When the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies (CIUS) was founded in 1976, the Ukrainian community needed to respond to challenges from three sources: 1) a totalitarian Soviet regime bent on suppressing Ukrainian culture, 2) an indifferent and at times hostile political and intellectual establishment in the West, and 3) strong assimilatory pressures among second- and third-generation Ukrainian-Canadians. For twenty-five years, CIUS has promoted Ukrainian and Ukrainian-Canadian studies, served as a resource centre for bilingual education, and provided intellectual support for the Ukrainian community.
Much has changed since the founding of CIUS. The Soviet Union has collapsed and Ukraine has gained its independence. Yet the Institute’s task has only become larger, more complex, and more vital. CIUS is heavily involved in Ukraine, not only in helping to reshape the humanities and social sciences in the post-Soviet era, but also in helping Ukraine reform its laws to promote democracy and a market economy. The formerly indifferent Western academic and political elite has become an eager consumer of Institute publications, as well as a cooperative partner in a variety of academic endeavours. And Ukrainian-Canadians, most of whom now belong to the fourth and fifth generation in Canada, can revitalize their Ukrainian heritage by drawing on the intellectual resources created by the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies.
The accomplishments we celebrate today would have been impossible without those pioneers—academics, politicians, community leaders, donors, and concerned individuals—whose vision and lifelong devotion to Ukrainian studies anchored our endeavours. It is with the expectation of continued support from such individuals that we look forward to the next quarter-century with confidence.