Svetlana Erpyleva

Dr. Svetlana Erpyleva is a post-doctoral researcher at the Research Centre for East European Studies, University of Bremen (2025–present), funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG). Previously, she held post-doctoral positions at the same institution under KONE Foundation (2024–2025) and as a Humboldt Fellow (2022–2024), as well as a post-doc at the University of Helsinki (2021–2022) and Assistant Professor at the University of Tyumen (2019–2020).

• Ph.D., Social Sciences, University of Helsinki (2019)
• MA, Sociology, European University at Saint-Petersburg (2013)
• BA, Sociology, State University - Higher School of Economics at Saint-Petersburg (2010)

Her research focuses on political socialization, political culture, and grassroots politics in Russia, with particular attention to war and society dynamics. She explores how political agency manifests among youth activists under authoritarianism and the role of local activism in civil society development.

Her publications analyze trends in Russian wartime society, including climate activism, protest events, and the justification of military aggression in Ukraine. Collaborations with scholars like Eeva Luhtakallio and Oleg Zhuravlev highlight her interdisciplinary approach.

• Post-doctoral Humboldt Fellowship (2021)
• Young Russian Scholars Helsinki Fellowship (2019)
• Visiting Fellowship at Aleksanteri Institute (2020)
• Research Fellowships at Free University of Berlin (2012) and USC (2017)

She contributes to grants from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG), Kone Foundation, and Volkswagen Foundation, often collaborating with institutions like the Public Sociology Laboratory and Research Centre for East European Studies.