AUCA Magazine Winter 2012

American University of Central Asia

20th Anniversary In 2013 the American University of Central Asia is celebrating its 20th Anniversary. To do so we are having a year-long celebration highlighting the value of an American-style liberal arts education, the success of our students and alumni, and that in only 20 years AUCA has become an indispensible institution in Central Asia and will continue to lead and develop leaders for the democratic transformation of the region.

AUCA’s 20th Anniversary celebration reflects the widening impact of AUCA in Central Asia and around the world, and we have planned events around 4 themes: • Excellence through Liberal Arts • Diversity • AUCA Success • A New Generation of Leadership

AUCA Flag Project The AUCA Flag Project’s goal is to show the incredible reach of AUCA students, faculty, alumni, and friends around the world. How the project works is simple: Buy an AUCA Flag (www.auca.kg/en/flag), Take a picture or video with you and the flag, Send us the picture or video so we can post it on the website. The AUCA Flag Project is one way for the entire AUCA Community to show its creativity and diversity. For more information on the AUCA Flag Project email develop@mail.auca.kg.

AUCA Virtual Museum The AUCA Virtual Museum is a collection of videos, photos, and artifacts (like books) that have accumulated over the past 20 years. AUCA students, faculty, and friends will also have the opportunity throughout the year to submit their memories to the Virtual Museum, and have them displayed in our online gallery. In October, AUCA will make the Virtual Museum into a physical gallery exhibition for two weeks, leading up to Initiation, the official 20th Anniversary of AUCA on November 7th.

www.auca.kg/en/20

Calendar of Events 2013 Core Events

Year-Long Projects

January

22-25 – Diversity Week

AUCA Flag Project

February

2 - Open Doors Day 14 – Stream Music Competition 28 – Student Theater ‘Debut’

March

16-22 Green Week

April

4 – AFP Conference (tentative) 12 – Brian Ring

May

18 – TEDxAUCA 25 – Alumni Day of Service and Reunion

June

1-2 – Commencement Weekend

September

14 – AUCA & Peace Corps ‘Volunteering Festival’ 27-29 – CASI Conference

October

12 – New Campus Dedication 24 – Nov 7 – AUCA Virtual Museum Gallery

November

7 – Initiation

AUCA Virtual Museum AUCA Department Weeks $20, $200, $2,000

CONTENTS 16 - 27 Feature: Citizen Media 16 The Rise of Citizen Media 21 Global Voices 23 New Media in the Kygyz Republic

05 Editor’s Note 06 Message From the President 07 - 13 University Update: 07 Bank of Asia Scholarships 08 Breaking Down the Debates 09 Media Camp: Developing Young Journalists 10 In Memory of I. Razzakov 12 Parliament’s Website 14 Initiation 2012

28 - 39 AUCA Spotlight: 30 Dina Karabekova 32 Омурбек Сатаев 34 Салима Бекболотова 36 Женишбек Арзыматов 39 Psychology ‘08

AUCA Magazine American University of Central Asia, founded in 1993, is dedicated to educating leaders for the democratic transformation of the region. It is the most dynamic and student-empowering education available, and is the only university in Central Asia with the authority to grant degrees accredited in the United States. AUCA equips its graduates with the knowledge and skills necessary to solve problems and open doors in this rapidly changing and developing region and the world beyond...

Publication team Editor-in-Chief: Sven Stafford Copy Editors: Nick Robbins, Svetlana Jacquesson

Contributors: Natali Anarbaeva Altynai Sydykova Nick Robbins Rodger Dillon Chris Rickleton Dinara Orozbaeva Sven Stafford

Pictures: AUCA Archives Aaron Choi Emil Akhmatbekov

Design and Layout: Emil Akhmatbekov

On the cover: ‘AUCA Student’ by Emil Akhmatbekov American University of Central Asia

You may send your correspondence and subscription inquiries to: AUCA Magazine | American University of Central Asia, 205 Abdymomunov St., Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic 720040 | Tel./Fax: (996 312) 66-45-64, E-mail: magazine@mail.auca.kg, www.auca.kg

editor’s note

The AUCA Magazine has evolved over the past two years from a collection of alumni stories to a theme-based, university-wide publication. We work hard to bring these themes alive in the pages of this magazine with the goal of providing a deeper look into the impact of AUCA students, faculty, and alumni in Central Asia and around the world.

In this issue we are breaking more new ground by publishing articles in Russian as well as English. We do so in recognition that the stories we tell have a greater impact on the region around us, and that we want more people in Central Asia to have access to those stories of success and innovation, of democracy and freedom. In future issues we plan to run 2-3 articles in Russian, while keeping the main feature and university updates and in English.

In our inaugural bilingual edition it is appropriate that we are dealing with the theme of journalism. All over the world it is getting harder to distinguish between objective journalism and opinion. The advent of online and social media blurs the line even further, and has the added danger of entrenching our beliefs, as we close ourselves to whole groups of people and ideas that do not show up on our newsfeed on Facebook.

AUCA students, faculty, and alumni are some of the most innovative users of this new media, as well as abusers of it. In this issue you will read about AUCA students from Central Asia who are helping create ‘citizen media’, writing for local audiences, often under pseudonyms to protect themselves, with commentary on everything from government policy to local fashion shows. You will also find out about the role that social media played in the 2010 revolution through research done by AUCA affiliated Fulbright fellow Nora Williams. Finally we have an external assessment of AUCA’s reputation as a result of all its media activity from one of the leading Kyrgyz journalists.

Sincerely, Sven Stafford Editor-In-Chief

I would like to use this last paragraph to thank previous editor Altynai Usubalieva for her great work, and wish her the best from our staff as she and her husband await the arrival of their first child. I would also like to acknowledge the work of Emil Akmahtbekov and Aaron Choi, who provide most of the layout and pictures for our publication.

www.auca.kg

We wish everyone a happy and safe holiday season, and hope to see you next year in 2013 as AUCA celebrates its 20th anniversary.

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President's Column

Welcome to the Winter 2013 issue of the AUCA Magazine. After lots of internal discussion, we are trying some new things with this issue to try to reach out to a broader range of readers and to remain relevant in our increasingly virtual world. One way for AUCA to think about how to do this is to continue to train journalists, both to work in traditional media outlets (which still dominate the scene in Kyrgyzstan) and to be prepared for future developments in new media. The article in this issue that deals with citizen journalism is particularly important, as it illustrates the complexities and potentials for an entirely new world of information gathering and transmission, but one that we are sure has the potential to grow. At the same time, AUCA is not neglecting other media. If you have been around our building recently, you might have noticed a brand new media room filled with 20 Macintosh computers loaded with the latest video editing capabilities, which came to the university as part of a grant from USAID. With these computers and our existing video camera equipment, we are planning an expansion of AUCA’s television journalism, and are even ne-

Andrew B. Wachtel President

gotiating with one of the local cable channels to create a permanent AUCA television channel. Finally, with the support of the Hersh Chadha Family, we have been expanding what we offer in terms of photography classes, and in the new building there will be several classrooms dedicated to our program in journalism and mass communication supported by the Chadha Family.

On the subject of the new campus, those living in Bishkek will have already had the opportunity to see that the core and shell of the building has already reached the third floor and that what used to be merely a dream is becoming (slowly) a reality. You can see construction photographs on our Facebook site (http://www.facebook.com/MyAUCA), and we hope that all readers of this magazine will follow our progress and that all of you will buy a brick to support the construction of AUCA’s new home (http://www.auca.kg/en/brick).

2013 will mark the 20th anniversary of AUCA’s founding. In the course of the year we will have a series of events to mark this momentous occasion, and we invite all readers of the AUCA Magazine to participate to make our celebrations as exciting and momentous as possible, leading up to our move to the new campus, where AUCA will spend the next 20 …

50 … 100 years.

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university uPdate

bAnk of AsiA

by Sven Stafford

scholArships

CJSC “Bank of Asia”, which was established on February 10, 1998, is one of the leading banking institutions in the Kyrgyz Republic. The Bank of Asia ‘Future Support’ program will AUCA and Bank of Asia are partnering to help increase access to high quality education. Through a new Bank of Asia Scholarship Program, 10 students from the regions of the Kyrgyz Republic will receive a $1,000 scholarship towards their tuition at AUCA. The initial 5-year program will help 20 students to attend AUCA. The students will also receive summer internships at Bank of Asia, which has offices around the entire country.

Nazira Beishenalieva (AUCA’98), a member of the Bank of Asia Board of Trustees, said that many students outside of Bishkek think that AUCA is out of their reach, that even if they are talented enough to get in, that they will never be able to afford it.

give scholarships to students from the regions of the Kyrgyz Republic who demonstrate financial need and outstanding talent.

When Nazira originally proposed the program to her board, many asked why they should spend money to send students to AUCA as opposed to the National University of Kyrgyzstan or one of the other state schools. Nazira was adamant that it be AUCA. She said that AUCA is one of the only universities that can guarantee a quality education, and also one of the only universities that can ensure that the scholarship money goes towards education.

The scholarships will be awarded to 2 seniors, 2 juniors, 3 sophomores, and 3 freshmen. Each year 3 new freshmen will be awarded with the scholarship and internship program. To find out more details about the program, how it is administered and how the selection process works, please go to www.auca.kg/en/scholarships.

AUCA Magazine*december 2012

www.auca.kg

Nazira was originally moved by the experience of her housekeeper, who was working 3 jobs to be able to send her son to AUCA. Her son did not know that she was doing household labor to pay for his education, and despite all her work, she was falling short of making tuition payments. Nazira decided to step in and help, but she also realized that there were far more students like this one that could benefit from such financial support.

President Andrew Wachtel and Nazira Beishenalieva, AUCA Alumna and Board Member at Bank of Asia, signing scholarship certificates.

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university uPdate

breAking down

by Natali Anarbaeva

the debAtes

Ambassador Pamela Spratlen and AUCA President Andrew Wachtel sat down with 100 university students on Wednesday, October 24, to breakdown the final presidential debate between Governor Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama. The two Americans shed light not only on important foreign policy issues, but also on the motivations of the candidates, the audiences they were addressing, and the hubris required to become commander-in-chief of the most powerful military in the world.

Ambassador Spratlen opened the meeting by remarking that despite dire and destabilizing events in US history, the American people have voted every four years for president, without fail, since the country was founded over 200 years ago. The Ambassador also urged students to see the debate not as an outline of future American foreign policy, but rather as two candidates trying to convince the last set of undecided American voters to vote for them.

