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October 17, 2005

Dimitris Keridis – The Constantine Karamanlis Associate Professor in Hellenic and Southeastern European Studies

After teaching in Greece and the United States, comparative politics seems an appropriate field of research for Fletcher School alumnus Dimitris Keridis, who recently returned to his alma mater as one of its newest professors.

For Keridis, the topic demands attention because there is “a different understanding of politics in Europe than in America.” In places like his Greek homeland, Keridis notes, “The domestic political discourse on international issues is at a lot of distance from the European mainstream, and even more so from the U.S. mainstream.”

He says the role played by journalists and the media in shaping political discourse is integral to research in this area. Since the topic affects Kediris personally, he hopes to eventually publish his findings in a book in Greek to broaden the impact of his research.

“In Greece, the audience is completely different, and what you expect to hear is not what you hear from an audience here in the States,” Keridis says. “I’m very interested in understanding these gaps …which over the last four or five years have increased rather than decreased. That is, the public discourses in Europe have diverged from the public discourses in America. This is a problem for policy making, and for me personally, as someone who travels back and forth between the two continents.”

But in the immediate future, Keridis says he will publish a more academic tome, in English, for an academic audience. The material will focus on issues of nationalism, specifically in southeastern Europe. The subject matter stems from his dissertation while studying as a PhD student at The Fletcher School.

His ambition to write on Southeastern Europe is driven not only by his desire to share his insights with the region, but also the intense US academic culture. Commenting on the differences between teaching in the United States and southeastern Europe, Keridis said, “The American academic environment is very competitive. That is also the reason why it also so effective and so attractive. People come from around the globe because it is top quality.”

As a former Fletcher student, the professors Keridis once studied under are now his colleagues, a delicate situation that has required some getting used to. “It’s been easy but strange,” he says. “It appears that it’s easier for [the faculty] than for me. Because many of them have played a role in my academic development it feels strange to see them simply as colleagues rather than as my teachers as well. I guess over time this will become easier.”

Posted by jessica at October 17, 2005 10:45 AM