About

The Research Initiative on Post-Soviet Space (RIPSS) is an interdisciplinary seminar series and research network for scholars working in Soviet/post-Soviet/Slavic studies, convened by Professor Mark Edele and Dr Julie Fedor in the Faculty of Arts.

This research network was founded in 2017, as the Melbourne Eurasianist Seminar Series (MESS). In 2023, it was re-launched as the Research Initiative on Post-Soviet Space (RIPSS).

Core aims

• Consolidate the emerging strength of post-Soviet studies at the University of Melbourne;
• Build a platform for further grant success;
• Advance postgraduate and post-doctoral recruitment and enhance the postgraduate experience in post-Soviet studies across the University;
• Build relationships of mutual benefit with other research groups and institutions in the Asia-Pacific Region;
• Advance knowledge and public understanding of the post-Soviet world, past and present