Laboratory for Social and Anthropological Research

• We have studied migration policies. The following features have been found: involvement of non-governmental organizations in problems of migration control; social and political activity of Tadjik immigrant communities in Russia, EU countries and the USA; presence of problems in interactions between «traditional» and «radical» islam; formation of stereotypical, mostly negative image of labor migrants in media.
• Our researchers have detected basic models of cultural resistance in indigenous groups in all the cases that known to us – appealing to «colonial language» to protect their own interests and adaptation of perception of both social stratification and of sacral view of the world to dominating perceptions of the state capitalist ideology. Analysis of forms and practices of cultural identification in shamanic world views allowed to: a) present a substantial proof base for existence of «shamanic» features in rituals of veneration of fire by Indo-Europeans; b) determine direct analogies between activities of preachers of the pagan religion in Indo-Europeans and practices.
• Our researchers have conducted analysis of processes of formation and development of Russian national discourse in the imperial Russia. The analysis has shown that in 1850–1860 the «Polish problem» was dominating. In the end of the 1860s the national discourse branched out a separate question of Little Russia (before that Little Russia had been viewed as an object of struggle against polonism). We have researched phenomena of public conscience of the population of Siberia at the level of separate «minor» social groups and layers of society. This allowed to refine and broaden the vision of ideological basis of regional identity, dynamics of construction, «splashes» and «rollbacks» of «siberianity» in the the period between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century that was crucial in the history of the country.
• We have created multimedia content for virtual and real installations that has been implemented on the basis of materials provided by the Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography of Siberia named after V. M. Florinskiy, the State Hermitage Museum, the National Museum of the Republic of Tyva named after Aldan-Maadyr, as well as at the Museum and Exhibition Center named after I. S. Shemanovskiy.

Implemented results of research:

• Produced 3D models of archaeological objects and digital archives of excavations can become a basis for multimedia exhibitions, virtual museums, it can be included into projects that use the virtual reality technology and adaptive technologies. For example, 3D movie «Spirits of Ching-Tey» created within our laboratory's mega-grant is already actively used in education.

Education and career development:

• We have introduced 1 program for bachelors and 2 program for masters within the «Anthropology and ethnography» major, as well as about 50 education courses.
• 8 doctoral dissertations and 17 candidate dissertations have been defended.
• We have organized 4 summer schools devoted to migration and ethnicization of urban spaces well as to social and political research of science and technology.

Organizational and structural changes:

• In 2015 we have licensed the «Anthropology and ethnology» major (for bachelors and masters).
• In 2017 a department of anthropology and ethnology was created which was one of the main objectives of the project.
• We are running 2 masters programs: «Social anthropology» and since 2017 – «Migration research».

Collaborations:

• Moscow State Institute of International Relations – MGIMO (Russia), Irkutsk State University (Russia), Moscow State University (Russia), European University at St Petersburg (Russia): joint scientific research, events, projects.
• East Kazakhstan State University (Kazakhstan), Eurasian National University (Kazakhstan), American University in Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan): joint masters programs.