Talk on 'Soviet Science goes global: Soviet science internationalism and UNESCO in the 1960s'

Cambridge Central Asia Forum invites you to a talk

on

Soviet Science goes global: Soviet science internationalism and UNESCO in the 1960s

 by

Boram Shin, Jeonbuk National University, South Korea

Date: 21 November 

Time: 11am-1pm

Venue: Room 119, Alison Richard Building, 7 West Road, Cambridge CB3 9DT

Online Zoom registration link: https://cam-ac-uk.zoom.us/meeting/register/AQ50hWn8SNqeWDZGwPjUQg 

Everyone is welcome.  

Abstract: This paper examines how Soviet science diplomacy shaped UNESCO’s science policy programs during the late 1950s and 1960s. It argues that the Soviet Union, joining UNESCO in 1954, was pivotal in promoting a state-centric model of science as a national asset and public good. This “Soviet science internationalism,” promoted by its scientists and civil officers within the organization, was not a new concept. Instead, it was deeply rooted in the USSR’s own post-revolutionary experience of transforming from an agrarian to an industrial economy. This paper traces how the Soviet science model—which included a centralized R&D system and mass scientific education—was further shaped by the Soviet Union’s experience in exporting this system, first internally to Central Asia and later to China and North Korea. This model of science development and Soviet science internationalism resonated strongly with the growing bloc of decolonizing countries, who embraced the development of national scientific capacities as essential for breaking free from colonial dependence. This paper concludes that the Soviet experience provided a powerful framework that fundamentally shaped UNESCO’s agenda, effectively “nationalizing” science under the banner of international cooperation.

Biography: Boram Shin received her PhD in Slavonic Studies, with a thesis that explored national identity construction in Soviet Central Asia. Currently affiliated with the School of International Studies at Jeonbuk National University, South Korea, her research focuses on Soviet-era science diplomacy and Central Asian culture. Previously, she has served as a primary investigator on projects examining the history of science, technology, and innovation in Eurasia, funded by the National Research Foundation of South Korea, and have also contributed to research on digital transformation in Central Asia. Her most recent research project includes tracing the history of critical raw materials and management in Soviet Central Asia.