About John Vsetecka

I am a historian of Eastern Europe and Ukraine. I research and write about the effects of famine in Soviet Ukraine in the 1930s and 1940s. In addition to my scholarly work, I am the founder, and one of the current editors, of H-Ukraine (part of the larger H-Net platform), which is a site dedicated to promoting scholarship related to Ukrainian Studies. When I'm not teaching, traveling, or writing, you can find me hiking in my beloved Rocky Mountains in Colorado.
John Vsetecka is the Jaroslaw and Nadia Mihaychuk Postdoctoral Fellow in Ukrainian Studies at the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute, Harvard University. He writes about issues concerning famine, transitional justice, and the legacies of mass violence in Ukraine. When he's not teaching or writing, you can find John hiking in his beloved Rocky Mountains. Please visit his website to learn more: https://www.jvsetecka.com
John's website

NBN Episodes hosted by John:

Larissa Babij, "A Kind of Refugee: The Story of an American Who Refused to Leave Ukraine" (Ibidem Press, 2024)

April 3, 2024

A Kind of Refugee

Larissa Babij
Hosted by John Vsetecka

American-born Larissa Babij is at home in Kyiv when Russia launches its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. Her grandparents left Ukr…

Alina Nychyk, "Ukraine Vis-à-Vis Russia and the EU: Misperceptions of Foreign Challenges in Times of War, 2014-2015" (Ibidem Press, 2023)

March 16, 2024

Ukraine Vis-à-Vis Russia and the EU

Alina Nychyk
Hosted by John Vsetecka

Ukraine Vis-à-Vis Russia and the EU: Misperceptions of Foreign Challenges in Times of War, 2014-2015 (Ibidem Press, 2023) investigates the making of U…

Andrii Portnov, "Dnipro: An Entangled History of a European City" (Academic Studies Press, 2022)

August 9, 2023

Dnipro

Andrii Portnov
Hosted by John Vsetecka
Listen:

Andrii Portnov's Dnipro: An Entangled History of a European City (Academic Studies Press, 2022) is the first English-language synthesis of the history…

Catherine Wanner, "Everyday Religiosity and the Politics of Belonging in Ukraine" (Cornell UP, 2022)

April 11, 2023

Everyday Religiosity and the Politics of Belonging in Ukraine

Catherine Wanner
Hosted by John Vsetecka

Everyday Religiosity and the Politics of Belonging in Ukraine (Cornell UP, 2022) reveals how and why religion has become a pivotal political force in …

Oleksandra Keudel, "How Patronal Networks Shape Opportunities for Local Citizen Participation in a Hybrid Regime: A Comparative Analysis of Five Cities in Ukraine" (Ibidem, 2022)

March 22, 2023

How Patronal Networks Shape Opportunities for Local Citizen Participation in a Hybrid Regime

Oleksandra Keudel
Hosted by John Vsetecka

In How Patronal Networks Shape Opportunities for Local Citizen Participation in a Hybrid Regime: A Comparative Analysis of Five Cities in Ukraine (Ibi…

Megan Buskey, "Ukraine Is Not Dead Yet: A Family Story of Exile and Return" (Ibidem-Verlag, 2023)

March 12, 2023

Ukraine Is Not Dead Yet

Megan Buskey
Hosted by John Vsetecka

Today I talked to Megan Buskey about her book Ukraine Is Not Dead Yet: A Family Story of Exile and Return (Ibidem-Verlag, 2023). When Megan Buskey’s …

Maria Sonevytsky, "Wild Music: Sound and Sovereignty in Ukraine" (Wesleyan UP, 2019)

January 28, 2023

Wild Music

Maria Sonevytsky
Hosted by John Vsetecka

In Wild Music: Sound and Sovereignty in Ukraine (Wesleyan UP, 2019), Maria Sonevytsky tracks vernacular Ukrainian discourses of “wildness” as they man…