This episode was recorded right after the anniversary of the poisoning of Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny. I spoke with Lena, a political activist from Novosibirsk who still lives in Russia and dares to give an interview under her real name. Novosibirsk is the so-called capital of Siberia and has a population of one and a half million. The city is also ranked one of the most protested cities in Russia. But this year the city lost its right to elect the mayor. Now the Kremlin will appoint the mayor, or rather the puppet mayor.

I talked with Lena about academic freedom in Russia, political activism, and historical memory. 

For this episode, I talked with Lira. She is 23 years old. She was born and raised in Nizhnekamsk, a small town in Tatarstan which is famous for its numerous factories and issues with ecology. She finished her Bachelor's in Moscow, did an exchange year in America and did an exchange semester in Germany. She works as an English teacher and a tutor for Russians interested in getting a higher education abroad. Last summer Lira left Russia. She moved to the City of Tampa, Florida in order to get her Master's degree in Student Affairs.

We talked about the decolonisation of Tatarstan, the influence of sanctions on Russian students, and the importance of educational exchange between Russia and other countries. 

I hope this episode will bring new insights into Russia's young generation. Enjoy!

Lira's blog: https://www.instagram.com/lira.akhmetova/ 

Music by Muzaproduction from Pixabay 

For this episode, I talked with Robert De Shade. He was born and raised in Moscow. He used to work for the American centre of the US Embassy in Russia. And he is an open gay. And after Russia invaded Ukraine in February last year, he realised it was time to relocate to a better place. So he moved to Los Angeles and founded his own LLC, Widest DE, devoted to digital media production and IT consulting.

We talked about relations between Russia and the United States, homesickness and what it is like to be gay when your homeland does not accept you.

I hope this episode will bring new insights into Russia's young generation. Enjoy!

Music by Muzaproduction from Pixabay