General Guidelines for Network Partners

The CEELBAS vision

Fifteen years after the collapse of communism, the need to understand developments in Central and Eastern Europe remains urgent. Political and economic processes (e.g. democratisation, integration) in the EU accession states and their ‘new neighbours’ are far from stable and predictable, Europe's energy dependence on an uncertain Russia causes mounting concern, the entire region faces dramatic population decline, and Ukraine and other countries face acute problems of  mortality and morbidity (e.g. HIV/AIDS). Explaining such developments poses exciting intellectual challenges, as do the investigation of recent history using newly released archival material and the application of comparative frameworks in cultural studies.

The CEELBAS vision is to build and maintain the capability to address these challenges by:

(i) promoting excellence in the training of a new generation of scholars who

• are fully versed in advanced research methodologies and theories of their respective disciplines
• have a multi- and interdisciplinary area studies approach, and
• the requisite skills-set, including language competence, enabling them to carry out systematic, in-depth and nuanced research in the region which also responds to the needs of non-academic users

(ii) advancing the research agenda through a programme of broadly defined themes linked to postdoctoral and postgraduate research, further developed through seminars/conferences where both academic partners and the user communities play key roles

(iii) providing support for those seeking mid-career training for acquisition of new skills

Research Themes

The following current Research Themes will assist CEELBAS in selecting its postgraduate as well as postdoctoral appointments and will also inform the funding support provided to network partners for seminars and workshops.

• Cities (e.g. urban development and urban experiences)
• Health, Wealth, Welfare and Demography
• Migration and Diasporic Citizenship
• New Dimensions of Social Inequality
• Identities and Solidarities (e.g. regional, national and transnational, religion, gender, ethnicity, sexualities, the dynamics of trust)
• Contemporary Cultural Processes (e.g. film, mass media and cultural consumption, youth cultures)
• International Relations, Security and Energy Politics
• Knowledge-based Economies and Societies (e.g. R&D, E-government).
• Political and Economic Processes (e.g. democratisation and integration)

The Centre will encourage:

• Disciplinary, interdisciplinary, multidisciplinary and comparative research
• Contemporary as well as historical approaches to the above themes

CEELBAS Aims and Objectives

1. To build capacity in East European/FSU studies, ensuring a representative spread across the region, through the deployment of 38 2-year MRes/MPhil studentships, 33 PhD studentships, 7 post-doctoral fellowships of 2 or 3 years, and targeted mid-career academic and non-academic specialist training.

2. To produce a sizeable cadre of multidisciplinary researchers and area specialists who have received rigorous training in language and in generic and area-based research methods.

3. To generate rapidly a new stream of expertise into the field and to create a sustainable base for maintaining long-term capacity, in order to serve both academia and the public and private sectors.

4. To advance the research agenda through a programme of broadly defined themes linked to postdoctoral and postgraduate research, further developed through seminars/conferences, where both academic partners and the user community play key roles.

5. To provide coherent in-depth country and cross-country expertise on the relevant socio-economic and political structures as well as historical and cultural dynamics.

6. To provide a fertile multidisciplinary academic environment for postgraduate and postdoctoral study that offers regular contact with a major network of experts.

7. To promote national and international research collaboration through a cohesive network of experts drawn from other universities, involving a range of disciplinary and interdisciplinary thematic workshops, and also bringing additional training and development activities that will add further value to the Centre.

8. To build on existing training expertise to deliver and disseminate an innovative multidisciplinary Social Sciences and Arts & Humanities programme of research-led teaching and advanced training in languages, research methodology and country expertise.

9. To build on existing strengths in language provision, embedded in a setting where under- and post-graduate training co-exists, to deliver and disseminate a programme of advanced training; and to integrate language development activities with the work of the SOAS-UCL CETL. This will contribute to the sustainability of provision in East European languages and to the National Languages Strategy.

10. To expand, enhance and institutionalise collaboration with the user communities of government, business, the media and the NGO sector, engaging with them across the range of the Centre's activities.

11. To develop and implement an effective communication strategy which will publicise the activities and achievements of the Centre, its network and its graduates, including (i) start-up and further dissemination conferences alongside other networking activities and (ii) creation of a database of UK expertise on the region, linked to other information resources by means of an internet portal.