Students from AUCA, Manas University, Kyrgyz National University, Russian Slavonic University, and the the Academy of Management under

the President of the Kyrgyz Republic attended the event. Several student questions revolved around how a change in leadership would affect American foreign policy. President Wachtel commented on the ridiculousness of the candidates’ positions, saying that it is impossible to believe that a simple change in leadership in the United States could possibly lead, for example, to a peaceful and prosperous Middle East in four years. Ambassador Spratlen agreed, but also reminded the audience that somebody running for President of the United States does so because they believe they are in a unique position to change the world for the better.

An exchange student from France asked why there was no mention of broader global issues such as poverty and disease. Ambassador Spratlen agreed that those issues are important both in the United States as well as around the world. She also said that, despite their importance, the debate over the past year has been framed around the economic success of the middle class and the US deficit. President Wachtel was

blunter, saying that it is good that these issues are important to French students, but that French students cannot vote in US elections.

The event lasted an hour, the majority of the time devoted to answering student questions. Questions were prompted through showing small clips from the debate itself, but the main focus of the event was to frame the debate and the process of the debate for a non-American audience.

President Obama won re-election, winning 332 of the 538 electoral votes. Anyone interested in finding out more about US elections and how they work can visit the US Embassy site at: http://bishkek.usembassy.gov/.

Barack Obama wins a second term BaraCK oBama

538 8

AUCA Magazine*december2012

332 total electoral votes

206

270

mitt romney

electoral votes needed to Win the Presidency

University Update

Media Camp:

by Natali Anarbaeva

Developing young journalists

The media camp was held on August 17 – 30 in the Kyrgyz Republic. The participants spent 2 days in Bishkek and 12 days at Issyk-Kul. The 12-day media camp provided interactive theoretical and practical workshops for better understanding of developments in and between the Central Asian states and Russian Federation. The project’s main objective was to improve objective regional coverage as well as to build tolerance and promote mutual understanding.

The media camp consisted of daily workshops - both theoretical and practical - which were open to discussions of existing problems to increase the level of tolerance, intercultural communications, and consequences of nationalism among the participants.

The project made the participants think critically about how they portrayed stereotypes, approached traditional media, and developed stories. It also

built media production skills including print, video, photography and new media tools.

The curriculum consisted of 16 interactive sessions and 16 practical sessions. The interactive component of the sessions was a requirement at the media camp. At the end of the camp the students were split into 6 groups to take part in a competition to create a media project to promote the ideals espoused at the camp. The winning group, “The Media Beard,” launched several social media sites devoted to facial hair and its meaning in the lives of Central Asian and Russian people.

To see some of the results you can follow the links below.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ MediaBeard, Facebook: http://www. facebook.com/MediaBeard, and blog: http://mediabeard.wordpress.com/

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Xenophobia in Russia, as well as rising nationalism in Central Asian states are dangerous trends propagated through local media. Propaganda and one-sided stereotypical coverage of problems and events published in Russia and Central Asia build caricatures of countries and people as well as fuel a lack of understanding and even arouse hatred between nations.

The media camp Promoting Dialogue between Russian and Central Asian Youth Leaders aimed to raise the capacity of young leaders from five Central Asian states (Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan) and the Russian Federation to see through the biases in the media and in their own writing. The camp was funded by the Open Society Foundations, and implemented by the American University of Central Asia’s Journalism and Mass Communications department.

The Media Camp was sponsored by the Open Society Foundations (OSF). OSF has operated in Central Asia for the past 20 years, and has played an integral role in promoting democracy in the region. OSF is also a long-time supporter of AUCA, sponsoring scholarships for students from the region, and academic fellowships for local professors with Western Masters and Ph.D. degrees. More information on OSF and their programs can be found at: http://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/

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University Update

in Memory of

by Dinara Orozbaeva

Iskhak Razzakov

AUCA students and faculty spend the majority of their time working for the future of Central Asia. This year AUCA has taken the time to look to leaders from the past for inspiration to move forward. As part of this effort, a room in the main campus, the former office of Iskhak Razzakov, is being rennovated as a memorial to the former Head Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Kyrgyzstan. The goal of the memorial is to remind students, all of whom were born after the collapse of the Soviet Union, of the events that helped shape the present day Kyrgyz Republic, and as an amazing reminder that the American University, where they

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AUCA Magazine*December2012

currently study, used to be the office headquarters of the Kyrgyz Soviet.

Iskhak Razzakov is remembered as a progressive head of the communist party in Kyrgyzstan. He was appointed in 1945 as Chairman of the National Commisars of Kyrgyzstan, and then in 1950 appointed as Head Secretary. He served in this post until 1961, when he was removed for being too supportive of Kyrgyz nationalism. Most of these efforts were squashed by Russian authorities, but Razzakov's support of Kyrgyz history being taught in schools remained even after his removal.

Razzakov also implemented several large infrastructure projects

still important to the country today.

The Kant-Chuysk railway connects Bishkek by rail to Kazakhstan and Russia. The Ortotokoyskoe resevoir and the Great Chuysk Canal were also projects begun under Razzakov that helped modernize the country. Razzakov also helped found the Academy of Science and commissioned the State Theater of Opera and Ballet, still popular today.

Razzakov worked out of the office that is currently room 315 at AUCA. The walls are wood-panneled and thick, with two large chandaliers illuminating the most opulent room of the common laborer. Until last year AUCA has used the room for

University Update

Scenes from the opening of the Razzakov Museum at AUCA. Left: AUCA Razzakov Library Collection; Below Top: NGA students; President Wachtel

Pictures of Razzakov are now decorating the walls of 315, and AUCA is in the process of beginning a library collection in his honor. So far the modest collection includes original printings of Razzakov's own works, as well as pieces written during the time he was in office. On the occasion of his 102nd birthday students from AUCA's New Generation Academy gathered to present biographical

research that they had completed as part of an effort to develop resources for the new memorial.

AUCA will continue to probe into the past for leadership examples that can help our students and alumni to move the country forward. As AUCA plans to move into a new building in less than two years, it will become even more important that students and faculty find ways to connect to the past, lest they run into the future blind to the mistakes and successes already achieved.

www.auca.kg

guest lectures, meetings with official delegations, and other important university business. This summer the administration decided that the room should also be used as a memorial to the secretary that helped champion Kyrgyz culture and values.

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University Update

The Jogorku Kenesh and Citizens’ Access:

by Rodger Dillon

Parliament’s Website

Unlike the case in many countries, citizens of Kyrgyzstan find it difficult to enter the house where their laws are made. The parliaments of many countries allow individuals to pass relatively freely into the building where legislative hearings and formal floor sessions of the members are being held, subject only to a screening for hidden weapons. At the White House in Bishkek attending generally requires an appointment, or special permission.

This is not to say that it is impossible for a citizen to get in. As with many countries and their parliaments, a website and access through the internet is a convenient way for citizens to interact with the governing process. And a good website provides a critical source of information about lawmaking and developments in the government. In the case of limited or restricted access to lawmakers and their daily activities – as is the case in Kyrgyzstan – it is particularly important that the website be comprehensive and fully functional. Kyrgyzstan has not yet achieved this. Gaps exist

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that compromise a free and effective exchange between citizens and their lawmakers.

An Overview of the JK Website First, credit must be given where it is due. The lawmakers and staff of the Jogorku Kenesh have created, since the beginning of 2011, a website (http://www.kenesh.kg/) on which there is a great deal of useful information. Members of the JK have clearly been working hard to build out the site, implementing their ideas and getting assistance from local professional website developers, the United Nations Development Program, the Parliamentary Strengthening Program of DAI/USAID, and others.

Notably, one of the links on the JK website now leads to the record of the votes of individual members of parliament on specific legislation as each measure has come before the JK for final decision. This information was difficult to obtain just last year, even though such information is vital in order that society and the various interests (teachers, taxi drivers, busi-

ness persons) may determine which MPs are supporting or opposing matters of concern to them. It is commendable that JK leaders have moved forward to provide citizens with this information.

In addition, there is a much more available on the website: Rules of Procedure; News; Agendas for JK committee meetings, JK meetings, and Faction meetings; an About Parliament section, including the KR Constitution; Work Schedules; Bills and their movement; Voting Results; the JK Structure, with information about Factions, Committees, a list of JK MPs and their biographies; and a JK Apparatus section that includes information on the senior staff and their telephone contacts. Further, there is a link for Resolutions of the JK; a Press-Center of the JK; Useful Links; and – importantly – a Feedback section where people enter their name and contact information and may then pose a question.

Begin to consider, however,

University Update

what is not on this website. Suppose a citizen in Naryn or Osh wants to send a copy of a report to an MP who he or she knows is a particular champion/supporter of agriculture. It would be difficult to send such a report to that particular MP because there are no email addresses or telephone numbers for the individual MPs on the JK website. Similarly, if someone thought that the study was important enough to send to all members, the email addresses that would make this possible are not on the website. Some observers of the JK argue that some MPs are not yet accustomed to frequent use of email, but it would seem logical to assume that the individual MPs have some obligation to set up their office and establish an email address in order to facilitate communication with their constituents, the citizens of the Kyrgyz Republic.

Some other gaps:

Only two of the Political Parties have an email address on the JK website.

•

On the link for the parliamentary committees only two of the committees have email addresses listed.

•

Three committees have no contact information whatsoever. The committees are where draft bills receive their earliest serious consideration by committees that are devoted to the relevant subject matter.

•

None of the links on the JK website list the member-by-member votes in the parliamentary committees.

•

There is no link to a “How a Bill Becomes a Law” section, where people may be guided to an understanding of how parliament works, and the steps by which laws are adopted.

Conclusions and Recommendations

Parliament needs to be more clear in identifying legislation. Although parliament gives proposed legislation a Registration Number, the parliament and its members seldom provide that number when discussing the proposed legislation in public. Nor do the public media provide any reference or registration number when reporting on the legislative news. Many other governmental jurisdictions deal with this issue by establishing a practice of commonly referring to proposed legislation by its assigned registration or reference number, for example SB415 (2012). Identifying them in this way needs to be the common practice, both among parliament members and the media.

Parliament should also provide analysis for all legislation.

There should be a reflection of the possible issues, of possible unintended consequences, and the list of constituencies for and against. An analysis of a bill should have a standard form of presentation with, for example, plain-language sections on:

1. Background of the issue 2. What is the current law on this specific matter?

3. What does this bill do to change that law?

4. Arguments of the supporters 5. Arguments of the opponents (if any) 6. Which organizations and/or individuals support this legislation?

