famine 1932-1933, Stalinism, and fall of the Soviet Union.
NOTE: This episode was recorded on September 21st, 2020 via Zoom.
CREDITS
Co-Host/Co-Producer: Tom Rehnquist (Connect: Twitter @RehnquistTom)
Co-Host/Co-Producer: Matthew Orr (Connect: facebook.com/orrrmatthew)
Associate Producer: Lera Toropin
Associate Producer: Cullan Bendig
Assistant Producer: Samantha Farmer
Assistant Producer: Milena D-K
Assistant Producer/Administrator: Kathryn Yegorov-Crate
Recording, Editing, and Sound Design: Michelle Daniel
Additional Editing: Jada Geraci
Music Producer: Charlie Harper (Connect: facebook.com/charlie.harper.1485 Instagram: @charlieharpermusic) www.charlieharpermusic.com (Main Theme by Charlie Harper and additional background music by Charlie Harper and Michelle Daniel, Ketsa, Eme Hache, and Ion Romania)
Executive Producer & Creator: Michelle Daniel (Connect: facebook.com/mdanielgeraci Instagram: @michelledaniel86) www.msdaniel.com
DISCLAIMER: The views expressed on this episode do not necessarily reflect those of the show or the University of Texas at Austin.
Special Guest: David R. Marples.