Joshua Yaffa to become Bard College Berlin's inaugural writer-in-residence for 2023-24

Joshua Yaffa, a contributing writer at The New Yorker, will serve as the inaugural writer-in-residence at Bard College Berlin for the academic year 2023-2024. Yaffa has covered Russia and Ukraine for many years; he is also the author of Between Two Fires: Truth, Ambition, and Compromise in Putin’s Russia, which was awarded the Orwell Prize in 2021. Most recently, he has reported from across Ukraine over the last year-and-a-half, documenting the Russian invasion and its aftermath.

At BCB, Yaffa will curate and host an event series focused on stories, themes, and dilemmas growing out of the war and reverberating across Russia, Ukraine, and the West. The first public talk will be held on November 9, when Yaffa will present on his experience as a journalist inside both Russia and Ukraine, touching on a number of characters and personal stories from his reporting. In Spring 2023, Yaffa will also teach a course for BCB students on reporting from closed societies and an understanding of the “other”—whether that is found in distant, foreign countries or communities much closer to home. Further events and seminars will follow as part of Yaffa’s writer-in-residence appointment. 

Post Date: 10-04-2023