7. Which organizations and/or individuals oppose this legislation?

Given that the members of the JK have provided plenty of evidence that they are committed to improving the JK website, it may well be that some of the gaps described here will soon be remedied. Also, it is certainly the case that resources in the country are limited at present, so it may be difficult to speedily close all the loopholes. However, officials in the Jogorku Kenesh, and government, should move forward to make the JK website a more efficient medium for lawmakers-to-citizens and citizens-tolawmakers communications.

AUCA Magazine*December 2012

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Initiation 2012 Initiation is the best expression of the AUCA Spirit. During the first week of every November the AUCA freshmen class, after completing their first midterms, is welcomed into the AUCA community in a raucous concert featuring 60 of their talented classmates. This year was no different, and after the show we invited some of our outside guests to give us their opinion on what they saw.

Kregg Halstead, Chief of Party, USAID Kyrgyzstan Parliamentary Strengthening Program - It’s great to see the self-confidence of these young people. Their performance was very professional, and during the show I was thinking to myself that in ten years, when these students start coming into public service resolute, dynamic, and positive, that should be a pretty good show as well. I wish all the students the persistence to make it through the challenges they will face in the future, and have every confidence that AUCA will help guide them on their way.

Azamat Arykov, Film director - I am used to going to pretty boring concerts with trite speeches and overscripted, tight performaces. This show bewitched me, and everything from the dancing to the singing to the production was really impressive. It was awesome, and I’m glad I saw it.

Stanislav Karpovich, AUCA Board Member, AUCA Class of ‘97

- Nikolay Shulgin was in full force here, but I still give full marks to the students. They were real professionals tonight. All the dancers and singers gave off a real positive energy. It just goes to show that AUCA students are different. I’m a little biased because I went to AUCA, but I think it’s true that our students think differently, expect success, take on responsibility, and enjoy being decision makers. I know that many are in a hurry to graduate and make their way, and I’m sure they will, but it is important to soak up moments like these. The success will come, but the road to success, and the way you walk it, are equally important.

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www.auca.kg AUCA Magazine*December 2012

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Citizen Media

Becoming the Media:

by Chris Rickleton

The Rise of Citizen Journalism

To whomever had a taste for tea and the time to listen, Central Asia has

as goods were exchanged.

But the demise of some of the

yoke, whole traditions of story-telling were suppressed in favour of bulletins

always told its own stories. Whether

greatest trade routes the world has

from the Soviet newspaper, Pravda.

in the form of animated monologues

ever seen transformed Transoxania

If Central Asian peoples continued

imparted by Kyrgyz Manaschi, the

from a hub into a hinterland. As the

to pass their personal and collective

verses of the Persian wanderer Omar

Russian and British empires rubbed

histories onto future generations then

Khayyam, or just the idle chatter of

up against each other during the

they did so quietly, in the shadows of

the chaikhana, the lands which hosted

so-called Great Game of the 19th

an ever-nosy KGB.

the Old Silk Road have long been

century, it was explorers from these

hotbeds of legend, poetic insight and

countries that assumed the role of

Union coincided with the dawn of the

swirling rumour, - networks across

relaying the region’s narratives to the

information age. New technological

which volumes of information as well

outside world. Under the Bolshevik

tools emerged for getting word out of

Yet the collapse of the Soviet

Citizens around the world are contributing to history like never before. AUCA Magazine would also like to encourage its readers to contribute as well. We encourage all who have a history with the university to send your stories of AUCA to magazine@mail.auca.kg. We will use the stories as part of our oral history of the university, and add them to the collection of stories that we will feature in our AUCA Virtual Museum Project. You can learn more about this at www.auca.kg/en/20.

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AUCA Magazine*December2012

Citizen Media

the furthest-flung corners of the earth,

between culturally distant and even

citizens of two countries seemingly

spreading it across continents in the

mutually hostile communities. Amid

destined for war (Iran and Israel).

space of seconds. In the era of the

all the word-mincing a field of aca-

iPhone we are told almost anyone

demia has grown up, trying to make

can be a journalist. This phenomenon

sense of trends which at times seem

- often referred to as ‘Citizen Media’

so kaleidoscopic and contradictory that

or ‘Citizen Journalism’ - has troubled

they almost defy analysis.

But for practitioners of citizen

planet and challenged traditional news

media - bloggers, collators, artists, and

outlets to update their way of thinking.

video-makers - the point is less to try

In the mainstream media, com-

and explain what is happening and

mentators still struggle to describe this

more to harness its power. This might

moment without resorting to clichés.

be done with seemingly malicious

To some, the world of “Twitter Revolu-

intent, by uploading a provocative clip

tions”, “Cyber Warfare” and “Viral Vid-

such as the now infamous “Innocence

eos” is infinitely more dangerous than

of Muslims” onto a video-sharing

the one that came before it. To others

platform like YouTube. It can also be

it is a new era of hope for humankind,

used positively such as a Facebook

offering the potential to build bridges

campaign promoting peace between

Citizen media has no home, but if it has a haven, it is probably the news and advocacy website Global Voices. Perhaps more so than any other online organization, Global Voices

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autocratic governments across the

The World is Talking, Are You Listening?

and its community of over 500 volunteer authors, translators and part-time editors are striving to make discussions take place in communities across all of the Earth’s 24 time zones accessible to a wider audience.

In contrast to the mainstream media, Global Voices’ focus is less on

AUCA Magazine*December 2012

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Citizen Media

events occurring in the countries of the

often partisan) citizen-internet users

My own introduction to the

western world and more on societies

of various countries, people GV refers

Global Voices community was acciden-

covered irregularly by the likes of CNN

to as netizens. These opinions, often

tal, coming via my work as a Russian-

and the BBC. In the last few months

represented in the form of blog extracts,

English translator at Kloop.kg, an

the website’s coverage of the US presi-

tweets or comments under online

online youth media portal managed by

dential elections was conspicuous in its

articles, are then translated as quotes

my friend, Bektour Iskender. On April

absence. The London Olympics, mean-

for stories written in English before

7, 2010, as an still and overcast day

while, were reported thoroughly by the

the stories themselves are converted

turned into one of the most dramatic

site, but mostly from the perspective of

into other foreign tongues by a team

and tragic in Kyrgyzstan’s history,

countries winning medals for the first

of translators working in more than 30

Kloop.kg’s team of young journalists

time or athletes that had been forced to

separate languages. “The World is Talk-

braved both the physical danger of the

overcome a series of social, economic

ing, Are You Listening?” is the question

streets and the information barricades

and cultural hurdles just to compete.

written under the Global Voices logo on

put up by the Bakiyev administration

its t-shirts, cups, and saris – a question

to deliver some of the most objective

the network has earned its right to ask.

accounts of events occurring in Bishkek

Moreover, the “voices” Global Voices authors tend to pick out from

at the time.

the humdrum are not those belonging to political figures, international organizations and independent experts, but the ones belonging to ordinary (and

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Asia

Citizen Media in Central

With most other news websites shut down, the security structures in chaos and the cabinet decamping

Citizen Media

Chris Rickleton with Saikal and Asel, two AUCA students and Global Voices Bloggers.

for foreign lands, Kloop journalists

of April 8, a sub-division of an angry

internet users on the major questions

had to use every resource available

mob pelted rocks at our car and we

being asked in the months following

to pull together reliable information

had to swerve down a side street to

the turnover of power. How should

for news reports. Sometimes their

avoid an all-out assault. The next day

authorities deal with land-grabs outside

lines of information came via internet

Kloop’s team went back to the office to

the capital? Would there be another

forums, where the city’s residents were

continuing reporting and translating.

coup on May 17, or was it just gossip?

Revolutions and looting, how-

Should the word ‘secular’ be removed

their bedroom windows, or via SMS

ever, are only the starting point of a

from the constitution? How popular

messages. These claims then had to

story. The big debates begin afterwards

was the idea of parliamentary gover-

be double-checked and sifted in order

– both in households and on blogging

nance, really?

to build up an accurate picture of what

platforms and social networks such as

was happening.

Twitter and Facebook. By this point,

self writing posts for the website. These

Two years later I still found my-

By nightfall, their reports were

sadly, many of the major international

were typically about local reactions

also fulfilling the function of security

news agencies have already lost inter-

to political scandals, such as when a

briefs: advising the city’s residents on

est. If it isn’t exploding, it isn’t news, or

prominent oppositionist caused a stir

where clashes between looters and vol-

so the logic runs.

by accusing the Prime Minister of be-

unteer armies were taking place, and

My friend Bektour suggested I

www.auca.kg

reporting on events happening outside

ing a “half- blooded” Kyrgyz, but also

which streets angry mobs were heading

sign up to Global Voices in order to

about the insane press conferences of

down. On our way home on the night

gather the opinions of Kyrgyzstani

men who had captured the attention of

AUCA Magazine*December 2012

19

Citizen Media

Russian-speaking internet users across

The results have been impres-

the former Soviet space by announcing

sive. When a protracted conflict took

the end of winter as we knew it, and

place this July in Tajikistan’s Gorno-

the idea that Vladimir Putin was “a

Badakshan region, AUCA students

complex bio-robot”. But while I enjoyed

were the first to document the reactions

these occasional assignments, I began

of social media users to the information

to feel something was missing. Firstly,

blackout in the region. When the world

I knew only one of the three languages

forgot to report on the anniversary of

most commonly spoken in Kyrgyzstan,

Turkmenistan’s Abadan explosion, in

and was thus unconsciously ignor-

which unknown numbers of citizens

ing large parts of the conversation.

died, AUCA students remembered.

Secondly, these stories simply weren’t

When Saikal Nogoibaeva, a student in

mine to tell. Like the Russian and Brit-

the ICP department, covered a debate

ish explorers of old, I was putting my

about banning short skirts and track-

own spin onto local narratives.

suits in the Kyrgyz parliament, it was highlighted and praised by a journal-

AUCA and Global Voices The idea to unite two of the major interests in my life – the American University of Central Asia and Global Voices – came to me while I was writing a story about Tajikistan’s enormous flagpole one day, and I had to ask a student for help translating a comment from Farsi into English.

In addition to being an academic community, AUCA is by default a community of linguists. Nearly all students at the university know two languages and some of the super-polyglots know five or more. Moreover, the AUCA student body is internet-savvy and interested in the world around them.

Who better suited then to the challenge of boosting the quality and quantity of content coming out of the Central Asian region, one of the least well covered in the Global Voices pantheon?

Within the framework of a citizen media internship project, beginning in the summer of 2012, AUCA students have been reporting and reflecting on some of the most important conversations taking place in the former-Soviet countries of Central Asia and Afghanistan. Together, a group of seven citizen journalists from the ICP department has produced over twenty reports for Global Voices, on social, political and cultural themes.

