Soviet Past Research Laboratory (SovLab) is aiming to make a proper analysis and exploration of the Soviet totalitarian past, analyzing its legacy and creating environment to reflect and debate on this complicated subject.
We want to bring into focus of our diverse society the meaning of the culture of remembrance and to explain the importance of participation in researches and studies concerning recent history.
SovLab has been founded in 2010 by historians, journalists, researchers and other people interested in Soviet past.
It all started in 2009 when Institute of International Cooperation of German Public Universities Association (DVV International) and Heinrich Boell Stiftung organized an international conference “Terror Topography – Rethinking Soviet Georgian History (Stalinism, Totalitarianism, Repressions)”. Participants of this conference have formed an initiative group aiming to work on the topic of Stalinism, terror and repressions. They started research to create documentary and educational routes of Soviet terror and repressions in Tbilisi of that time
Organization has been formed by:
Lasha Bakradze, David Gogishvili, Giorgi Kldiashvili, Nino Lezhava, ana margvelashvili, Giorgi Shaishmelashvili and David Jishkariani.
Currently members of the board are:
Nato Alkhazishvili, Tamara Amashukeli, Lasha Bakradze, David Gogishvili, Ana Margvelashvili, Irakli Khvadagiani and David Jishkariani.
Starting from 2010 SovLab has created several educational and informational resources that all were based on deep researches of given topics.
The tasks and objectives of the organization we see in:
- Rethinking of the recent history in terms of increasing society’s responsibility towards the victims of totalitarian regimes.
- Putting ahead the role of individuals in historic processes and keeping individual experience in society’s common memory.
- Involving the society in studying of recent history to increase its self-awareness of civil society.
- Developing the culture of remembrance and making connection of this memory with actual places.
Our working principles are:
- Keeping up with the ethics of research work
- High quality standards
- Openness and accountability
- Networking with a people and organizations which are interested in our topics
- Engaging volunteers to join our researches
- Encouraging research works and making this field more popular
To achieve our aims, we are implementing all our activities according to six main program directions:
- Research program
- Social archive program
- Educational program
- Red terror topography program
- Program of advocating and creating propitious environment for research activities
- Publishing program
Nato Alkhazishvili
Tamara Amashukeli
Lasha Bakradze
David Gogishvili
Irakli Khvadagiani
David Khvadagiani
Rusko Kobakhidze
Katie Kurtanidze
Anna Margvelashvili
Badri Okudjava
Ketevan Sikharulidze
Magda Tsotskhalashvili
Nato Alkhazishvili was born in 1969.
She studied English Language (Tbilisi) and Public Management (USA).
She had been a deputy of United Nations Development Programme representatives in several post-Soviet countries during 2005-2016.
Currently she is a professor at the Georgian Institute of Public Affairs, where she teaches a course about sustainable development.She has founded a publishing house "Poetry".
She has been a board member of the Soviet Past Research Laboratory since 2017.
Tamara Amashukeli was born in 1976.
She graduated from the faculty of Art History and Theory at the Tbilisi State Academy of Arts. she has been working in the field of cultural heritage preservation and has implemented major projects in Tbilisi, Batumi, Abastumani and in other Georgian cities. She is a member of a non-governmental organization “Tiflis Hamkari” and a guest lecturer at the Ilia State University of Tbilisi. She is a researcher in architectural history and an author of many analytical articles.
She has been a board member of the Soviet Past Research Laboratory since 2017.
Lasha Bakradze was born in 1965.
He studied literature and linguistics (Diploma in German Studies - Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University and Friedrich Schiller University of Jena in Germany), Theology (Bern University), and Political Science (Potsdam University).
He started working on his dissertation “Georgian-German Relations in World War I” at the Humboldt University of Berlin, and defended it at the Tbilisi State University.
Currently, he is a professor at the Ilia State University of Tbilisi where he gives lectures about the history of the Soviet Union and he is a director of the Giorgi Leonidze State Museum of Literature.
He is one of the founders and a board member of the Soviet Past Research Laboratory.
Davit Gogishvili was born in 1988.
He graduated in 2009 with BA and MA degrees in Human Geography from the Tbilisi State University, the faculty of Social and Political Sciences.
He was working at the non-governmental organization JumpStart Georgia (Open Maps Caucasus). The organization works to create open-source digital maps, to open up public data and to make it easily and effectively accessible through Georgia.
Davit Gogishvili is one of the founders of the laboratory. He had been a head of the board during 2010-2017.
He was involved in the work of the Soviet Past Research Laboratory and carried out a small research within the project "Red Terror Topography". He is the author of the "Red Terror Topography" historical route map.
Irakli Khvadagiani was born in 1988.
In 2005-2009 he studied at the Tbilisi State University, the faculty of Social and Political Sciences, specializing in journalism.
In 2010-2013 he studied at the Doctoral and Master Programs at Ilia State University, specialization - Caucasus in the European and Global context.
From 2014 he is a Phd candidate at the Ilia State University.
From 2010 he is a researcher at the Soviet Past Research Laboratory.
From 2017 he is a chairman of the Board of the Soviet Past Research Laboratory.
Davit Khvadagiani was born in 1985.
In 2003 he graduated from the 37th public school in Kutaisi.
In 2004-2005 he studied at David Agmashenebeli National Defense Academy of Georgia.
In 2005-2008 he studied at Akaki Tsereteli State University of Kutaisi.
In 2012-2014 he was a regional researcher-assistant of the Soviet Past Research Laboratory.
From 2015 he is a researcher at the Soviet Past Research Laboratory.
Rusiko Kobakhidze was born in 1964.
In 1986 she graduated from the faculty of Philology at the Tbilisi State University (Classical Philology).
In 1986-1988 she had been working at the “Commission for verification of texts of Vepkhistkaosani (knight with panhers skin)” at the Institute of Georgian Literature.
From 1987 she was a postgraduate student at the Arnold Chikobava Institute of Linguistics (Kartvelian Languages).
In 1998-2000 she had been teaching Georgian language and literature at private schools “Phesvebi” and “Taoba”.
She attended a PhD program at the faculty of Humanitarian Sciences at the Tbilisi State University (Byzantine Philology).
In 2017 she received a PhD degree for the dissertation “Typical symbols of biblical plants in the patristic tradition”.
From 2013 she has been working as a volunteer researcher at the Soviet Past Research Laboratory.
In 2015-2017 she participated in the project "Nationhood - Self-Government Reform in the Democratic Republic of Georgia 1918" implemented by the Soviet Past Research Laboratory.
From 2017 she had been teaching Georgian language and literature at “Green School Tbilisi”.
Keti Kurtanidze was born in 1989.
In 2007-2011 she had been studying at the Ilia State University faculty of Arts and Sciences: Major in German Language and Literature, minor in Journalism.
In 2008-2009 she was working as an assistant teacher at “European School”.
In 2010-2014 she was working at a Ilia State University bookstore “Ligamusi”.
From 2017 she has been working at the Soviet Past Research Laboratory.
Magda Tsotskhalashvili was born in 1972.
She studied German Language at the Institute of Foreign Languages.
She worked at the Georgian Automobile Federation and at the publishing house "Siesta".
Since 2007 she has been working at the department of Graphic Design Services at the National Museum of Georgia.
Since 2017, she has been working as a Project Manager at the Soviet Past Research Laboratory.
Tbilisi, Vasil Barnovi Street #1.
E-mail: info.sovlab@gmail.com
Phone: +995 593 785901
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