Paper short abstract:

Paper will address the dilemma of scientific anthropological knowledge versus its application in policy and social practices in Slovene post-socialist society. I will present also some personal experiences, which are a result of my personal practice of engaged and/or engaging anthropology in Slovene post-socialist society.

Paper long abstract:

The dilemma of scientific anthropological knowledge versus its application in policies and social practices is universal, i.e. imporatant for all societies. However, for post-socialist societies this dilemma is vital. With the introducition of Western capitalism - also neo-liberal one - these societies have been faced with several vital problems, unknown to economy, sociology, political science and other social sciences, but very well known to social and cultural anthropology. Some of these problems are, for example: problem of indigenization of Western capitalism; problem of moderniaztion of indigenity; etc. These problems could have been solved if anthropological knowledge and anthropological opinion were listened to. but in most caces that was not the case. The very same is true also for Slovene post-socialist society.

I my presentation I will discuss:

1. some most important problems in Slovene post-socialist society which remained unsolved, but could have been solved if anthropological knowledge and anthropological opinion were listened to;

2. what does it mean to practice engaged and/or enagaging anthropology in Slovene post-socialist society;

3. what does it mean in Slovenia to make anthropological scientific knowledge intelligable for non-anthropologists;

4. and why engaged/enagaging anthropology in considered by many Slovene anthropologists as desirable, but is very rarly practiced.