The scholar: doctor, professor Bernd Bonwetsch and the activities of the West Siberian Center for german studies

In Russia, the 1990s were the years of ‘open doors' in terms of the active cooperation of Russian researchers in humanities with their foreign counterparts. German scholars showed special interest in this cooperation due to the fact that in the 20th century there were enough problems between Russia and Germany that called for objective resolution by means of dialogue. Professor Bernd Bonwetsch, an expert in the Russian history, was one of such researchers. From 1980 to 2003, he headed the Department of East European History at Ruhr-University (Bochum) in Germany. In 2003, he initiated the creation of the German Historical Institute (GIIM - DHI) in Moscow and became its first director. The purpose of the article is to show the development of the cooperation of the professor with historians of Kemerovo University and the West Siberian Center for German Studies (ZSTsGI), and the impact it had on the development of German historical studies in the universities of Western Siberia. The author refers to the works and speeches of the professor, his memoirs, publications of the ZSTsGI, and to the experience of meetings and discussions of joint activities in Russia and Germany. At one of the international conferences, Bernd Bonwetsch met Yury V. Galaktionov, head of the Department of Modern and Contemporary History of Kemerovo State University, an expert in the contemporary history of Germany. On the initiative of Galaktionov and Bonwetsch in 1999, the interregional public association West Siberian Center for German Studies was created. ZSTsGI united researchers and educators specializing in German studies from four universities in Western Siberia: Kemerovo, Tomsk, Barnaul, and Novosibirsk. The goals of the association were to optimize German research in the West Siberian region, to promote the improvement of the level researcher competence in German history among university teachers, etc. With the assistance of Bernd Bonwetsch and the financial support of the Volkswagenstiftung Foundation, historians of the West Siberian Center published the first in Russia fundamental 3-volume textbook “History of Germany from Ancient Times to the Present Day. With documents, materials, illustrations”. B. Bonwetsch and Yu.V. Galaktionov involved leading historians of Germany and Russia in the discussion and review of the concept and the structure of the textbook. Later, collective efforts of Western Siberian historians with the assistance of Bernd Bonwetsch resulted in publication of the second textbook “Social Policy and the Social State in Germany”. A number of international scientific conferences were held on the ZSTsGI platform and in cooperation with experts in the Russian history devoted to historical issues most urgent for the two countries: the problems of totalitarianism, the German-Russian paths to democracy, and World War II. More than twenty lecturers, undergraduates and post-graduate students underwent a research internship at the department headed by B. Bonwetsch at Ruhr University. During the period of active cooperation with the professor (2000-2015), 4 doctoral and 6 candidate theses focused on the history of Germany were defended at the Department of Contemporary History of Kemerovo University.

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