The Society for Co-operation in Russian and Soviet
Studies (SCRSS) aims to promote knowledge of the culture, language
and history of Russia and the former Soviet Union through its
activities and unique library and archive.
The SCRSS is a small, self-funding membership organisation with
management vested in Annual General Meetings and bi-monthly meetings
of its Council. The Council is elected at the Annual General Meeting,
together with a number of Honorary Officers, including the President.
The SCRSS was founded in 1924 as the Society for Cultural Relations
between the British Commonwealth and the USSR, following the establishment
of diplomatic relations between Great Britain and the new Soviet
state. It has continued its work uninterrupted until the present
day.
The Society's founding members were a group of key British and
Soviet artists and intellectuals of the day, including EM Forster,
Julian Huxley, Maynard Keynes, Bertrand Russell, Sybil Thorndyke,
Alexei Tolstoy, Virginia Woolf and Konstantin Yuon. They sought
to collect and diffuse information in both countries on developments
in science, education, philosophy, art, literature, and social
and economic life.
In the 1920s-30s the Society actively promoted British-Soviet
relations on a non-political basis through meetings, lectures,
film shows and exhibitions. The SCR Sections were formed - special
interest groups such as Education, Theatre, Writers, Architects
and Planners, and Legal. Many branches outside London were established
and the Society expanded its activities to include tours to the
Soviet Union and the organisation of visits to the UK by key Soviet
cultural and public figures. During World War II, when Britain
and the Soviet Union were allies in the fight against Nazism,
the Society organised exhibitions and other fund-raising events
to support the war effort.
From the 1960s-90s seminars, scholarships, professional and educational
exchanges were a key feature of the Society's activities. These
included the popular annual Easter Russian Language Seminar (1969-96),
scholarships to study Russian at the Pushkin Institute of Russian
Language in Moscow (1970s-80s), and exchanges of architects, actors
and young artists (1980s).
In 1992, following the break-up of the Soviet Union, the Society
changed its name to its current title. The Society adheres to
its founding aims of promoting co-operation between the peoples
of the UK and Russia. It continues to preserve and provide access
to its library and archive, it publishes a journal SCRSS
Information Digest, and organises activities from film
shows and lectures to exhibitions to seminars.
The Society became a registered charity in May 2004. Registered
Charity No. 1104012.
The Society is also a founder member of the Soviet Memorial Trust
Fund.
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