During the fall 2019 and spring 2020 semesters CSEES’ outreach coordinator, Alicia Baca, delivered presentations on different topics about Russia for the Columbus Council on World Affairs (CCWA) as a part of their Global Scholars Diploma program. The Global Scholars Diploma is a three-year program that develops globally competent high school students by building the awareness and skills needed to act on a global issue and to become responsible and proactive citizens of the world. The first two years are spent at face-to-face events where local experts share their personal experiences with culture, how and why they pursued careers with global components, and global issues. Students also engage in various collaborative activities within the theme of the event, learning and exercising their cultural fluency and competency. This program is offered to over 1,000 high school students throughout central Ohio. 

During September 2019, Alicia gave a presentation on Russian culture as a part of the Global Culture component of the program. This presentation looked at Russian cultural traditions, societal expectations and values, what living in modern-day Russia is like, and what it is like to study abroad there. In February 2020, she gave a presentation on feminism and women’s issues in Russia as a part of the program’s Global Issues component. During this presentation she went over a brief history of feminism and women’s issues from the Soviet Union to the present day and how different aspects of Russian history, society, and culture have affected their development. Additionally, she also looked at modern pro-feminist protest groups, such as Pussy Riot and FEMEN, and how protest has been an important vehicle for bringing these issues into the spotlight.