The Eurasian Security and Governance Program (ESGP) at the Mershon Center for International Security Studies recognizes the growing salience of the greater Eurasian region, including the rising roles of China and Russia, in shaping international security. At the same time, the availability of empirical social science and humanities research that informs our understanding of governance and security policy in this dynamic region has been insufficient in recent years.

The program’s mission is to build and convey policy-informing knowledge and expertise on security and governance in the greater Eurasian region -- both at the Ohio State University and partner organizations -- through a combination of basic research, professional education, networking, and exchange. The program especially aims to support scholarship on Eurasian security and governance among graduate students and early career scholars.

Topics of special interest to the program include state-sponsored disinformation campaigns, cybersecurity, democratization, mass mobilization, online activism, corruption, great power (e.g. Russia, China, United States) competition in Central Asia and any other topics greatly impacting the international security and quality of governance in the region.

The program is led by founding co-directors and Mershon faculty affiliates Olga Kamenchuk, associate professor (clinical) in the School of Communication and Department of Slavic and Eastern European Languages and Cultures (by courtesy), and Erik Nisbet, associate professor in the School of Communication and Department of Political Science (by courtesy).

Mershon officially launched the Eurasian Security and Governance Program on October 11, 2018, at a public workshop in Moscow entitled “Diplomatic Dialogue: Public opinion and public diplomacy in international relations.” Organized by ESGP, in collaboration with the Alexander Gorchakov Public Diplomacy Fund and the Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM), the workshop featured mixed panels of top international and Russian experts discussing and cutting-edge research on the intersections of public diplomacy, public opinion, and foreign policy in each country and their relevance to U.S.-Russian foreign relations.