BOOK NOTES

A handbook on organizations active in post-Soviet societies

"The Post-Soviet Handbook: A Guide to Grassroots Organizations and Internet Resources, Revised Edition" by M. Holt Ruffin. Seattle: Center for Civil Society International in association with University of Washington Press, October 1999, 416pp., $19.95 (paper).

This handbook has been revised since its first publication in 1996. It documents the variety of grassroots efforts in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, these new independent nations have been faced with great challenges. They are striving to restructure their economies and alleviate crime and corruption. The urgent need for change has spurred the formation of thousands of new dynamic organizations by people who are looking to improve their society's economy, environment and legal system.

The handbook includes names and background information on North American organizations as well as NIS-based organizations. The contact information, missions, achievements and/or future plans of each organization are concisely outlined. Internet resources are also posted. For the readers' convenience, e-mail lists and websites are organized in the back of the book, under subjects ranging from the environment, health and religion, to funding and the media.

"The Post-Soviet Handbook" not only serves as a link between these grassroots organizations, but is also a guide of practical information for students, researchers or anyone interested in making the societies of these new independent states more humane.

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, August 20, 2000, No. 34, Vol. LXVIII

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