In Baku, Azerbaijan
The Centre for National and International Studies is based in Baku. The Centre is a non-profit research institution which has a goal to provide policy makers with expertise and increase level of public knowledge in the areas such as development, conflict resolution, economics, cultural policy. The centre encourages work with artists, photographers, archeologists, historians.
The Place
Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan and together with the surrounding villages is located on the Absheron peninsula of the Caspian sea. It is the oldest settlement with the unique archeological findings and city, whose history has Zoroastrian, Christian, Muslim heritage. In the past, 38 villages of Baku had 38 towers, of which only 5 have been preserved. Baku has the old walls of the medieval town and Shirvan – Shah palace, European architecture of the period of industrial capitalism, which, however, suffered uncontrolled construction during post-Soviet transition. Baku used to be a cosmopolitan city in the pre-Soviet and Soviet times, where along with Azeris, there were communities of Russians, Jewish, Armenians. Although the communities are still preserved, their number decreased tremendously as the result of the out migration, particularly during the conflict with neighboring Armenia, invasion of the city by the Soviet troops in 1990 and economic decline. In 1990 Baku was a stage of inter-ethnic riots, where crowds of refugees from Armenia attacked houses of Armenians – citizens of Baku.
The project here will led by Leila Alieva with counterparts from the group of artists, photographers, archeologists, historians. Although the primary objective of Centre for National and International Studies has been research, including conflict resolution, the Centre has made its name thanks to an innovative project which focused on industrial and cultural heritage of the Absheron peninsula (having the oldest history of oil development in the world) as means of improving life of communities, preservation of the cultural diversity and harmonising inter-communal relations.
Contact: Leila Alieva
leilalibek@yahoo.com
