Ukraine’s first-ever conference
on Canadian Studies was held [a few months
ago] at the Yurii Fedkovych National University of Chernivtsi. The landmark
event was organized by Dr. Vitalii Makar, director of the University’s Ramon
Hnatyshyn Canadian Studies Centre, with financial assistance from the Embassy
of Canada in Ukraine.
Although 65 papers were scheduled on the conference programme, a number of
scholars were unable to attend for various reasons, including the weather, as
the Chernivtsi airport was fogged in during the gathering. Among the
participants were Canadian Studies scholars from The Netherlands, Ireland, Poland, and
Germany -
the latter represented by Professor Martin Kuester, Vice President of the
Association for Canadian Studies in German-Speaking Countries. Ukrainian
Canadians who took part were Dr. Roman Yereniuk of the Centre for Ukrainian
Canadian Studies at the University of Manitoba; Orysia Tracz from the
University of Manitoba Libraries; Jurij Fedyk, the John Yaremko Teaching Fellow
at the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv; and Dr. Valerii Polkovsky of
St. Albert, Alberta, who is currently at the Ostroh Academy National
University.
The Kule Ukrainian Canadian Studies Centre
(KUCSC) at the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies was represented by Jars
Balan. He delivered one of two papers devoted to the renowned artist William
Kurelek (1927–1997), whose ancestral roots are in the Bukovynian village of Borivtsi in Kitsman raion. Mr.
Balan also chaired two of the academic sessions. In addition to assisting
diaspora studies centres at several Ukrainian universities, the KUCSC has been
active in supporting the development of Canadian Studies in Ukraine and recently helped
coordinate an initial shipment of donated Canadian books to the Hnatyshyn
Centre.
While most of the papers dealt with a mixture of
comparative analysis, relations between Canada and Ukraine, or strictly Canadian
topics like Aboriginal affairs, slightly more than a third was devoted to
aspects of the Ukrainian experience in Canada. Several of the
Ukrainian students and scholars who took part in the conference, including
Taras Lupul, Ivan Patarak, Ihor Kobel, Julia Zayachuk, and Julia Balytska, have
spent time in Canada thanks to research grants from CIUS.
His Excellency Daniel Caron, Canada’s Ambassador to Ukraine, was unable to come to
Chernivtsi as originally planned but conveyed greetings through Counsellor
Larissa Blavatska. On the morning after the conference, the Embassy’s Program
Officer, Inna Tsarkova, gave a well-received workshop on funding opportunities
available from sources that sponsor research and publications on Canada.
Chernivtsi is planning to hold follow-up Canadian
Studies conferences on a biennial basis. Another positive sign for the future
growth of Canadian Studies in Ukraine was the recent
establishment of a program at the National University of Kyiv Mohyla Academy
under the direction of Professor Dmytro Mazin. It is also expected that the Ostroh Academy National University will soon announce the
inauguration of a third initiative in the field of Canadian Studies. These are
welcome developments, as it will soon be possible to create a Canadian Studies
Association in Ukraine that would be eligible
for additional funding from the Government of Canada.
PHOTOS
1 - L. to R.: Dr. Roman
Yereniuk and Jurij Fedyk
2 - L. to R.: Jars Balan and Professor Olha Ivasiuk, National University of Chernivtsi