In this issue:

- Call for Applications: UC Berkeley Scholars Workshop, Spring 2011

The Institute of Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies (ISEEES) at the University of California, Berkeley (UCB), in collaboration with the Caucasus Research Resource Centers (CRRC), is soliciting proposals from scholars in the Social Sciences and History from Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia to participate in a two-week workshop at UCB from March 26 to April 9, 2011. The workshop is funded by a generous grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

- Policy Attitudes towards Women in Azerbaijan: Is Equality Part of the Agenda?

Yuliya Aliyeva, Program Manager at CRRC Azerbaijan, published an article in the 21st edition of the Caucasus Analytical Digest. The paper presents an account of how two competing policy approaches coexist in the policy attitudes towards women in Azerbaijan. The first one is largely informed by the dominant national discourse that regards women as guardians of national traditions and emphasizes traditional women’s roles as mothers and housewives. The second one is the global feminist agenda that penetrates Azerbaijan thanks to its involvement in the various international institutions and activities of the local NGOs.

- Preliminary Findings of 2010 Corruption Survey Presented to the Media

On December 10, 2010, following the International Anti-Corruption Day, preliminary results of the 2010 corruption household survey were presented. The survey was conducted by CRRC-Armenia for the USAID Mobilizing Action against Corruption (MAAC).

- Food Safety in Georgia: Views from Retailers, Producers and Consumers

What do consumers in Tbilisi and Samtskhe-Javakheti think about food safety and hygiene of dairy and meat products in Georgia? What are their purchasing habits and how do they choose place and product? Are the consumers aware of their rights and responsibilities? How do producers and retailers understand consumer demands and how do they respond to those demands?

In order to get insights into consumer knowledge, awareness, demands and purchasing practices with regard to the quality, safety and hygiene of dairy and meat products in Georgia, the Caucasus Research Resource Center–Georgia (CRRC), in cooperation with Mercy Corps and GDCI, undertook a study on what drives consumer preferences in the meat and dairy sub-sectors in Georgia.

- UPCOMING EVENTS

* Work-in-Progress series: The U.S. Housing Market: Has It Recovered?, Tbilisi, Georgia, December 15 (ENG).

* Training: Scientific Project Management, Yerevan, Armenia, December 14-15 - Albert Poghosyan (ARM).

For further information: Crrc