Known to most people only through cultural references in Seinfeld or Friends, and dubiously labeled "the last dictatorship in Europe," Belarus is a thriving country whose new economy is built on innovation, IT, and a startup mentality. While parts of it seem straight out of the pre-Great Patriotic War times, the current entrepreneurial spirit is inspiring the new generation of students and motivating them to create the next Wargaming, Viber, or Masquerade.
Having spent spring semester 2018 in Belarus as a Fulbright Scholar at Minsk State Linguistics University, Bob Eckhart will talk about the past, present, and future of this unique country. As it turns out, training English teachers from all over the country was a great way to familiarize himself with the interesting history of cities and regions which were at one time Polish, Lithuanian, or Russian, which gives them their current very unique Belarusian flavor.