1. Baltic Sea Region Studies at the University of Tartu Dr Heiko Pääbo Centre for Baltic Studies Johan Skytte Institute of Political Studies

2. Baltic Sea Region The region includes all countries around the Baltic Sea + closely cooperating neighbours (e.g. Norway, Iceland) Almost the EU internal sea (the first EU macro- region strategy) In the middle of the process of active region- building Since 2014 changing security environment

3. Why Baltic Sea Region Studies? The most dynamic and fastest developing EU macro-region Highly institutionalised region with efficient cooperation Hands-on EU-Russian relations Rich heritage, great opportunities High level of IT development

4. One of the oldest universities in Northern Europe (1632) Belongs to world’s top 400 universities (THES 2011-12) Estonian national university located in the academic capital of Estonia

5. IMRCEES at UT Various courses on politics, history, international relations, economics, sociology, energy studies, memory and identity studies International faculty members and students Estonian and Russian language classes Internship opportunities Research Centre for EU- Russian Studies

6. Study fields Security studies Regionalism and region-building, including comparative dimension Energy policy, energy-security nexus Nationalism and ethnopolitics Critical geopolitics Sovereignty, de facto states Cross-border cooperation Identity politics and bordering practices Memory studies: politics of memory, social memory, cultural memory E-voting, e-democracy Political and economic transition Religion and politics Urban semiotics Gender studies

7. Areas of research EU-Russian relations Russian foreign policy Foreign policy and security politics in the Baltic Sea region EU’s Neighbourhood Policy and its Relationship with Russia Political development in the Baltic Sea region Political Transformation Process in East and Central Europe Memory and identity conflicts in Russia, Baltic states Transitional justice and reconciliation in the post-Soviet societies Minorities and Human Rights in Post-Communist Countries International Law and Russia

8. Earlier MA theses Dwelling in Visaginas: the phenomenology of post-socialist town Towards a common identity? A comparative analysis of Estonian integration Belarus's national narratives and representation of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in Belarus's history textbooks Re-defining the meaning of place: a discourse analysis of the Hauptstadtdebatte Institutional barriers to investment climate of Armenia and Russia's role in it The Effect of Hegemonic Masculinity in the Proportion of Women in Post-Communist Parliaments: a Case Study of Estonia and Poland Lost and Found: Urban and Rural Spaces in Contemporary Estonian Cinema Trauma, Memory and Victimhood: Estonia and the Holocaust, 1998- 2012 Europeanisation, Globalisation, and Unconventional Energy: A Stepwise Comparison of Telecommuniations and Energy in Estonia and Poland, 1990-2011 See more: http://cbs.ut.ee/index.php/current/defendedhttp://cbs.ut.ee/index.php/current/defended

9. MA thesis support Regular MA seminars (second half of September, early October) October 31, research proposal November peer-reviewing and consulting of research projects February-April presenting draft chapters Pre-defence in June (defence opportunity in June) Defence early September

10. Tartu Second largest town in Estonia – the academic capital Very compact and easily accessible Students are 20% of population Modern dorms and study facilities centrally located Reasonable price level for students Very green town without traffic jams

11. Estonia Small population – lot of wild nature Four different seasons – ecotourism Lot of e-services – WiFi freely accessible all over the country Majority of Estonians speak at least one foreign language Located on the East-West crossroad Rich heritage and actively practiced national traditions

12. WELCOME!