20

AUCA Magazine*December2012

ist on the Radio Free Europe website, even as the conservative legislator that raised the question in the first place posted a comment objecting to the article!

The project’s reporting of events in Kazakhstan has been particularly diverse, with correspondent Altynai Sydykova looking at bizarre sheep-shaped pedestrian safety adverts, the controversy about Kazakhstan’s non-Kazakhstan-born weightlifting champions, the highly politicized trials concerning the violent chaos in the country’s oil-rich western region, and Son Pascal, the Italian singer-song-writer, who is making music that encourages Kazakhs to speak in their mother tongue.

In Afghanistan, the US presence and the ongoing conflict were the themes most important to local internet users as Vulanga Akhmedova considered popular debates about reforming Kabul’s political system and public apathy towards the countless international security conferences held in the Afghan capital, none of which ever seem to bring about a better security environment for ordinary Afghans. So far, the only country we haven’t been able to extract any stories out of at all is Uzbekistan: Tell Islom Karimov we are working on it!

Join in the Debate Hopefully, the connection between AUCA and Global Voices Central Asia subdivision is one that can keep growing, extending out of the ICP department, where most of the current group of interns are currently studying and going “cross-disciplinary” in its search for yet more conversations taking place in Central Asian cyber space.

For students, particularly of the journalism faculty, but of all other faculties as well, the benefits of being a Global Voices author are numerous.

Firstly there is the opportunity to see your work edited, published, translated into different languages and read by thousands of people. Secondly there is the opportunity to improve your writing and learn more about the role citizen media is playing in amplifying discussions happening in societies across the world. Finally, for regular contributors, there is the chance to attend fully-covered five-day bi-annual summits that decide the future of the organization, host discussion panels on citizen media themes and feature guest speakers from mega-tech companies such as Google and Twitter. The last one, held in July of this year, was in Nairobi, Kenya.

The only criteria for students to take part in the project are that they are able to write in English, and read in at least one other Central Asian language.

Ideally they should be familiar with the way online discussions reflect and represent conversations taking place in any of the region’s diverse societies.

The countries covered by the Central Asia GV section are Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan. Inter-

ested students should contact project coordinator Chris Rickleton (chris. rickleton@googlemail.com) or regional editor Alexander Sodiqov (asadikov@ gmail.com).

Citizen Media

Becoming the Media:

About Global Voices

At a time when international

translators, who have formed the

more than 500 bloggers and trans-

Lingua project. Additionally, Global

English-language media ignores many

lators around the world who work

Voices has an Advocacy website and

things that are important to large

together to bring you reports from

network to help people speak out

numbers of the world’s citizens, Global

blogs and citizen media everywhere,

online in places where their voices are

Voices aims to redress some of the

with emphasis on voices that are not

censored. We also have an outreach

inequities in media attention by lever-

ordinarily heard in international main-

project called Rising Voices to help

aging the power of citizens’ media. We

stream media.

marginalized communities use citizen

believe in free speech, and in bridging

media to be heard, with an emphasis

the gulfs that divide people.

Millions of people are blogging, podcasting, and uploading photos,

on the developing world.

videos, and information across the globe, but unless you know where to look, it can be difficult to find respected and credible voices. Our international team of volunteer authors and part-time editors are active participants in the blogospheres they write about on Global Voices.

Global Voices is incorporated in

Our History

perspectives emerging from citizens’ media around the world by

innon and technologist and Africa

linking to text, photos, podcasts,

expert, Ethan Zuckerman while they

video and other forms of grass-

were both fellows at the Berkman

roots citizens’ media.

Center for Internet and Society at project grew out of an international

do not have an office, but work as a

bloggers’ meeting held at Harvard in

virtual community across multiple time

December 2004 and it began as a

zones, meeting in person only when

simple blog. (Here's a written report

the opportunity arises (usually during

and podcast of that meeting).

Global Voices quickly expanded thanks to patronage of the Berkman Center, support from Reuters, the MacArthur Foundation, and the energy

Our Projects

and creativity of our contributors.

Global Voices is translated into more than 30 languages by volunteer

interesting conversations and

Tokyo Bureau Chief, Rebecca MacK-

Voices, a nonprofit foundation. We

and donations to cover our costs.

Call attention to the most

2005 by former CNN Beijing and

Harvard University. The idea for the

sponsorships, editorial commissions,

•

Global Voices was founded in

the Netherlands as Stichting Global

our Summits). We rely on grants,

Global Vision Goals

•

Facilitate the emergence of new citizens’ voices through training, online tutorials, and publicizing the ways in which open-source and free tools can be used safely by people around the world to

www.auca.kg

Global Voices is a community of

express themselves.

•

Advocate for freedom of expression around the world and protect the rights of citizen journalists to report on events and opinions without fear of censorship or persecution

Our Primary Goals

Source: globalvoicesonline.org

AUCA Magazine*December 2012

21

Citizen Media

Altynai Sydykova’s GV experience

Reporting on Kazakhstan for

local sites such as yvision, the local legend that is Son Pascal, and region-

vantages, I now feel that I became

experience! I have learned a lot about

al jokes about Pavlodar or Shymkent

somewhat a victim of social media as

Kazakhstan’s internet culture, im-

that would otherwise have been lost

well. While searching for the opinions

proved my writing skills and become

on me. I was surprised by the ability

of kaznetizens on political events and

an active ‘netizen’ with accounts on all

to get closer to a foreign culture (albeit

social trends, I found myself opening

popular social networks.

one quite close to home) through the

up accounts on twitter and VKontakte;

Internet.

exploring ‘trending’ Kazakh blogs and

What I liked most about GV is that it does not merely translate local

I also feel that I have improved

searching for Kazakh news. It turned

news, but it also demonstrates opin-

my writing skills. Since posts go

out to be an interesting and even ad-

ions and judgments of cyber citizens

through strict editing, I now have a

dictive hobby – I soon started to know

towards what is happening. Since my

better idea about what a well-written

more about current events in Kazakh-

blog was dedicated to Kazakhstan,

blog or news post should look like.

stan than in the Kyrgyz Republic. So

I learned a lot about the views and

Currently I am a proud owner of a

even though reporting on the views

values of our neighbours and their

Word Press account, who knows how

of ‘netizens’ can be fascinating, being

everyday life.

to embed HTTP links and other techie

too much of a netizen yourself can

stuff.

be a time consuming distraction from

Having written several posts about Kazakhstan, it was particularly

22

Despite all of the great ad-

Global Voices turned out to be a great

Moreover it feels great to have

interesting to visit Almaty. I was able

your post translated into more than 7

to understand my Kazakh friends

languages and receive some feedback

when they referred to the Kaznet and

on your report from a Spanish citizen.

AUCA Magazine*December2012

reality!

Citizen media

new MediA in the kyrgyz republic by Nick Robbins

The quick dissemination of information to, from and between online communities or individuals is a powerful function of the Internet. Still in its infancy, the Internet in Kyrgyzstan played its first role—albeit a highly weak one—in supporting anti-government protests which overthrew President Akayev and his government during the “Tulip Revolution” in 2005. In an all-too-common attempt to suppress anti-government sentiment or downright dissidence, President Akayev’s government began

blocking access to both domestic and foreign media outlets, such as radio and T.V., which the regime viewed as a threat to itself. In response the opposition turned to other forms of social media, such as Livejournal.com, to provide vital and up-to-date information about the chaotic events. In April of 2005 protesters in Bishkek successfully stormed the White House and President Akayev fled. A study conducted by Melvin and Umaraliev for the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) dubbed this period as the “first political success story of new media in Kyrgyzstan”.

After the fall of Akayev the Internet began to take on a more prominent role in Kyrgyzstan. In order to comply with a requirement of the WTO Kyrgyzstan put 77% of the state-owned KyrgyzTelecom up for sale in 2006. Since this process of ICT liberalization has begun ICT infrastructure has become increasingly advanced, more available, and less expensive. Although KyrgzTelecom still owns the bulk of the market with its holdings at about 60%, private ISPs including Megaline, Elcat, and Saimatelecom now service a major portion of the market.

Internet penetration levels in Kyrgyzstan vary. The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) claims 20% of citizens have access to the Internet while a recent IREX report on media sustainability claims it could be closer to 40%, which would make internet penetration in Kyrgyzstan the highest in Central Asia. Bishkek, the country’s capital, has the chief concentration of internet access

AUCA Magazine*december 2012

www.auca.kg

The digital landscape of the West is spreading into Kyrgyzstan. Access to information communication technologies (ICTs) has been steadily on the rise. The Internet is arguably the most significant development in ICTs by providing a framework for a new mass media that is shared by citizen authors and readers. Social media (Twitter, for example), blogs, forums and citizen media—independent journalism websites like kloop.kg or neweruasia.net which are comprised of various independent blogs and abide by higher standards of professionalism—are carving out a new frontier in mass communication. These internet media are sometimes collectively referred to as “new media”. Combine this new media with a high level of internet freedom in Kyrgyzstan and the result is a powerful tool that has the possibility to channel citizen opinion, offer an alternative to traditional print, T.V. and radio outlets, and craft new methods by which the citizen or collective interacts with the political and social environment.

23

Citizen Media

(private and public) and the majority of internet users in the country.

Around 80% of all users are under the age of 35.

The emergence of ICTs has been met with the need for foreign aid and the ability to draft proper ICT legislation, a task often carried out by NGOs. Thus NGOs and international donors— such as the Open Society Institute or Transitions Online—are especially important in the maintenance and enhancement of telecommunications in Central Asia’s republics. But monetary and legislative assistance comes at a high price: in order to receive international aid some historically authoritarian “top-down” governments—like Kyrgyzstan and

24

AUCA Magazine*December2012

Tajikistan—must permit a more open regulatory environment that is “clearly articulated, and permissive of electronic media” within the aid-receiving country, write two researchers, McGlinchey and Johnson, in their study “Aiding the Internet In Central Asia”. Kyrgyzstan has made significant advancements by way of this aid-for-deregulation path.

Freedom House’s latest report marks Kyrgyzstan’s Internet as “partly free”.

Kazakhstan scored worse on censorship and Uzbekistan’s Internet was concluded as “not free”. (Turkmenistan, a country not examined

by Freedom House, unsurprisingly scored extremely poor by OpenNet Initiative’s internet freedom report.

Tajikistan was relatively free according their 2010 data.)

While foreign aid encourages the Kyrgyz government to considerably deregulate the Internet and thus provide additional freedom via a top-down government approach, politically or socially active users can in turn utilize this open online media environment to promote change from the bottom-up. In this way, the government is pressured to satisfy the political and social visions of international donors as well as to acknowledge the multifarious and sometimes dissenting viewpoints of a new generation of online citizen authors.

