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Posted Jan. 12/08
- Piotr Dutkiewicz (left) is congratulated on his honorary degree by Vladimir Egorov, president of the Russian Academy of Public Administration in Moscow.
One of only two Canadians in the last 25 years to receive an honorary doctoral degree from the University of Moscow, Piotr Dutkiewicz also became the only Canadian to hold two honorary degrees from different Russian universities when he received an honorary degree from the Russian Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Russian Federation in October. Given for his significant contribution to Russian-Canadian relations in the area of academic exchanges and research, the degree was conferred in Moscow.
A professor of political science and director of the Institute of European, Russian and Eurasian Studies at Carleton, Dutkiewicz is also a permanent fellow of the Centre for Civilizational Studies, Russian Academy of Science. His commitment to improving the lives of everyday Russians is evident in the range of activities he has undertaken over his career, including directing projects on women and labour market reform, an unemployment insurance system, and local governance for Russian high schools. He is currently involved in a Canadian International Development Agency project on juvenile justice and youth at risk in Russia.
Invited to attend the Valdai International Discussion Club, a group of leading scholars, experts and journalists specializing in Russian domestic and foreign affairs, Dutkiewicz joined the debate on “Russia after 2008: Models of development”. After a series of high-profile meetings with prominent Russian politicians and policy makers in 2006 and 2007, in September the Valdai Club met with the president of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, in his residence in Sochi. For almost four hours, Dutkiewicz and his colleagues were able to ask questions about Russian politics and the economy.