Paper Short Abstract:

After the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia, ethnographic work in Russia became impossible due to sanctions. The presentation will reflect on nostalgic feelings for “good old anthropological fieldwork” in the politics of knowledge production, with particular reference to Ukraine

Paper Abstract:

After the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia, ethnographic work in Russia became unsurmountable due to sanctions imposed by nations around the world. Scholars already in the field were immediately evacuated, and the granting of ethical approvals or risk assessments for planned fieldwork research came to an abrupt halt. This presentation illustrates the complexities, blurred boundaries, and acute uncertainties that anthropologists working in Russia have faced since February 2022. Based on interviews conducted online and in person, as well as ethnographic engagement in the field done before the invasion, I share nostalgia among researchers for ‘good old anthropological work’ and contextualise these feelings in the politics of knowledge production in anthropology. In addition, I reflect on challenges for those researchers whose main methodological approach has included ethnography, and discuss the limitations of the turn to digital ethnography enforced by the ongoing inaccessibility of the field. In conclusion, I discuss some epistemological, methodological and ethical issues of carrying out anthropological research in a time of military conflict, as well as the implications for the future of anthropology in this context.