ALASKA AND MAGADAN: THE COLD WAR AND CITIZEN DIPLOMACY - 7179

Alaska and Magadan: the Cold War and citizen diplomacy. Magadan is a small remote town in the Russian Arctic. In Soviet times it was known as a hub for political prisoners during the Stalinist repressions of the 1930s-1950s, a place of a harsh climate and suffering for countless Soviet citizens. But in 1989, an American teacher braved both the climate and the traumatic reputation of this place, making a pioneering journey to this remote region. Lawrence Khlinovski Rockhill was the first Alaskan to move to Magadan where he lived for two years (1989-1991), taught at Magadan Pedagogical Institute, coordinated the teacher/ student educational exchange program between the University of Alaska and Magadan Pedagogical Institute, and received the title of Honorary Professor. Did Magadan's reputation live up to the gloomy expectations of an average American? As a result of this, student exchanges lasted from 1989 to the mid-2000s, and hundreds of students and teachers from both sides of the Bering Sea Ice Curtain visited Russia and Alaska. They lived with each other's families, went to each other's schools, and learned what daily life was like. For many, it was a life-changing experience, as it was for the author, who became a student of Russian culture and Soviet lifestyle. He lived the life of the ordinary Soviet citizen making Magadan and its people his classroom. This is also where he found the love of his life. This is a book about the development of friendly relations between Cold War enemies and between people who are the closest neighbours. It demonstrates that citizen diplomacy plays a vital role in establishing and maintaining peaceful relationships between countries when it was thought by some to be impossible.
ASIN: B0CQJPXSKT
VSKU: BVV.B0CQJPXSKT.VG
Condition: Very Good
Author/Artist:KHLINOVSKI ROCKHILL, LAWRENCE
Binding: Hardcover