On the 70th anniversary of the Canadian Association of Slavists: the CAS–ICCEES connection

The Canadian Association of Slavists (CAS) has had a long involvement in and relationship with an international scholarly organization known today as the International Council for Central and East European Studies (ICCEES). The author, secretary of ICCEES for 30 years, outlines the history of this relationship. He points out that both associations, CAS and ICCEES, are multidisciplinary in their mandate, namely the fostering of the study in all the disciplines of the humanities and social sciences of the Slavic world and the geographical area known as Central and Eastern Europe. The difference between them is the membership; CAS is a Canadian association of scholars, ICCEES an international council that brings together scholars who are members of national associations like CAS. He also reflects on the meaning of the Cold War, which brought about the creation of ICCEES, and specifically on its impact on the scholarship in the West on Central and East European Studies and on his own research and publications in Slovak Studies.