Speaker:
Dr. Magdalena Stawkowski
Associate Professor, Department of Anthropology, University of South Carolina

Presented by:
Slavic, East-Central European, and Eurasian Studies
Walker Institute
McCausland College of Arts and Sciences

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Event Details

Date: Thursday, February 12
Time: 4:30–5:30 p.m.
Location: Gambrell 429

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About the Book

In the aftermath of the Soviet Union’s collapse, Kazakhstan inherited the remnants of one of the world’s most contaminated landscapes: the Semipalatinsk Test Site, known locally as the Polygon. Atomic Collective examines life in Kazakhstan’s Semipalatinsk Nuclear Test Site region through a decolonial, long-term ethnography of the village of Koian.

Amid radiation, isolation, and uncertainty, residents choose to remain, sustaining pastoral lives and collective resilience. The book reveals overlooked human consequences of Cold War nuclear testing.

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About the Speaker

Dr. Magdalena Stawkowski is an anthropologist whose work focuses on environmental anthropology, post-Soviet communities, and the effects of state power and nuclear histories on daily life.