In the context of quarantine caused by COVID-19, the SUSU Institute of Media, Social Sciences and Humanities continues to actively strengthen the existing international ties and build up new contacts abroad.
A major event in the international humanitarian sphere during the quarantine period caused by COVID-19 has become the International Conference on Philosophical Practice “Philosophical Practice for Self-knowledge by Means of Intellectual Creativity”, organized by the Department of Philosophy of the SUSU Institute of Media, Social Sciences and Humanities (IMSSH). The goal of the international conference was to ensure that, in terms of the pandemic, practicing philosophers from all over the world could exchange work experience through scientific and popular-science events, showing the all those interested what philosophical practice is, what the goals, principles and methods of work of the main directions of philosophical practice are, what potential of intellectual creativity it has, and how philosophical practice correlates and interacts with academic philosophy. And this goal was undoubtedly achieved. The number of officially registered participants of the conference amounted to 500 people from 52 countries of the world. Head of the Department of Philosophy, Candidate of Sciences (Philosophy) Elena Grednovskaiia said:
“The scale of the event is really impressing: the participants from Japan, the USA, India, China, Argentina, Korea, Egypt, Brazil, Western and Eastern Europe, Russia, and 30 more countries have met and presented the results of their theoretical and applied research in the field of philosophical practice. And of course, we are very happy about the fact that it is South Ural State University that provides such an opportunity to our contemporaries in these difficult times.”
The conference was organized in a virtual space on the GoogleMeet platform, and within the four days of this event 3 panel discussions, 19 lectures and 16 master classes and workshops on burning issues of philosophy were held.
During the quarantine, the Institute of Media, Social Sciences and Humanities of South Ural State University, jointly with the University of Illinois, the USA and Shandong University, China, continued to develop the collaboration among universities and successfully completed the first stage of a unique project on studying selfie communication. More than fifty students of the Department of Journalism, Advertising and Public Relations, under the leadership of the Director of the Institute of Media, Social Sciences and Humanities, Doctor of Sciences (Philology), Professor Lidiia Lobodenko took part in the international research project on the Visual Styles of Self-representation in Social Media. The results of the study are to be published in a joint scientific article on cultural trends of selfie communication in social networks of different countries in a Scopus indexed edition.
In July 2020, the Manipal Institute of Communications, India, invited representatives of the SUSU Institute of Media, Social Sciences and Humanities (IMSSH), including the Head of the Department of Journalism, Advertising and Public Relations, Doctor of Sciences (Philology), Professor Liudmila Shesterkina, and Associate Professor of the Department of Journalism, Advertising and Public Relations, Candidate of Sciences (Philology), Anna Krasavina, to participate in the international online round table on the Communication During COVID-19.
“The event brought together the scientists and specialists in the fields of media, education, management, medicine from universities in India, Russia, the USA, Canada and more,” said Liudmila Shesterkina. “At this forum, the SUSU Institute of Media, Social Sciences and Humanities represented Russia and shared its experience in solving problems related to COVID-19 while training students in journalism, advertising and public relations. In the Does Online Teaching of Journalism, Advertising and PR Have the “Right to Life” presentation, we told the round table participants about the results of distance learning. The Electronic SUSU web-portal system, regulations for training, as well as organization of attestations, designed by the Rector’s Office of the university, have allowed the academic staff to fulfil all the tasks.”
Also, in July 2020, the representatives of the SUSU Institute of Media, Social Sciences and Humanities took part in the International Online Conference of the International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR) on the Reimagining the Digital Future: Building Inclusiveness, Respect and Reciprocity, which due to the COVID-19 pandemic was transferred from China to Tampere, Finland. The International Association for Media and Communication Research is a global professional association of media researchers with more than 2700 active members, including the representatives of the Institute of Media, Social Sciences and Humanities (IMSSH).
“Thus, in quarantine conditions caused by COVID-19, the SUSU Institute of Media, Social Sciences and Humanities continues to strengthen the existing international ties and build up new contacts abroad,” said Director of the Institute of Media, Social Sciences and Humanities, Doctor of Sciences (Philology), Professor Lidiia Lobodenko. “We constantly keep in touch with international universities, scientific centres, and professional associations around the world and strive to promote joint global research studies. The participation of the Institute of Media, Social Sciences and Humanities in international activities is of great importance for the development of our new effective scientific communications.”