Diana T. Kudaibergen awarded the Alexander Nove Prize

Diana T. Kudaibergen, “The Kazakh Spring: Digital Activism and the Challenge to Dictatorship” (Cambridge University Press, 2024) has been selected as the winner of this year’s Alexander Nove Prize in Russian, Soviet, and Post-Soviet Studies.

The Kazakh Spring offers a timely reevaluation of the nature of authoritarian regimes and reflects on people power and the diverse forms of collective action available within the constraints of political control. Through a close examination of civic activism, everyday acts of disobedience, and societal resilience, the book illuminates how citizens in Kazakhstan seized the narrow political opportunities created by the turbulent years of 2019–2022. By tracing repeated waves of protest, it raises a pressing question: how does one continue to resist an authoritarian regime that appears unbreakable? Nuanced in its treatment of sources and interlocutors, the book rethinks the political limits of possibility in Kazakhstan and challenges established scholarly assumptions about what constitutes revolutionary “success.” Its analytical depth is matched by its accessibility, bringing overlooked contexts and voices into broader scholarly and public conversations. As the first comprehensive analysis of the Kazakh Spring, it offers insights that resonate far beyond Kazakhstan, shedding light on the dynamics of resistance in other authoritarian settings. Through the voices of those who participated in the Qazaq Koktemi, it ultimately conveys a message of hope for all who continue to stand up for democracy worldwide.

Alexis Peri, “Dear Unknown Friend: The Remarkable Correspondence between American and Soviet Women” (Harvard University Press, 2024) has been commended with an honourable mention:

Dear Unknown Friend by Alexis Peri is an original and deeply affecting work of transnational history that reimagines the early Cold War through the intimate voices of ordinary women. Analysing the remarkable correspondence between American and Soviet participants in a pen-pal project fostered during the Second World War, Peri uncovers a ‘diplomacy of the heart’ that challenged official hostility and sustained fragile bonds across ideological divides. Rich in archival discovery and marked by narrative sensitivity, the book brings to life voices long overlooked, revealing how individuals forged connections through shared experiences of work, family, loss, and hope. In doing so, it makes a powerful contribution to the history of emotions and citizen diplomacy, demonstrating how feeling and affect not only shaped interpersonal exchange but also mediated Cold War tensions, complicating narratives of ideological division and political inevitability.

Nataliya Kibita, “The Institutional Foundations of Ukrainian Democracy: Power Sharing, Regionalism, and Authoritarianism” (Oxford University Press, 2024) has been commended with an honourable mention:

Notable for its historical depth and analytical precision, The Institutional Foundations of Ukrainian Democracy provides a compelling account of Ukraine’s complex political evolution from the time of the Bolshevik Revolution to the present. Combining extensive archival research with social science methodologies, the book demonstrates how institutional legacies and path dependencies have shaped Ukraine's contemporary statehood and provided barriers against the slide to authoritarianism observed in Russia and other post-Soviet states. This represents a standout original contribution within a field of study until now mainly focused on issues of culture and identity, and it is sure to make Nataliya Kibita’s work an essential point of reference for future scholarship in this area. As well as offering novel insights that are highly relevant to understanding today's situation in Ukraine, it has wider significance in the way that it critically interrogates and decentres existing interpretations of the Soviet state and political system. Last and not least, this study strikes a hopeful note in an increasingly turbulent world, offering a timely reminder that Ukraine’s post-Soviet democracy, while often imperfect, has remained remarkably resilient, even amidst the immense challenges arising from Russia’s ongoing war of aggression.