TY - JOUR

T1 - Identity, community and belonging (On the example of Kezhemsky & Evenkiysky municipal districts of Krasnoyarsk Krai)

AU - Ablazhey, Anatoly M.

AU - Campbell, Craig R.

PY - 2018/1/1

Y1 - 2018/1/1

N2 - This article is devoted to the analysis of social and cultural transformation of communities in remote regions of Siberia where people have been forced to adapt to new places of residence and change their living conditions sharply. Whole communities were forced to relocate and to adapt to new conditions following the construction of hydroelectric power stations and the subsequent creation of reservoirs, flooding once inhabited territories and villages. This study makes use of sociological research conducted in two regions of Siberia: Kezhemsky and Evenkiysky Municipal Districts of Krasnoyarsk Krai. Our study shows that the elimination of stable family and friend networks accompanies displacement inevitably. The situation is exacerbated by the fact that when planning for the construction of giant hydroelectric power stations, authorities have not taken into consideration the interests of the local population – neither in the Soviet period nor in the post-Soviet period. The authors show that most of the inhabitants of the flooded villages on the Angara are now living in suburbs of major cities like Krasnoyarsk and Abakan and that they are rapidly losing their former identity. It is rare that existing modes of living are maintained through refusal to move to other regions of the country. In one case the unique local culture of descendants of Pomors, who moved to the banks of the Angara several centuries ago, has been lost due to forced displacement. In Evenkiysky District, the preservation of many cultural practices and traditions is possible only if there is no construction of proposed hydroelectric power stations.

AB - This article is devoted to the analysis of social and cultural transformation of communities in remote regions of Siberia where people have been forced to adapt to new places of residence and change their living conditions sharply. Whole communities were forced to relocate and to adapt to new conditions following the construction of hydroelectric power stations and the subsequent creation of reservoirs, flooding once inhabited territories and villages. This study makes use of sociological research conducted in two regions of Siberia: Kezhemsky and Evenkiysky Municipal Districts of Krasnoyarsk Krai. Our study shows that the elimination of stable family and friend networks accompanies displacement inevitably. The situation is exacerbated by the fact that when planning for the construction of giant hydroelectric power stations, authorities have not taken into consideration the interests of the local population – neither in the Soviet period nor in the post-Soviet period. The authors show that most of the inhabitants of the flooded villages on the Angara are now living in suburbs of major cities like Krasnoyarsk and Abakan and that they are rapidly losing their former identity. It is rare that existing modes of living are maintained through refusal to move to other regions of the country. In one case the unique local culture of descendants of Pomors, who moved to the banks of the Angara several centuries ago, has been lost due to forced displacement. In Evenkiysky District, the preservation of many cultural practices and traditions is possible only if there is no construction of proposed hydroelectric power stations.

KW - Cultural adaptation and transformation

KW - Industrial development

KW - Intercultural contacts

KW - Livelihood

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85057293004&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.17516/1997-1370-0246

DO - 10.17516/1997-1370-0246

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85057293004

VL - 11

SP - 526

EP - 533

JO - Journal of Siberian Federal University - Humanities and Social Sciences

JF - Journal of Siberian Federal University - Humanities and Social Sciences

SN - 1997-1370

IS - 4

ER -