According to a study published by two UCLA researchers in the Journal of Computer-Mediated Com-

Citizen Media

Two individuals connected with the neweurasia.net project recently authored a piece which details the history of the website in the article “From Blogging Central Asia to Citizen Media: A Practitioner’s Perspective on the Evolution of the neweurasia Blog Project.” Founded in 2005, its creators were able to successfully find local bloggers in each of the five CIS countries—Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan—whose blogs were then compiled and displayed on a single web page for visitors to browse, read and share with convenience. By building partnerships with foreign entities, such as the non-profit Czech media organization “Transitions Online” (TOL), and through the process of “bridge blogging”—that is, the process of connecting blogs that will reference one another and reach across cultural, linguistic and national borders—neweurasia began to spread its appeal and enrich its content.

Bridge bloggers, each hailing from the five republics (with the exception of Turkmenistan), would write weekly posts in their native language.

Translators were hired to translate between Russian and English. One of the principal goals of donors like TOL was to promote greater media freedom and democratization, and, as is true of Central Asian governments vis-à-vis their international donors, funding was contingent upon

the attempt to realize this goal. In one case, neweurasia.net actualized their donor’s wishes by zeroing in on and supporting groups which lacked representation in the mainstream press of the CIS countries and endorsing their social participation in citizen media.

The strategy of using donor aid to actively promote “bridge blogging” and underrepresented groups ultimately paid off. By April of 2007 neweurasia.net had up to 118,000 unique visitors and 100 posts per month, up from a mere 500 posts in the first seven months. At the same time the site’s visitor demographics shifted from being predominately Western to those from Central Asia, with the highest number of visitors coming from Bishkek and Almaty.

Taking advantage of its increasing popularity, neweurasia.net accepted donor aid with the proposal of “Strengthening and Expanding Citizen Journalism in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan”. The primary goal was to adopt Western standards of ethical and professional journalism and to promote new media as a tool for advocacy for local NGOs. By 2009 neweruasia.net had become the principle web source of citizen authorship in Central Asia.

Today, one can find resources for up-and-coming bloggers on the site, such as “An Easy Guide to Blogging” or the document “Safe Blogging & Online Privacy Made Easy”. One can even read “The Election Blogging Guide”, which instructs individuals on the process of effectively blogging about political elections, including tips on how to do it under the watchful eye of a repressive government.

But neweruasian.net isn’t the only such website in Kyrgyzstan.

Kloop.kg was founded in 2007 and has since become a popular online news source. On their webpage, kloop.kg reveals that “You also may become a correspondent of kloop. kg, regardless of experience and education”, and as a blogger you

may “express your own opinions and write in whichever style you prefer”.

In this way, kloop.kg provides regular citizens with a forum for political and social expression. IREX’s recent 2012 “Media Sustainability Index” noted that kloop.kg and other blogs are ‘providing the foundations for investigative journalism’, exposing internet readers not just to political and criminal issues as the main stream media does, but to analysis of social problems like human migration or the shooting of stray dogs in Kyrgyzstan.

In 2010, five years after new media saw its first use as a political tool in the “Tulip Revolution”, the significance of new media was revealed once more when Kyrgyzstan was mired in political conflict between the months of March and June. In March various online communities began reporting on allegations of widespread corruption in then President Bakiyev’s government. Kyrgyzstan’s most well-known digital discussion board, Diesel.kg, was a primary source of dissenting opinion and damaging rumors about government corruption. Having discovered this, the government pressured the owners of Diesel.kg to clear their website of all posts that were critical of the regime, to which the administrators of the forums caved. Regardless, many users still found ways to write posts. Some members were reporting on demonstrations in the northwestern town of Talas, while others were posting under such threads as “Opposition, News, and Events” which centered on the events leading up to, during and after the revolution of April 7 with a combination of personal opinion, observation, foreign news service reports and YouTube videos.

Citizen reportage also shifted to new venues, such as Twitter—which expanded its primary role from facilitating private conversation to spreading news about government corruption, abuse and growing political unrest (such as large protests in Naryn). In spite of its further attempts to stifle political and social unrest by censoring traditional Kyrgyz media and

AUCA Magazine*December 2012

www.auca.kg

munication under the title “Internet Authorship: Social and Political Implications Within Kyrgyzstan”, just like traditional journalism is vital for sustaining democracies, online citizen authorship is “open to participation…constantly in process [and] the property of all the participants” and likewise can “invigorate democratic activity”. One such noteworthy citizen journalism website—neweurasia. net—promotes free political expression and is participant owned insofar as its sustenance relies on citizen authorship from grass-roots bloggers in CIS countries like Kyrgyzstan, and it further represents the possibility for political and social community building in Central Asia.

25

blocking access to certain Russian T.V. stations, Bakiyev’s regime was unable to stop the elusive flow of information running through new media outlets. On April 7 an estimated 10,000 protesters gathered around Bishkek and successfully stormed the White House, forcing President Bakiyev to flee the country.

What role did new media play in actually igniting the protests? In order to better understand where new media fit into the demonstrations that day, I sat down with Nora Williams, a visiting Fulbright Scholar and Indiana University graduate student at AUCA who is currently finalizing her thesis on social media and political mobilization during the 2010 Bishkek protests. She does not believe that social media (a branch of new media) built a civil society or some sort of political coalition which was responsible for the demonstrations. While it is certain that social media played a part in spreading the word about politi-

26

AUCA Magazine*December2012

cal corruption in the government, facilitating widespread dissent, Nora Williams believes one needs to be cautious about overestimating social media’s significance that day. In her estimation sites like Facebook and Twitter were “more impactful in posting what happened afterwards [by] sharing where there were fires, where there was looting…where you should go, what’s happening” and so forth. Based on a year’s worth of research and hundreds of surveys, she concludes, in part, that the massive crowds in Bishkek were formed through “face-to-face” connections with friends and family. Social media, she says, was “basically mobilizing [their] existing network.”

Hypothetically, she does not believe that the protesters would have been fewer if not for social media. In this incident, the Internet, in a broad sense, took on a more informative role during and after the chaos of the revolution rather than providing a foundation for political mobilization.

New media again took on a largely informative role when the political upheaval in the north shifted to ethnic chaos in the south, particularly in the provincial capital of Osh, only one month after the President had fled overseas. From June 10th—14th ethnic tension between Uzbeks and Kyrgyz broke out into a four day riot that resulted in 470 deaths and an additional 300,000 internationally displaced, according to the Kyrgyz Inquiry Commission (KIS). Traditional Kyrgyz media lacked adequate coverage of the events and as a consequence the Internet filled the information vacuum for those who had been displaced in the South and for those in Bishkek wanting a clearer picture of what was happening there. Twitter accounts and forum membership increased, particularly from people in the South, who wished to report to the rest of Kyrgyzstan about the events and share their personal opinions on the issue.

But new media is not limited to times of revolution and governmental collapse. Times of peace, or tentative peace as in Kyrgyzstan, also give new media participants (passive or active) an occasion to share amongst a digital community their socio-political views. According to the same UCLA researchers cited earlier in this

piece, this vibrant online community is interwoven with personal experiences shared by individual authors, who, through expression of these experiences, come to identify, focus and solidify their social and political positions. Through this animated Internet discourse bloggers and citizen journalists naturally begin to shift their socio-political dialogue from the digital world to the physical—cafes and restaurants—uniting people and building stronger communal ties. Nevertheless, it is arguable as to what extent this community can affect political and social change in Kyrgyzstan.

In spite of new media’s active role in social and political issues today in Kyrgyzstan, there are still signs that the number of active writers is relatively low. According to the authors of “From Blogging Central Asia to Citizen Media”, in terms of blogging and citizen media, there seems to be little understanding as to its relevance in people’s daily

lives, and the authors believe that blogging will “remain and activity limited to certain cultural elites such as higher education students, civil society activists, and journalists”.

Kyrgyzstan has nurtured an ICT environment that is impressively free from government intrusion and more developed in terms of infrastructure than most of its neighbors. As the Internet gathered strength after the “Tulip Revolution” and the proceeding liberalization policies, some citizen authors utilized the Internet as a convenient way to express their opinions or to quickly inform the Internet-connected populace when the traditional Kyrgyz media failed to do so. Bloggers, social media users, forum posters and citizen journalists on sites like kloop.kg and neweruasia.net have been, and still are, building and sustaining an alternative means by which individuals and online communities interact with their political and social environment.

AUCA Magazine*December 2012

www.auca.kg

Diesel forum once again became a social platform on which those concerned about the recent events in southern Kyrgyzstan could gather, sharing stories, opinions and news with one another. One such thread—“Events in the South and the City of Osh”—included updated news posting gathered from various online news outlets, while another thread on Diesel reached out to its users for donations to help victims in Osh and Jalalabad. On June 20th a series of YouTube videos were uploaded by a Bishkek user under the heading “We want peace in Kyrgyzstan” which depicted youth of various nationalities promoting peace.

27

AUCA Spotlight

AUCA Spotlight

New Journalist, New Journalism.

An Interview with Dina Karabekova (AUCA ‘12), editor at #ONE MAGAZINE.

Dina Karabekova studied Journalism and Mass Communication, and graduated from AUCA in 2012. Earlier this year she began to work at the lifestyle magazine for men, #ONE MAGAZINE, where she is now an editor. Dina shared with us her opinion about profession of journalism, local media, and her future in the Kyrgyz Republic.

-Why did you choose journalism?

I was not led to journalism, like

many of my colleagues, by curiosity and a thirst for uncovering the truth, I was just, as awkward as it is for me to admit, searching for something easy and fun to do. When I was in school I actually wanted to be a psychotherapist. In the 10th grade I was offered an internship at a television studio. After spending the summer in such a warm and interesting environment I just decided that medical school was going to be too difficult, and that writing was more fun. That decision was also accompanied by my wish to

auCa sPotlight

enter AUCA, which was the university of my dreams.

-Did you know from the beginning that you wanted to work at a newspaper or magazine?

Not right away, no. Even while I was at AUCA in the journalism department I did not really know what I wanted to do with my education, or even where I wanted to do it. When I was a junior I even started to have doubts that I had chosen the right major. The only thing I knew for sure was that I wanted to go abroad and get a masters degree. But in the end, everything worked out quite differently, and I am now sincerely happy to be working in Bishkek on #ONE MAGAZINE. Of course I have not given up the idea of studying abroad somewhere, but for the meantime I am glad to know that I can happily work within my field here at home.

-What is it like working at a magazine?

