Vitaly Kazakov at the University of Manchester invited me to give one of the keynotes at a symposium he organized. Over two intense and enjoyable days, we explored various national projection strategies from illiberal and democratic states across different contexts, channels, and platforms. It was interdisciplinary, relevant, and exciting. A real honor to attend.

I wrote a short twitter thread about it:

Back home in Switzerland after an excellent time in Manchester at the (Il)liberal Nation Projection symposium.

Here's a 🧵with some of my takeaways from the event overall.

Thanks @VitalyKaz for inviting me and organizing.

— Sven Daniel Wolfe (@SDVolk) October 24, 2022

My keynote explored the uncomfortable connections between the Russian mega-event decade and the war in Ukraine. Here’s a recording of my talk shown over the slides. (The actual live talk was streamed but not recorded, unfortunately, so this pocket recording is the best I have.)

I think this kind of event is just perfect. It’s large and diverse enough to allow exposure to new ideas, but small and intimate enough to encourage actual connection. More like this, please.