Author Archives: Julian Dierkes

About Julian Dierkes

Julian Dierkes is a sociologist by training (PhD Princeton Univ) and a Mongolist by choice and passion since around 2005. He teaches in the Master of Public Policy and Global Affairs at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. He toots @jdierkes@sciences.social.

Mongolia Focus 2022 in Review

Posted on January 2, 2023 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes Readership During 2022 13,000 users viewed 27,000 pages. Both those numbers are down from 2021, perhaps not surprising in a non-election years as elections have generally led to spikes in readership. In 2022, the top ten origin … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflection | Tagged Julian Dierkes | Leave a comment

Flop 5 der mongolischen Politik

Posted on December 29, 2022 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes Ich höre inzwischen sehr gerne Podcasts, sei es um die Bundesliga zu verfolgen, kanadische Nachrichten besser zu verstehen, oder auch Entwicklungen in Deutschland nicht ganz aus dem Auge zu verlieren. Einer meiner Lieblingspodcasts in diesem Zusammenhang ist … Continue reading →

Posted in Democracy, Germany, History, Media and Press, Mining, Party Politics, Podcast, Politics, Social Media | Tagged Julian Dierkes | Leave a comment

Guest Post: The Scary Part about ‘Our Common Geopolitical Language’

Posted on December 27, 2022 by Julian Dierkes

By Peter W. Fong Way back in 2018, I led a first-ever scientific expedition from the headwaters of Mongolia’s Selenge River to Russia’s Lake Baikal, one of our planet’s great environmental treasures. In those halcyon days, our international team of … Continue reading →

Posted in Countryside, Environmental Movements, International Relations, Renewables, River Movements, Russia, Water | Leave a comment

December 2022 Protests

Posted on December 20, 2022 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes Once again, following protests in April 2022, primarily younger Mongolians took to Sukhbaatar Square in protest in early December. I initially wrote about these protests for The Diplomat, pointing out the simmering corruption worries connected to state-owned … Continue reading →

Posted in China, Corruption, Erdenes Mongol, JD Democratization, Mining, Mining Governance, Politics, Protest, Protest, Tavan Tolgoi, Younger Mongolians | Tagged Julian Dierkes | Leave a comment

State-Socialist Legacies and Selective Perception of Propaganda

Posted on December 1, 2022 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes Every so often, my conversations, especially on visits to Mongolia which are so valuable for my thinking, touch on bigger issues that are challenging to frame as a blog post. This is one of those attempts to … Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Dissertation Ideas, Gender, History, JD Democratization, Policy, Politics, Protest, Protest, Reflection, Social Issues, Social Movements, Society and Culture | Tagged Julian Dierkes | Leave a comment

Can Mongolia Resist Russia?

Posted on November 21, 2022 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes Repercussions of the Russian invasion of Ukraine were a major topic of conversation during my visit to Mongolia this August. I had arrived with a sense of frustration that the MPP government wouldn’t publicly take a stance … Continue reading →

Posted in China, Foreign Policy, International Relations, Mongolia and ..., Russia | Tagged Julian Dierkes | Leave a comment

Atmospheric Observations

Posted on November 1, 2022 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes My August trip to Mongolia was the first visit after over 30 months of global COVID19 restrictions. I have already taken note of some of the visual and consumer changes I observed in Ulaanbaatar. But, I also … Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Demography, Reflection, Younger Mongolians | Tagged Julian Dierkes | Leave a comment

Challenging Supermajority

Posted on October 17, 2022 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes Following the 2020 parliamentary and 2021 presidential election, there were some fears that the MPP’s electoral wins and occupation of all three highest offices would lead to some kind of one-party domination. Most readers will recall then-Pres … Continue reading →

Posted in Constitution, Democracy, Democratic Party, JD Democratization, Mongolian People's Party, National Labor Party, Party Politics, Politics | Tagged Julian Dierkes | Leave a comment

Guest Post: Mongolia’s New PM-In-Waiting: Who Is D Amarbayasgalan?

Posted on September 22, 2022 by Julian Dierkes

By Amar Adiya New Cabinet Chief Dashzegviin Amarbayasgalan is increasingly emerging to be a likely successor to Prime Minister Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene in the future, i.e., post-2024 election. As new ministers are settling into their roles following August cabinet reshuffle, Amarbayasgalan … Continue reading →

Posted in Amar Adiya, Mongolian People's Party, Party Politics | Leave a comment

Guest Post: Sukhgerel Dugersuren: Criminal or Marmite Character?

Posted on September 12, 2022 by Julian Dierkes

By Jennifer Lander Contrary to popular opinion and the slogans of international organisations, democracy and economic development do not always make for easy bedfellows. One of the basic elements of democracy has to do with the function of law under … Continue reading →

Posted in Environmental Movements, Jennifer Lander, Law, Politics, Protest, Protest, Renewables, Security Apparatus | Leave a comment

Guest Post: Naadam 2022 – International Participants and Backroom Deals

Posted on July 28, 2022 by Julian Dierkes

By Zorigtkhuu Bat-Erdene What is Naadam? “Naadam” is a traditional festival that is the most widely celebrated and watched in Mongolia and elsewhere among Mongolians, Inner Mongolians and Tuva Republic. The Naadam festival is celebrated during midsummer and officially takes … Continue reading →

Posted in Buryatia, Inner Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, Kalmykia, Mongolian Diaspora, Naadam, Sports, Tuva, Wrestling, Zorigtkhuu Bat-Erdene | Leave a comment

Guest Post: Mongolia’s International Conference on “Strengthening the Role of Women in Peacekeeping”

Posted on July 19, 2022 by Julian Dierkes

By Katharina P. Coleman On 16-18 June 2022, Mongolia welcomed the UN Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, other UN officials and representatives from over thirty countries to a three-day conference on “Strengthening the Role of Women in Peacekeeping”. The conference allowed … Continue reading →

Posted in Foreign Policy, Gender, International Relations, Katharina Coleman, Mongolia and ..., Peacekeeping, UN | Leave a comment

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