The current wars and conflicts have prompted a renewed interest in the nexus between postsocialism and postcolonialism. How do their legacies shape power relations, identities, and inequalities? Are there possibilities to re-imagine less violent futures? This is analyzed at the workshop “Re-Mapping Interdependencies. Borders, Memories, and Actors in Postsocialist/Postcolonial Spaces” at the Center for interdisciplinary Research (ZiF) July 16-17.
There is growing recognition of the need to conceptualize the relations between postsocialist and postcolonial social formations. How do these entanglements interact to shape global constellations of domination and subordination? How can we develop a deeper understanding of global power structures and advance academic imaginaries of less violent futures?
© Rebecca Moltmann
This workshop brings together scholars, curators, museum practitioners, and civil society actors to explore how postcolonial and postsocialist pasts and presents intersect in the analysis of space, memory, and belonging. While the fields of postsocialist and postcolonial studies have often developed in parallel, recent scholarship increasingly highlights their interdependencies and the need for dialogue across regional and disciplinary boundaries.
The workshop, convened by sociologist Tetiana Havlin (Cottbus), Manuel Peters (Chemnitz), who works on intercultural communication, and historian Yaroslav Zhuravlov (Jena), aims to foster such exchange by addressing conceptual approaches, methodological challenges, and practical implications.
Public Lectures, Panel Discussions And A Book Presentation
The program combines public lectures with two panel discussions that encourage interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral dialogue, and a book presentation. Key topics include the Eastern European past in the global arena, culture wars in the post-Soviet space, and museums in the context of postcolonial and postsocialist entanglements where complex and contested pasts and presents are negotiated.
The workshop is part of the research group “Postcolonial and Postsocialist Interdependencies Across Borders” which is working at ZiF since April 2026.
