We are pleased to present the twelfth edition of the UC Undergraduate Journal of East/Central European Studies. Written by contributors based in universities across the country, the papers address topics in cultural studies, linguistics, musicology, and public policy. Four were initially presented at the twenty-first annual UC Undergraduate Conference on Slavic and East/Central European Studies held at UCLA in April 2018.

Three papers explore the experience of minority cultural identities from a variety of perspectives. Nicole Bugrim (UCLA) discusses various approaches to meeting the special needs of heritage speakers in Russian language instruction. Tatiana Ostwalt (Wake Forest University) examines the key role played by Korean cultural centers and organizations in forming a cohesive political and social identity for the Russian Korean community in Russia’s Far East. Leslie Ro (UCLA) investigates the unique historical and cultural circumstances that have shaped the development of women’s roles in contemporary Kazakhstan.

Another three focus on various trends in social and political activism in contemporary Russia. Briana Comuniello (Binghamton University) analyzes the social and political factors exacerbating the ongoing HIV epidemic in Russia, advocating for greater cooperation with NGOs. Yana Demeshko (UCLA) traces the developments in youth activism across the political spectrum during the Putin administration. Jacob Sandman (Binghamton University) evaluates activism by the mothers of Russian soldiers and their efforts to bring about military reform.

Finally, striking a contrast with the rest of the papers in this volume, Ross Mitchell’s (UCLA) contribution provides a close reading of the correspondences between Russian Symbolist poetry and music in Alexander Scriabin’s dual work, Ecstasy.

We would like to thank our online editor Susan Bauckus, Delaney Thurmond at the Center for World Languages, Leo Duarte, webmaster at the UCLA International Institute, UCLA Department of Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Languages and Cultures undergraduate mentor Yelena Furman, and all of the members of our editorial board for their help in making this journal possible. The publication of this year’s issue of the journal was made possible, once again, by the generous support of UCLA’s Center for Russian and European Studies.