News, insights & analysis
The challenges facing our societies are complex, fast-moving and deeply interconnected. We convene our Fellows’ community online and in person, creating spaces for constructive dialogue, exchange and learning. Here, you can find individual and collective perspectives, analysis and stories from JST Fellows and partners – leaders working at the frontlines of social change across Europe, the South Caucasus and Central Asia.
From policy analysis to personal reflections and practitioner insights, this is where the JST network thinks out loud – curious, constructive and grounded in experience.
Introducing community-led planning to Uzbekistan’s Covid response
The Covid-19 pandemic has put unprecedented pressure on governments across the world to support and protect vulnerable citizens. Like many countries, Uzbekistan has faced the challenge of ensuring that its…
Empowering Georgian society through financial inclusion
When, in 1995 at the age of 18, Archil Bakuradze founded the Charity Humanitarian Centre Abkhazeti (CHCA) to support internally displaced people in his country, little did he know that…
Digital transformation in the Kyrgyz Republic
(Find the story behind this photo at the bottom of the article). The Kyrgyz Republic has an ambitious digital transformation policy. And it needs to be ambitious! The country is…
Fostering young journalistic talent and media literacy in Central Asia
‘Zira’ [cumin] is a key ingredient in the Central Asian rice dish plov. The spice is also the inspiration for the name of an online media platform – Zira Media…
Advancing the integrity of Moldova’s justice system
The landslide victory of the opposition candidate, Maia Sandu, in Moldova’s presidential elections in November 2020 signaled a decisive change in the country’s direction. Sandu, who favours closer ties with…
Reshaping urban living in the Russian Far North
The sun does not rise above the horizon at all between early December and mid January in Murmansk, the northernmost city in Russia and largest in the world above the…
Changing civil service culture in Ukraine
Ukraine is lucky to have citizens like Artem Shaipov. Young professionals who already have important day jobs but who also are driven to contribute to the advancement of their country’s…
Reducing poverty – and increasing vegetarianism – in Tajikistan
Almost 70% of Tajikistan’s population makes a living from the agricultural sector with 30% of the country’s rural areas living below the poverty line. Steady progress has been made in…
Championing employment for persons with disability in Turkmenistan
(PHOTO: Kumush Atayeva with the bust of John Smith in the Scottish Parliament) Kumush Atayeva is passionate about improving access to employment for people with disabilities and aiding their inclusion…
Public service reform in Uzbekistan
At a recent John Smith Trust (JST) online event on digital governance, Mirzokhid Karshiev was reunited with Julie Kane, Head of Digital Strategy and Policy for the Scottish Government. Mirzokhid,…
Pioneering Recycling Culture in Armenia
Armenia has a massive rubbish problem. Despite its small geographical size and a population of only 3 million, it is the sixth highest waste-producing state in the world according to…
Supporting Mental Health in Russia
(Photo: Artem Novikov, far right of the picture, in front of the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh with his fellow John Smith Trust Fellows from Russia) Dr Artem Novikov (JST 2019)…