In collaboration with the Turkey-based Circassian & North Caucasian diaspora organisations the Caucasus Trust and the Ankara Circassian Association, the Center for Circassian Studies (CSS) organised a series of interactive online workshops conducted in English which was aimed in the main at the English-speaking Circassian political activists under the age of 35 in Turkey. Six distinguished scholars from Sweden, Denmark, the US, Circassia, the UK and Turkey, who work on Circassian-related subjects in history, politics, sociology and gender studies were to take part in the programme.

The first workshop with Prof Sufian Zhemukho(v) took place on 23 January 2023.The second workshop with Dr Lars Funch-Hansen was due to take place on 06 February but the very same day three massive earthquakes occurred in quick succession and devastated many towns and settlements in the South and Southeast of Turkey. There were many Circassian and Caucasian settlements in the disaster zone which were also badly damaged and affected. Many registered participants of the programme had family and friends in those towns therefore quite a few of the participants took part in the relief efforts, both individually and as part of their respective community organisations. Therefore, the remaining five workshops were postponed until further notice.

On that note, we would like offer our condolences to all those who have lost their loved ones in this calamity of enormous proportions and wish a speedy recovery for those who were injured.

The CSS looks forward to resuming the workshops at the earliest opportunity.