Dislocation: Russian Feminist and Environmental Activist Trajectories before and after February 2022

• In Event: Gender and Decolonization: Perspectives from Social Movements and Governance in Russia and Beyond after the Full-Scale Invasion of Ukraine

Abstract

How do social movement activists get started on the path to activism, and why and how do they continue on it even in the face of repression? Based on 2023 field interviews with a sample of Russia-based environmentalist and feminist activists who relocated abroad in response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, we explore trajectories into activism and salient turning points that shaped activists’ choices. Specifically, we examine their entry points into activism in Russia, their decision to leave their home country, and the ways in which they have continued their activism from abroad.

Authors

• Lisa McIntosh Sundstrom, U of British Columbia (Canada)

• Laura A. Henry, Bowdoin College

• Valerie Sperling, Clark U