Working at the magazine is very interesting. Magazines are in many ways new for the Kyrgyz market. A few years ago you couldn’t be sure if this medium would even be in demand, but the market has changed.

In #ONE MAGAZINE we, unfortunately, do not fight for our ideals or dig for the truth. Democracy is represented in some sense, but working in a commercial project is absolutely different, and you can absolutely forget about anything that is politically charged.

Work in #ONE MAGAZINE is unique in that everyone there is united in trying to put out the most creative and outstanding product possible. It also means that we are all involved in almost every aspect including writing and editing, photo shoots, and marketing. It has really been a valuable experience for me.

- What is the role of your magazine?

I already mentioned a little about the magazine being completely new

30

AUCA Magazine*december2012

to the Kyrgyz market. It is done in the tradition of the intellectual magazines that you see around the world such as GQ and Esquire. Since #ONE MAGAZINE has come out we have already seen two or three competitors pop up here in Bishkek. This is pretty astounding considering that this market barely existed two years ago. And I think there is also a big future for more here, since all of existing magazines combined do not yet cover even a third of the material available. This is a growing market though, and I think it is exciting that people are starting to create these magazines, and more importantly, that there are people buying them.

- Are social networks important for your magazine? Why? Social networks are very important as an advertising medium for every business, and of course our magazine is not an exception. We use it as a way to get readers interested in the print version of our magazine. Sadly, this advertising mechanism is not so popular in the Kyrgyz Republic, but we are definitely moving forward. Today almost the half of the existing businesses in Bishkek have a profile on Facebook and Twitter, and though not all of them really know how to use these media, it is good that they simply exist.

the truth of routine journalism. I wish I had the luxury to take some time to be inspired. That would be nice.

-What would you say to AUCA journalism students?

Journalism is fun. You do not have to be a mathematician or follow a complex set of rules. Basically, you just need to be able to do the simple things - listen, write, read - and try to make your audience respond somehow. You need to ask the right questions, and have the courage to ask inconvenient questions. It is not your job to make an interviewee comfortable. Your job is to get the information.

Journalism students - Write!

Start a blog or get a column in a paper somewhere. Practice is the only way for you to study journalism, and the ability to write will not pop out of your diploma. It is a skill that needs to be worked and honed over time. Learn as many foreign languages as you can, because it opens up new worlds of words and connections. Study other disciplines thoroughly, because, frankly, you don’t have your own.

And try not to skip the theory that our brilliant AUCA professors try so hard to put in your heads.

-What is your opinion about the -How do you find your inspiration? For example, how do you decide who and what to write about?

future of Kyrgyz media?

I used to think that inspiration, for me, came from my sense of romance, love, music, and possibly coffee. For people who only need to write a couple articles a month, they can find inspiration in their writing.

But, when writing is something you do for living, and you have to write two or three articles a day, the whole concept of inspiration fades away. Instead of turning on your favorite music, you have to turn on your brain and work hard. As boring as it sounds, this is

country. Although the media here is

Mass media are always dependent on the political situation in the freer than in our neighboring countries, it is a little like being the world’s tallest dwarf. I am not sure that our politicians really understand what it means to have a free press and how that works in a democracy. But I also hope that as more newspapers and magazines come on to the market they will stop covering new hairstyles and VIP parties and turn their attention to the things that really matter.

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(996 312) 66 11 14 www.business.auca.kg mba@mail.auca.kg Student admissions office (996 312) 66 10 89 AUCA Magazine*december 2012

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AUCA Spotlight

Оценка Современного образования

глазами профессионала

Знание - сила, но лишь при условии, если это знание новое. Необходимость адаптироваться к изменениям, столь стремительно происходящим сегодня, обязывает нас приобретать все новые знания и навыки. Непрерывное обучение сегодня не только стиль жизни, но и основной фактор профессионального успеха каждого из нас… На эту тему мы и решили побеседовать с Омурбеком Дуйшебековичем. Сатаев Омурбек Дуйшебекович – журналист и руководитель ТВ- и радиовещания «Азаттык». Популярный журналист имеет репутацию выдающейся личности не только в Кыргызстане, но и далеко за его пределами. Талантливый журналист, обладающий деловой хваткой, родился 31-декабря 1964 года. Он сделал успешную карьеру: Государственное Телерадиовещание Кыргызской ССР, главный редактор; Международная государственная теле-радио корпорация «Мир», главный редактор; Жогорку Кенеш (Парламент Кыргызской Республики), глава пресс-службы; Internews Network в Кыргызской Республике, исполнительный, директор; Кыргызское общественное образовательное радио и

-Расскажите об основании университета, а также об идее его создания и сути американской системы образования в Кыргызстане.

- Общеизвестно, что история АУЦА в Кыргызстане ведётся с 1993года, когда был образован Кыргызско - Американский факультет в Кыргызском Национальном университете. Собственно, Американский университет в Бишкеке был создан в 1997, а в 2002 вуз переименован в Американский университет Центральной Азии. И за годы своего существования университет, несомненно, достиг огромных успехов в подготовке высококвалифицированных специалистов и непрестанно делает стремительные шаги в развитии и усовершенствовании своих образовательных программ. Что же касается сути системы образования, отмечу, что это международное много дисциплинарное сообщество, построенное в американской традиции вольных гуманитарных наук.

- То есть, студент в праве сам выбирать дисциплины на том или ином факультете?

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AUCA Magazine*December2012

телевидение «КООРТ», генеральный продюсер; «Газпром нефть Азия», глава пресс-службы; Институт Войны и Мира (IWPR), эксперт. Омурбек Дуйшебекович имеет необыкновенный талант проводить журналистские расследования и преподносить свою работу обществу в доступной, высококачественной и оригинальной форме. Его многочисленные работы всегда имеют актуальность, всегда интересны. Кроме того, он любящий муж и отец четверых детей. - Американский университет в Центральной Азии существует уже не первый год, и я знаю, что вы когда– то здесь работали. Расскажите, в чем, на Ваш взгляд, заключаются особенности этого университета и в чем его отличие.

- Отвечая на Ваш вопрос об особенностях данного вуза, могу сказать, что профессиональный и личностный рост студентов - главная забота его руководства. Это есть и основное отличие АУЦА. Когда даются только АКТИВНЫЕ знания, которые будут постоянно востребованы и задействованы в деятельности и карьере.

- Совершенно верно. Состав учебных программ университета, помимо подготовительной, включает порядка одиннадцати программ по выпуску бакалавров, а так же программу магистратуры. Таким образом, добиваясь высочайшего уровня подготовки специалистов, АУЦА придерживается принципов свободы самовыражения, критического подхода к исследованиям и академической честности.

- Итак, на сегодня АУЦА - первый университет в Центральной Азии, который прошел аккредитацию в Соединенных Штатах. Не могли бы Вы рассказать об этом подробнее. Какие преимущества возникают в связи с этим?

- Действительно, АУЦА — первый в Центральной Азии университет, предлагающий своим выпускникам дипломы университета, аккредитованного в США посредством партнерской программы с Университетом Бард (Bard College) в США. Сразу замечу, что помимо партнерской программы с Университетом Бард, АУЦА участвует в ряде партнерских

программ со многими университетами и организациями по всему миру. А преимущества очевидны: тысячи выпускников продолжают учебу в самых уважаемых учебных заведениях мира.

- Например, в каких?

- В таких учебных Заведениях, как Гарвард, Йель, Университет Индианы, Сорбонна, Центрально - европейский Университет (CEU). Кроме этого, выпускники имеют возможность работать и работают в престижных компаниях и организациях по всему миру: BBC, Citibank, Cisco Systems, Deloitte&Touche, Google, IBM, USAID, Всемирный Банк. Я назвал лишь несколько из числа наиболее известных.

- Говоря другими словами, Американский университет в Центральной Азии - это международный вуз гуманитарных наук американского типа, предлагающий обучение наивысшего качества?

- Верно. И по окончании обучения студенты получают два диплома: американского и кыргызского образцов.

AUCA Spotlight

-Они действительны во всем мире, поскольку действующая в университете система кредитчасов является международным стандартом.

- АУЦА действует в регионе, известном своим высоким уровнем коррупции в области высшего образования. Хотелось бы услышать Ваше мнение относительно американской системы образования и набора студентов в АУЦА?

- АУЦА имеет все основания гордиться своей репутацией честного учебного заведения, во всех отношениях, как среди студентов, так и среди преподавателей. Я уже говорил, что АУЦА принимает абитуриентов из Центральной Азии более пятнадцати лет, и на протяжении всего этого времени продолжает предоставлять лучшее высшее образование тем учащимся, которые хотят изменить свой мир к лучшему.

- А материальная поддержка студентам?

- Материальная поддержка, насколько я знаю, определяется финансовым положением студента и его успеваемостью,чтото в районе от 200 до 1700 долларов США. И порядка семидесяти процентов наших студентов ею пользуются. Кроме того, студентам оказывается помощь в поиске жилья.

- А что касается преподавательского состава?

- Университет привлекает только самых лучших профессоров со всего мира, которые по-настоящему любят работать со студентами. В АУЦА соотношение «преподавателистуденты» составляет 1:5, что позволяет уделять внимание каждому студенту.

- Давайте вернемся к системе образования в АУЦА. Суть вопроса заключается в самом названии вуза – АМЕРИКАНСКИЙ университет в ЦЕНТРАЛЬНОЙ АЗИИ.

- Здесь, на мой взгляд, все просто: АУЦА, как американский университет, привержен принципу критического мышления,

энциклопедичности знаний и индивидуальному подходу в обучении. Но поскольку это вуз, расположенный в Центральной Азии, в АУЦА глубоко понимают и признают необыкновенное культурное многообразие, в обстановке которого учатся студенты. И, на мой взгляд, это особенно важно хотя бы потому, что благодаря этому, многие из выпускников смогут посвятить свою жизнь осуществлению столь необходимых сегодня, для всех кыргызстанцев, социальных изменений.

- АУЦА не собирается останавливаться на достигнутом и уверенно смотрит в будущее в поисках дальнейших нововведений, возможностей сотрудничества и дальнейшего роста. Каким Вы видите ближайшее будущее АУЦА?

- Я человек осведомленный – профессия обязывает. И я знаю, в АУЦА разрабатываются новые программы, ориентированные на нужды сообщества, которому он служит. Взять, к примеру, курсы в рамках Центра дополнительного образования: гражданское воспитание, переподготовка военных, а также планы, связанные с открытием студенческого городка в городе Оше. Я также наслышан, что довольно скоро, например, студенты начнут учиться в новом современном студенческом городке. И что АУЦА приобретает общежитие с целью привлечения новых иностранных студентов, особенно из Европы и США.