12. To respond in a flexible manner to emerging needs as identified (i) through the research and training activities of the Centre and (ii) by governmental and other users (iii) To co-operate with other Centres for Language Based Area Studies.

Role of the CEELBAS Network

The Network contributes to the aims and objectives of CEELBAS in terms of:

• enhancing research culture in East European Studies
• institutionalising sustainable collaboration across the network partners
• promoting and developing international networks
• developing and disseminating research training programmes
• developing and disseminating a syllabus, modes of delivery and materials for advanced skills in languages for research

It is anticipated that partners will contribute to the work of CEELBAS through co-funded participation in conferences, workshops and seminars, some of which will be hosted by network partners. Specific activities are:

• thematic and/or (inter-)disciplinary and research methods workshops (can include one/two international scholars per event; could aim to attract non-area specialists to introduce new approaches into the research)
• language workshops and projects (aimed to promote development and sharing of best-practice and innovation in teaching methods)

As well as receiving and considering applications in line with the overall strategic objectives for development of language training, CEELBAS may make specific calls for expressions of interest in developing a paticular aspect of language training and/or a specific language. CEELBAS funding will also facilitate visits by academics to/from partner institutions as part of area methods training/research agenda development.

It is expected that network workshops will seek to engage the wider user community as well as academics and postgraduate students from across the network and beyond. CEELBAS will also aim to explore innovative modes of delivery, both in research and language training. It is anticipated that the partners will contribute their expertise inter alia to MRes/M.Phil. Research Skills workshops, postgraduate and postdoctoral research consultation, and through participation in specialist mini-workshops to be organised by the CEELBAS postdoctoral fellows. The value of these contributions will be monitored as part of the CEELBAS regular evaluation reports.

List of Network Partners

Institution	Memberships	Lead Contact	Email address
Bath University	Network partner	Rosalind Marsh	r.j.marsh@bath.ac.uk
Birmingham University	Consortium partner	Julian Cooper	J.M.Cooper@bham.ac.uk
Cambridge University	Network partner	Emma Widdis	ekw1000@cam.ac.uk
Kent University	Network partner	Richard Sakwa	R.Sakwa@kent.ac.uk
Manchester University	Network partner	Vera Tolz-Zilitinkevich	Vera.Tolz@manchester.ac.uk
Oxford University	Consortium partner	Christopher Davis	christopher.davis@ economics.oxford.ac.uk
Sheffield University	Network partner	Evgeny Dobrenko	e.dobrenko@sheffield.ac.uk
SOAS	Network partner	Michael Hutt	mh8@soas.ac.uk
University College London	Consortium partner	Robin Aizlewood and George Kolankiewicz	r.aizlewood@ssees.ucl.ac.uk g.kolankiewicz@ssees.ucl.ac.uk
Warwick University	Network partner	Hilary Pilkington	h.pilkington@warwick.ac.uk

Application and selection process

There are two application rounds for Network activities in each of the five years of funding awarded to CEELBAS starting in October 2006. The selection of successful applications is made by the CEELBAS Management Board, which includes two representatives from the network partners. The funding is subject to the rules and conditions attached to the ESRC award for CEELBAS.

Prospective applicants are asked to refer to a separate document entitled “CEELBAS Network Activities - Notes for Applicants” for the relevant form and details of the application and selection process.

Code of Practice

CEELBAS has adopted a Code of Practice for assessing applications for Network activities, which sets out the principles of equity, integrity and confidentiality governing the treatment of all applications for funding support. Feedback is not a feature of the scheme. CEELBAS is regretfully unable to enter into correspondence regarding the decisions of the Management Board, which are governed by the Code of Practice. Please note that by applying in this scheme, applicants undertake to accept the terms under which applications are assessed.

Payments

Payment of an award will be released upon submission of a final report on the activities included in the proposal. Applicants are asked to complete a Report Form. The report must include a detailed breakdown of the relevant costs and be accompanied with an invoice from the applicant's institution, supported by receipts or other evidence of the expenditure incurred, in order to obtain reimbursement of the contribution committed by CEELBAS. Because the invoice is a claim for reimbursement of expenditure incurred on behalf of CEELBAS, it will not be subject to additional VAT.

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