International Symposium

The International Symposium “War, Academia, Women: Ukrainian Female Academics as Knowledge Producers and Community Agents in New Zealand and Australia”, supported by the UC Faculty of Arts, in association with the frame of the Ukrainian Studies Association of Australia and New Zealand, will bring together a community of like-minded self-motivated Ukrainian female academics, both experienced and emerging, who analyse the war against Ukraine and its impacts on the world and the Asia-Pacific region through their research, teaching, public outreach, and interactions with policymakers. The perspectives from female researchers on the war and its colonial legacies, which continue to shape our knowledge production in the region, remain in need of mapping and deeper reflection. The symposium aims to fill in this gap focusing on how female academics produce and shape knowledge, outreach to local communities, and facilitate a better understanding of the ongoing war against Ukraine in the context of decolonisation. Additionally, the symposium will not only foster a close relationship between female academic researchers in the region, but also stress the importance of scholarly exchange and outreach around questions of colonialism and decolonisation between colleagues in Australia and New Zealand. The main output of the symposium will be a Special Issue in an academic journal that will reflect on global knowledge production about the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine, including in the context of decolonisation.  Ambassador of Ukraine to Australia and New Zealand, HE Vasyl’ Myroshnychenko will present a key address to the participants of the Symposium. The Symposium is co-organised by New Zealand and Australian academics – Dr Daria Kuznetsova and Professor Natalia Chaban of the UC and Dr Olga Boichak of the University of Sydney.