- Ну, раз уж мы затронули эту тему, то попутно хотелось бы узнать, чем же еще, помимо учебы, заняты студенты в АУЦА?

- О жизни студентов в университете?

- да - (смеется) Ну, она разнообразна и никогда не бывает скучной. В течение учебного года Офис по студенческим делам организует различные шоу и концерты. Студенты АУЦА закрепили за собой имидж исполнителей и постановщиков интересных развлекательных программ и мероприятий, таких как Ориентационная неделя, Посвящение в студенты, Выпускной бал, День

Благодарения, Рождество, Хеллуин, День влюбленных и многих других.

- Я знаю, что в АУЦА существует Студенческое Правительство – некая уникальная форма самоуправления. Что она дает студентам?

- Студенческое правительство позволяет студентам активно участвовать в принятии важных для Университета решений. Кроме того, студенты участвуют в различных спортивных мероприятиях и работе нескольких десятков клубов и организаций, которые, в свою очередь, позволяют им интересно проводить досуг и развивать навыки лидерства и презентации. И чтобы максимально облегчить жизнь своих студентов, АУЦА оказывает им дополнительные услуги. Ну, к примеру, университетский автобус, компьютерные лаборатории, и библиотеку. Вплоть до кафетерия с горячим питанием.

- В завершении нашей Беседы хотелось бы услышать наиболее полный список компаний, предоставляющих работу выпускникам АУЦА.

- Работодатели охотно принимают на работу не только выпускников, но и студентов АУЦА, потому что они отвечают их высоким требованиям. И в этом отношении АУЦА может гордиться процентом занятости своих выпускников. Они, как правило, работают в ведущих компаниях Соединенных Штатов, Европы, России, СНГ и Кыргызстана,таких как: Немецкий Банк, Банк «Лондон»; Итальянский Медицинский Центр, Москва; ПРООН, ЮСАИД, ОБСЕ, Всемирный Банк, Азиатский Банк Развития, Национальный Банк КР, Банк Демир, Министерство иностранных дел КР, Министерство финансов. Министерство образования и культуры. «Кыргыз Алтын», «Кумтор Оперейтинг Компани», «Проктер и Гэмбл», «Реемтсма», АКСЕЛС, «Хельветас», корпорации «Карана» и «Прагма», «Бител», «Ареопаг», «Госэнергосбыт», «ЦентральноАзиатская Группа», «Турецкие Авиалинии», ТРК КООРТ, газеты “Times of Central Asia”, “РИФобозрение”, “Вечерний Бишкек”, агентство Интерньюс.

AUCA Magazine*December 2012

www.auca.kg

-Что же касается степеней, присуждаемых АУЦА..?

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AUCA Spotlight

Салима Бекболотова:

Знания в области финансов необходимы всем руководителям Аббревиатура MBA становится все более популярной в Кыргызстане. Однако одни люди плохо понимают, что скрываются за этими тремя буквами. Другие же уверены, что MBA – это золотой ключик, открывающий заветную дверцу к карьерному росту и престижной профессии. Но дает ли степень МВА преимущества при устройстве на работу? И возможно ли в Кыргызстане приобрести качественные знания в этой области? «ВБ» решил разобраться в этой проблеме. Помочь нам согласилась руководитель программы MBA АУЦА Салима Бекболотова.

- Салима, расскажите, пожалуйста, какие знания можно приобрести, поступив на курс делового администрирования? Для чего нужна степень?

- Если переводить дословно, то Master of Business Administration (MBA) – это магистратура со специализацией в области управления бизнесом, степень мастера делового администрирования. Однако бренд «MBA» уже давно вырос из своего магистерского прошлого. Сейчас MBA – это высшее дополнительное образование, носящее прикладной характер. Для подобных программ важно, чтобы знания носили не только теоретический характер, но и приобретались практические навыки. В результате человек учится разбираться в современном

динамично развивающемся мире. Эти знания нужны тем, кто планирует создать свой бизнес или продвигаться по карьерной лестнице. Кроме того, чтобы быть успешным лидером, необходимы знания в области финансов и управления. Поэтому большинство поступающих на программу - это бакалавры или уже работающие люди, получившие неэкономическое образование. Если открыть в газете «Вечерний Бишкек» рубрику “объявления”, то можно увидеть в списке требований к кандидату на тот или иной пост в тех же международных донорских организациях степень магистра и МВА. Кстати, и президент «Кока-Колы» говорил, что если вы хотите добиться успеха и иметь свое дело, то нужно разбираться в финансах.

- Качество образования в Кыргызстане вызывает у экспертов большие сомнения. Не лучше ли получить степень за границей?

- Получить образование за рубежом – это, конечно, здорово, однако средняя стоимость там варьируется от $50 до 70 тыс. за год. Это не по карману среднестатистическому кыргызстанцу. Студенты АУЦА, например, могут получить знания уровня Пенсильванского университета (University of Pennsylvania) за гораздо меньшую цену.

Кроме того, при получении степени МВА важно иметь возможность общаться с представителями местных бизнесструктур, чтобы они не только делились опытом, но и показали студентам реальное положение дел в бизнес-сфере. У каждой страны есть свои особенности в области ведения бизнеса. К тому же это возможность завязать какие-то контакты.

- Нужно ли адаптировать западные стандарты МВА в плане методики, учебные планы и куррикулум, учитывая особенности страны?

- Можно найти баланс. Западные стандарты отличаются тем, что материал студентам дается последовательно и в логичном изложении. Однако практические ситуации лучше

По данным журнала The Economist, в Европе и США наблюдается спад интереса к дипломам MBA. В то же время эксперты отмечают рост интереса к MBA в Азии. Средний возраст слушателей MBA составляет 27-30 лет. Средний рост планки доходов после получения диплома – от 40 до 110% (в зависимости от региона и бизнес-школы). Среди основных мотивов получения степени MBA сегодня преобладают следующие: развитие карьеры (35%), образовательный опыт и личностное развитие (35%), рост заработной платы (20%), расширение коммуникативного потенциала (10%).

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AUCA Magazine*December2012

AUCA Spotlight

- Вы упомянули, что полученные в рамках программы знания используются на практике в местных компаниях. Каким образом?

- Уделяя должное внимание магистерским диссертациям. Ведь чтобы защитить диссертацию, необходимо доказать актуальность и применимость в реальной ситуации. Соответственно, каждый студент, который изучает магистерскую программу, берет отдельное предприятие или отрасль и исследует определенную сферу. Это большое дело, которое необходимо развивать, дабы исследования были востребованы местным бизнес-сообществом. Соответственно, нужна обратная связь - партнеры, которые дают свои направления исследования. Лично моя студентка исследовала

Директор программы MBA одной из самых престижных бизнесшкол Великобритании профессор Амир Шариф выделил основные факторы, которые должны знать те, кто желает получить степень MBA. 1.

2.

Расположение. Где именно вы будете проходить обучение? Будете ли ездить ежедневно на занятия? Стоимость. Сильно ли процесс обучения скажется на вашем бюджете? Как вы намерены оплачивать обучение - самостоятельно или посредством семьи? Сколько стоит обучение с учетом проживания, расходов на транспорт, учебного материала.

делать?”.

ситуацию в Красном кресте, выявила проблемы и дала практические рекомендации, которые применяются в этой организации.

- Я категорически не согласна с данным мнением. MBA – это не просто подготовка менеджера, который продает чужие товары. На самом деле МВА – это гораздо больше. Программа учит, как быть гибким в быстро меняющемся мире, быть лидером, понимать законы, принимать очень быстрые решения.

- Сплошные плюсы… А есть ли у программы МВА недостатки?

- Минус в том, что это довольно интенсивная программа. Занятость у студентов колоссальная. Однажды провели исследование, сколько времени студент МВА уделяет семье. Так, у одного студента получилось всего лишь два часа в неделю. Хотя у него маленький ребенок. Сначала это тяжело. Однако к третьему семестру студенты с этим справляются гораздо легче. Ведь за этот период они приобретают очень многое для себя, и к тому же это их выбор ради получения знаний и результатов.

Если сторонники MBA делают акцент на том, что это образование дает представление об основных бизнес-стратегиях и процессах, то противники записывают то же самое в минусы. Как известно, в классических программах MBA отражен принцип, что общество конкурентная среда, в которой выживает сильнейший. В то же время некоторые экономистыноваторы, к примеру Эдвард Деминг, известный ни много ни мало тем, что поднял экономику Японии, выступают с критикой этих принципов. Концепция управления качеством Деминга и другие теории остаются за рамками MBA.

- Есть мнение, что разразившийся мировой кризис, а вернее, его последствия, кроется в том, что те самые руководители, получившие данное бизнесобразование и оказавшись в иных условиях (то есть условиях, отличных от тех, в рамках которых они решали бизнес-кейсы во время обучения), не смогли разработать антикризисный план развития компании, то есть по сути ответить на вопрос “Что

3.

4.

5.

Материал взят из онлайнгазеты “Вечерний Бишкек” www.vb.kg

Известно ли вам, какие из данных методов вам подходят?

Аккредитация, репутация. Осознаете ли вы значение рейтингов и в соответствии с каким принципом они составляются? Прошла ли аккредитацию программа обучения? Управление временем. Есть ли место образованию в вашей жизни? Какие усилия нужно приложить для получения образования? Поддержит ли ваша семья ваше решение относительно обучения? Методики преподавания. Какие методы преподавания предусмотрены образовательной программой?

6.

Поступление и график обучения. Наблюдается ли соответствие графика обучения в школе бизнеса вашим желаниям? Прост ли процесс поступления? Что вам нужно для поступления в школу бизнеса?

7.

Содержание курса. Что именно вы сможете изучать?

8.

Перспективы. Каковы перспективы карьеры? Существует ли четкость ориентации на карьеру? Известны ли вам успешные ученики этой школы бизнеса?

AUCA Magazine*December 2012

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использовать на примере местных компаний. Студент должен иметь возможность анализировать полученные знания на предмет применения в конкретных условиях, в стране, где он намерен их реализовывать. Что такое западные стандарты вообще? Это рыночная экономика, которую мы строим и в Кыргызстане. Мы должны понимать, куда идем, и учитывать при этом особенности нашего региона.

AUCA Spotlight

Беседа с

Женишбеком Арзыматовым Старший эксперт Программы USAID по содействию Жогорку Кенешу КР.

