Proposed Topics through October 30, 2009:

• The most important themes of the past twenty years in the former "satellite" states, plus maybe the Baltics. (Gale Stokes)
• The most important current trends in Soviet and post-Soviet history: The field seems as if it's undergoing a paradigm shift, but as an "oldster," I'm not quite sure what that is, and I'd like to know! (Denise Youngblood) 

• Russian networked public sphere: Freedom of Information and Communications
• American Studies in Russia, Russian Studies in America: How Well Do We Know Each Other? The focus of this proposal is to assess the current status of the respective area studies in both countries. To compare and contrast Russian Studies in America and American Studies in Russia, their history, methodology, institutional framework and funding sources. Map the major changes that these area studies have undergone since the dissolution of the Soviet Union. To answer the question: Are strong area studies conducive to public knowledge, scholarly dialogue, and Russian-American relations? (Irina Del Genio)
• Teaching Russian Studies in Two-year Colleges: Luxury or Necessity?
• The past and future of the Slavic and Baltic reading room at the NYPL.  The room was closed this past year due to the restructuring of the library. A major resource for Slavic Studies, the collection now faces a set of challenges to its maintenance — from such basic problems such as cataloguing and even re-shelving to continued issues of its growth. Currently, there are numerous initiatives underway to appeal to the director of the NYPL to restore some basic patron services and continuing to provide basic maintenance of the collection. For instance, Bill Taubman, in his capacity as President of AAASS, has written to the Director of the NYPL urging him to devote staff to maintaining the collection; and Karen Rosenberg has drafted another letter to outline further steps toward that end. (Michael Kunichika)
• Recent advances in the study of early Slavic history. I envision a discussion of new information and techniques that have improved our understanding of the development of the Slavic peoples from 10,000 ybp up to the Middle Ages. I would anticipate participation by scholars studing linguistics, archaeology, anthropology, cultural development, and DNA tracking of deep genealogy. (Edwin Squiers) 

• Post-nationalism in the Balkans:  there is so much lit and film produced that directly deals with the war in Yugoslavia--but what about cultural products that are moving beyond this paradigm i.e works that aren't necessarily about the war/transition but discuss contemporary life in former Yugoslavia (or other countries, such as Romania) (Stephanie Young)
• Problems of divided towns in the Balkans, especially problems that local people face every day (divided schools...) (Vira Mironova) 

• Original readings by poets, fiction writers and translators at the conference. (bobradov@xula.edu) 

• Using the web to help scholars find, use and share data and other resources with one another. (Kevin Deegan-Krause)

• How to publish: Many recent PhDs and others are anxious to publish their research but have little experience of how to prepare articles for publication, are intimidated by the refereeing process, and are bewildered by the length of the process. I would propose a session in which editors and experienced contributors exchange advice and explain some of the pitfalls and benefits of the publishing and refereeing process.  (Martyn Rady, Slavonic and East European Review (m.rady@ssees.ucl.ac.uk))