Researcher
Helge Blakkisrud
Contactinfo and files
Summary
Helge Blakkisrud’s main research interests include Russian federalism and centre–region relations, in particular, the development of the institution of governors. Research interests also include Russia's High North/Arctic policy, nationality policy and Russian nationalism, as well as processes of state-building and nation-building in Eurasia, especially in Eurasian de facto states.
He has been a guest lecturer at the OSCE Academy, Bishkek, since 2008. In 2009–2010, he was a Fulbright Visiting Fellow at UC Berkeley.
Expertise
Education
1996- PhD-programme (Political Science), University of Oslo
1995 Cand.Polit. (Political Science) from University of Oslo. Dissertation: De russiske minoritetene i Estland og Latvia. Minoriteters responsstrategier ved endrede rammebetingelser
Work Experience
1995 Senior Research Fellow/Head of Research Group on Russia, Asia and International Trade, NUPI
2018- Part time position, Norwegian University Centre, St Petersburg
1995- OSCE Election Observer (various elections in Russia, Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Ukraine and Bosnia-Herzegovina)
1994-2025 Editor in Chief, Nordisk Østforum (Nordic Journal of East European and Post-Soviet Studies
1994 Member of the CSSE Mission in Latvia. Leader of the Mission's mobile team
Aktivitet
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Breakfast seminar: Legitimacy’s labour lost: The social and psychological work of compliance and consent in wartime Russia
How has Russian public support for the war in Ukraine remained so resilient – and what dynamics are keeping it in place?
Meaning-Making in Times of Trouble: COVID-19 Conspiracies on Russian Telegram
Many Russians harbor distrust toward government institutions and official information. Amid the uncertainties of the COVID-19 pandemic, they turned to social media for advice. This article analyzes how the Russian-language Telegram channel “COVID Resistance” contributed to the process of making sense of the situation. Based on a close reading of selected posts, we reconstruct four conspiratorial narratives promoted by this channel: “toxic vaccines,” “fascistoid restrictions,” “coronavirus as a hoax,” and “besieged nation.” We find that these narratives, despite often contradicting each other, served as a form of meaning-making, offering explanations that helped ordinary people navigate the crisis.
NUPIpodden#5: Putin for alltid?
18. mars går russerne til valglokalene for å stemme i det som kan omtales som et svært lite spennende valg om ny president. Vladimir Putin er alle...
NUPIpodden #20: Folkeavstemning om Putins fremtid
Russiske myndigheter gjennomfører en folkeavstemning om en lang rekke grunnlovsendringer, som kan åpne for at Vladimir Putin kan sitte som preside...
NUPIpodden #22: Hva skjer i Nagorno-Karabakh?
Selv om Nagorno-Karabakh ikke er en internasjonalt anerkjent stat, har denne enklaven både egen nasjonalsang, eget flagg og egen president. Den si...
NUPIpodden #24: Et styrt valg i Russland
Ikke overraskende kunne det regjerende partiet i Russland, Det forente Russland – også omtalt som Putins parti, erklære valgseier 20. september 20...
Putinism – Regime Ideology in Post-Soviet Russia
How can we understand post-Soviet ideological developments in the context of the Russian tradition of political philosophy?
Russia’s New State Ideology: Engineering Structures and Actors
How has war affected the Kremlin’s thinking around a new state ideology? In this seminar Professor Marlene Laruelle explores the Kremlin’s new mechanisms for indoctrination and the new names that have emerged as key actors working in the ideological production workshop.
COVspiracy? COVID-19 conspiracy theories in Putin’s Russia
For years the Kremlin has been promoting conspiracy theories to legitimize its actions. During the COVID-19 pandemic, however, the regime itself became the target of such theories.