Женишбек Арзыматов на протяжении долгих лет работал в различных программах по укреплению верховенства права и демократическому строительству в Кыргызстане. Он проработал в программах ведущих международных организаций (USAID, ОБСЕ/БДИПЧ, Aмериканская Ассоциация юристов и т.д.). Имеет магистерскую степень по демократическому управлению и верховенства права юридического колледжа Огайского Северного университета, США. Также он является тренером по избирательному праву, по вопросам адвокатской этики, стандартам справедливого судебного разбирательства. Американский Университет в Центральной Азии существует уже не первый год и непрестанно трудится на благо высококачественного профессионального, также

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личностного роста нынешней молодежи не только Кыргызстана, но и приезжающих к нам учиться из зарубежных стран. Расскажите, в чем на Ваш взгляд заключается особенность данного университета, а так же в чем его отличие. Считаю, что данный ВУЗ является одним из ведущих центров подготовки высококвалифицированных кадров разного профиля отвечающий международным стандартам обучения, а также предлагает спектр профессий необходимых в современном мире. Например, обучающие программы АУЦА по антропологии или бизнес управлению готовят востребованных и новых специалистов, в которых остро нуждается наша страна и не только. Как я понял программа Антропология — первая и единственная на территории Центральной Азии программа, обеспечивающая всестороннюю подготовку студентов в

антропологии, и фокусирующаяся на независимом, аналитическом подходе к обучению и предлагает своим выпускникам большие возможности по устройству на работу в различных международных исследовательских проектах и продолжению собственных полевых исследований. В связи с этим можно уверенно утверждать о том, что есть вполне обоснованный спрос выпускникам на рынке труда ближнего и дальнего зарубежья. К тому пример трудоустройство выпускников в ведущих компаниях и организациях мира как Google, Всемирный Банк, BBC и так далее. Особенностью Вуза является в безграничных возможностях для студентов создавать, усиливать и реализовывать человеческий и интеллектуальный потенциал. Возможности заключаются в наличии сильного и профессионального профессорскопреподавательского состава, материально технической

AUCA Spotlight

Расскажите про суть американской системы образования в Кыргызстане и нужен ли он нам ( или насколько он у нас актуален). Считаю, что суть американской системы образования заключается в подготовке и обучении молодых и перспективных кадров, с особым акцентом на развитие критического мышления, способности анализировать и проводить исследования, коммуникативных навыков, лидерства, независимости и уверенности в себе. Для студентов открывается доступ к мировому сообществу как потенциального и полноправного члена. Тому пример владение в совершенстве английским языком, который является глобальным инструментом общения и профессиональными навыками. Полагаю, что для Кыргызстана очень важно перенимать новейшие и успешные модели образования развитых стран мира, включая США, которая показала мировому сообществу свою экономическую мощь и важную роль. Естественно, опыт американской системы пойдет только в пользу, если правильно и грамотно адаптировать с учетом менталитета и особенности нашей страны. Как Вы смотрите на идею права студента самому выбирать дисциплины на том или ином факультете и, по Вашему мнению, что это дает. Это элемент демократии

и свободы выбора. Студенты имеют право выбирать косвенные предметы, которые могут быть по его/ее мнению полезны в карьере. Однако, это не является абсолютным правом, так как имеются предметы, которые он/она должен/на обязательно прослушать, что бы получить соответствующую квалификацию и специальность. Итак, на сегодня АУЦА первый университет в Центральной Азии, который прошел аккредитацию в Соединенных Штатах. Не могли бы Вы рассказать об этом подробнее. Какие преимущества возникают в связи с этим? Честно говоря, я не эксперт по вопросам аккредитации вузов и естественно не позволяется возможным подробно рассказать об этом процессе. Однако, как я понимаю, аккредитация предполагает официальное признание вуза уполномоченным органом о том, что он соответствует определенным стандартам и качеству образования. Преимущество в том, что в стране, где АУЦА прошла аккредитацию котируется диплом и у выпускника есть отличная возможность трудоустроиться. Ваши рекомендации, направленные на улучшение качества образования. Я бы рекомендовал руководству и преподавательскому составу АУЦА ориентировать студентов также на местный трудовой рынок. Пропагандировать важность работы в государственных структурах, вносить посильный вклад в развитие и укрепление кыргызской государственности. В целом нам известно что, к сожалению, выпускники в основном работают в частном секторе или в международных организациях. Предлагаю открыть кафедру административного права и процесса и готовить специалистов по государственной и муниципальной службе.

АУЦА не собирается останавливаться на достигнутом. И уверенно смотрит в будущее в поисках дальнейших нововведений, возможностей сотрудничества и дальнейшего роста. Каким Вы видите ближайшее будущее АУЦА? Могу с уверенностью заявлять, что АУЦА ожидает блестящее будущее, которое принесет еще очень много плодов. Попутно, хотелось бы узнать ваше мнение насчет жизни, активной деятельности студентов помимо учебы в АУЦА. Я думаю, что АУЦА не только ВУЗ где можно получить качественное образование, но и второй дом который дарит теплоту и уют для студентов. Также очень много внеучебных мероприятий, такие как танцы, курсы пения, клубные и общественные мероприятия и так далее. Точно можно сказать, что социальная жизнь студента будет очень активной, что очень позитивно сказывается на личностном совершенствовании. Как Вы знаете, в АУЦА существует Студенческое Правительство – некая уникальная форма самоуправления. Что она дает студентам? Чувство ответственности, искусить вкус власти и понять сложность управленческого процесса и принимать решения, также идеальная возможность реализовать свои амбиции. В завершении нашей беседы, хотелось бы услышать Ваши пожелания АУЦА? Достижения больших успехов и высот и не останавливаться на начатом!

www.auca.kg

базы, доступа к новейшим информационным технологиям и другим ресурсам которые позволяют эффективную подготовку кадров. Также, хотелось бы особо отметить, что важными отличительными чертами АУЦА являются прозрачность академических процессов и отсутствие коррупции. Поэтому, АУЦА пользуется большей популярностью не только среди молодежи Кыргыстана, но и ближнего и дальнего зарубежья.

Спасибо!

AUCA Magazine*December 2012

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Gifts and Grants 2012-2013 Friends of AUCA John and Joan Von Leesen Fred Huston Joe and Margaret Flanagen Mary Schweitzer Martha Merrill Ellen Hurwitz Helen Smith Sharon Bailey Gulnara Dreier Madeleine Reeves Hersh Chadha Henry Myerberg John Couper Alden Greene Vera Tkachenko Emita Hill Mary Ford Maeberta Bobb Matha Taylor Bridget Morris Frank and Sallie Pullano Dinah Zeltser Board of Trustees Scott Horton Jonathan Becker Almas Chukin Stanislav Karpovich William Newton-Smith Matt Nimetz Alumni Nazira Beishenalieva Kamila Muslimova Lilia Muslimova Vyacheslav Akimenko Temerlan Moldogaziev Alan Niazi Aziz Soltobaev Erina Kadyralieva Kumar Bekbolotov Sanjar Tursaliev Rinat Aksianov Nazgul Cholponbaeva Azamat Akeleev Rustam Niyazov Melis Turgunbaev Amina Hirani Mamatkhalil Razaev Sayora Mussakhunova Corporate Partners Mina Group Kumtor Operating Company Demir International Bank Bank of Asia

Summer Language School AUCA’s 8-week summer program, in collaboration with Bard College (USA) and the Central Asian Studies Institute, gives you a full academic year of language study, cultural and language immersion, and plenty of opportunities to enjoy the unspoiled nature of Central Asia. Bishkek is one of the friendliest places to learn Russian, and is one of the most diverse cities in the region, with large local populations of Tajik, Uzbek, Afghan, Uighur, and, of course, Kyrgyz. Additionally, students from the United States, Europe, and Asia trust AUCA to deliver high quality courses and an incredible experience.

Languages Offered Russian Kyrgyz Tajik

Uzbek Dari Uighur

Program advantages • • • •

All Professors are Native Speakers Excursions and Adventures Included Student Peer Conversation Groups Intro to Central Asia Class

SLS COORDINATOR: DINA LUKYANOVA EMAIL: summer@mail.auca.kg PHONE (USA): +1 845 790 0882 PHONE (KG): +996 312 661 119 ext. 248 WWW.AUCA.KG/EN/SLS

Catching Up With: Psychology ’08

Kaibuldaeva Daria

Kovalenko Dinara - HR Specialist at Chaarat Operating Company

Latipova Kanykei

- MA from George Warren Brown School of Social Work, Washington University in St. Louis. Kanykei is now looking to pursue a PhD in Psychology in the field of Interethnic Empathy in Multicultural Society. In 2005 Kanykei was an exchange student at American University of Central Asia from one of the state universities and within one semester she was convinced that AUCA was the place for her. As it is said “You will fight as you train,” and her ‘training’ at AUCA prepared her to ‘fight’ for her goals. At graduate school she trained in Rehabilitation of Torture Survivors and research in Child Labor, and came back to Kyrgyzstan to expand her experience in working with vulnerable populations.

Since 2012 she has been teaching at the psychology department of AUCA, and working at ‘SOS Children’s Villages’ as a National Family Strengthening Program Advisor.

Tolubaeva Elmira

Girina Elena

Shkolnikova Kseniya

- Worked as the assistant to Lira Djuraeva at AUCA in Advising and Career Services for two years before taking leave to care for her new child. Helped to implement a new early detection system for students in danger of failing courses.

Myrzabekova Asel

Kosterina Elena

- AUCA Professor and former chair of the Psychology department, Elena is also an AFP scholar and is currently pursuing her Ph.D. at Central European University, Budapest.

Nechaev Maxim

- Corporate Administrator at Alliance Business Advisors in Dubai, UAE. Maxim works on company registration, incorporation and administration, as well as other business consulting services for people looking to set up shop in the Middle East.

Kenjeeva Aijan

Leonovich Ekaterina

- Currently a graduate student at the University of Tromso in Norway. After graduation Asel was interested in counseling and joined the Kyrgyz Gestalt Association which works in partnership with the Moscow Institute of Gestalt and Psychodrama (http://www.migip.ru ), and GATLA (LA, USA. Gestalt Association, http://www.gatla.org). Now Asel has just started a two-year masters program in Peace and Conflict Transformation at the University of Tromso in Norway.

Asel has worked on two projects that influenced her decision to get a masters.

One was the “Gender aspects of posttraumatic reintegration in Kyrgyzstan” in partnership with the OSCE. The second project was in Osh with the International Medical Corps to conduct endline Gender Based Violence (GBV) and Psychosocial surveys. After her masters Asel hopes to return home to the Kyrgyz Republic to continue her work in conflict resolution.

Emelianova Lina Turdubaeva Eleonora Tsoi Kseniya

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