The Edinburgh Conversations: Scotland and the End of the Cold War

How did civil society foster global change during the Cold War? This project investigates the most prominent Scottish example of this phenomenon: the 'Edinburgh Conversations' of the 1980s. Organised by academics, journalists and activists, these annual East-West talks increasingly attracted the interest of British, Soviet and American officials. The project will use archival research in the UK, US, and Russia, and oral history, to examine this unique attempt to overcome state rivalries through open, personal dialogue. It will recover the legacy of this civil society activism and explore its relevance to Scotland's renewed political engagement with the wider world today.
It is now fitting to analyse the "Edinburgh Conversations". These annual discussions were ultimately organised by Scotland-USSR Society head Lord Ritchie-Calder, whose pioneering diplomacy during the 1980s' tense nuclear standoff exposed Moscow's surprising willingness to engage with Scottish civil society. This is especially true regarding academia, as renowned Soviet Union historian John Erickson's insistence on academic rules maintained the talks throughout various crises. Erickson also helped organise an associated Scottish 'Peace Forum', allowing groups such as a revived Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament to discuss arms control on the global stage. Interestingly, state officials were increasingly willing to acknowledge the utility of such informal discussions. Participants such as Vadim Zagladin and Eugene Rostow even possessed direct links to their respective leaders. Did this civil society activism subsequently foster global change? Analysis of the Conversations could fundamentally change our understanding of how East and West reached détente.