SAN ANGELO, TX — Angelo State University's Russian Enrichment Program will host a presentation by Dr. Dora Merai, a visiting historian in the Department of Slavic and Eurasian Studies at the University of Texas, on Thursday, Oct. 12, in the ASU Academic Building, 2502 Dena Drive.
Titled "Culture and Heritage in the Russian-Ukrainian War," the presentation will begin at 5 p.m. in Room 135 of the Academic Building and is free and open to the public.
During her presentation, Merai will elaborate on how international news regularly presents the destruction of protected Ukrainian buildings and monuments by the Russian Army and how museums are looted in the occupied territories. Behind the scenes, however, hundreds of Ukrainian and international experts, as well as thousands of civilians, work to protect heritage, monitor the damage, and document the sites to help a future reconstruction. Culture, heritage, and related work are also means to develop empathy, express solidarity, and help people cope with difficulties.
Lviv, Ukraine
(Credit: Angelo State University)
Merai will also discuss how culture and history feature in this conflict, who are the most important actors in this respect, and why it is crucial to work with the past when planning a post-war future for Ukraine.
Also, an art historian, archaeologist, and cultural heritage specialist, Merai's research and publications are at the intersection of cultural heritage studies, memory studies, visual and material culture studies, social history, and urban studies. She previously served as a lecturer and postdoctoral researcher at the Cultural Heritage Studies Program of Central European University (CEU) in Vienna, Austria, and Budapest, Hungary. She earned her doctorate in medieval studies at CEU.
Merai's ASU presentation is sponsored by the Natalie Zan Ryan Department of English and Modern Languages and the ASU Russian Club. ASU's Russian Enrichment Program hosts guest speakers and other presentations during each academic year to encourage the study of Russian language and culture.
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