Alasania to Speak at Mason Conference on Turkic Minorities

by Rashad Mulla

On Monday, Sept. 12, George Mason University welcomes Dr. Giuli Alasania, founder and head trustee of the University of Georgia, Tbilisi, and mother of Mikheil Saakasvhili, president of Georgia. She will deliver the keynote address for a conference, “Turkic Nations and Their Global Perspective: Turkic Minorities in the U.S.”

Her speech takes place at 3 p.m. at the Edwin Meese Conference Room in Mason Hall, with a reception following at 4:30. The speech is co-sponsored by the Azerbaijani Youth of America, a group which provides opportunities for learning about the country of Azerbaijan, and two Mason academic centers: the Center for Eurasian Studies and the Ali Vural Ak Center for Global Islamic Studies.

Steven Barnes, director of the Center for Eurasian Studies and a faculty member in the Department of History and Art History, says Alasania's visit to campus underscores Mason's commitment to studying the important region surrounding Georgia.

“As we approach 20 years since the collapse of the Soviet Union and the emergence of fifteen independent states that lay across the boundary between Europe and Asia, it is important to learn as much as possible about these places,” he said. “Dr. Alasania's visit allows our faculty and students to hear from one of the Republic of Georgia's leading voices on the relationship between the Caucasus and the broader Turkic regions of the former Soviet world and the United States.”