News & Events
SOCIETY NEWS
Schedule & Registration Information Now Available for The Mongolia Society Annual Meeting, October 2025
August 25, 2025
The Mongolia Society’s 2025 Annual Meeting & Panels will be held on Saturday, October 4, 2025, at the Embassy of Mongolia, 2833 M Street, NW, Washington, DC 20007.
The meeting and conference will be fully hybrid, so we welcome both in-person and virtual participation, but registration is required for those attending via Zoom and an attendance fee is required for those attending in-person.
Please see our Annual Meeting page for detailed information about the event, including the conference schedule, Zoom registration, attendance fees, and a special discounted membership rate for new members.
Opportunity to Join the Society’s Board of Directors
January 15, 2025
Are you a Mongolia Society member and interested in serving on our organization’s Board of Directors? If so, contact Executive Director Susie Drost (email: monsoc@iu.edu) and ask to be put on the next The Mongolia Society ballot. The Board of Directors term is three (3) years.
PUBLICATIONS
The Society Celebrates the Release of a New Publication
January 15, 2025
On October 1, 2024, the Society announced the publication of Occasional Papers #29:
No Use of Force - the End of an Era in Mongolia: The Memoirs of Jambyn Batmönkh
Jambyn Batmönkh was General Secretary of the Mongolian People’s Revolutionary Party (MPRP) when, on March 9, 1990, he refused to sign a decree which would have authorized the military and police to break up peaceful anti-government demonstrations in front of government house in downtown Ulaanbaatar. He then persuaded the entire Politburo of the MPRP to resign. Batmönkh announced the decision at 7:00 pm that evening on national radio and television. His actions highlighted the end of 66 years of Marxist rule and the beginning of the final stage of the collapse of the Soviet Union’s 69-year dominance of Mongolia. The new Mongolian leadership that emerged after him implemented the goal of complete independence from its neighbors (China and Russia) that it had sought since 1911.
This book is an abridged English translation of Batmönkh’s memoirs and associated papers that D. Tsedev initially published in 2001. It presents a rare glimpse into the thoughts and perspective of the last leader of Marxist-Leninist Mongolia--a man who played a key role in one of twentieth century Mongolia’s most tumultuous periods.
The editors of the book, former ambassador Joseph E. Lake and his son Michael Allen Lake, describe Batmönkh as a thoughtful, methodical man who cared about his country and its people and who was deliberate and careful in managing important issues. His primary goal was to uphold the “genuine interests” of Mongolia and to strengthen “national unity.”
Batmönkh’s perspective is critical to historians, as he was at the heart of major events, from the replacement of Yu. Tsedenbal in 1984, after 44 years in power to the transition to democracy and a free market system, which began in the early 1990s. He remained a believer in the possibilities of the Marxist system even as it began to crumble around him.
In the words of the editors: “It is our hope that this volume, in English for the first time, will provide readers and scholars with a better understanding of the man whose actions had such an impact on Mongolia at this critical juncture in the nation’s history.”
Mongolia Society members will receive a copy of the book as part of their membership benefits. Those who wish to purchase the book may do so for $38.00, plus postage, until April 1, 2025. After then, the cost will be $50.00, plus postage. (U.S. postage $5.50, overseas postage varies by destination.)
To purchase your copy of this publication, go to our Publications Publications page page, or contact Susie Drost.
PRESENTATIONS & LECTURES
The Society’s President, Ambassador Michael Klecheski (Ret.), Presents a Lecture on Mongolia’s Independence
March 1, 2024
Ambassador Michael Klecheski
Ambassador Michael Klecheski, the U.S. Ambassador to Mongolia from 2019 to 2022, presented a Mongolia Society lecture, “Mongolia’s Third Neighbor Policy in Practice: A Case Study from a former U.S. Ambassador’s Years in Mongolia,” on February 20, 2024. Lecture attendees–students, faculty, and Mongolia Society members–gathered around a large discussion table at the Global and International Studies Building on the campus of Indiana University, Bloomington, or watched via a Zoom link.
The Ambassador discussed the challenges and successes that helped strengthen Mongolia’s independence “in a tough neighborhood.” In response to the question, “How does Mongolia, landlocked between China and Russia, maintain its independence and democratic system?,” he pointed to the nation’s so-called “third neighbor” policy, which seeks out good ties with other countries, the United States in particular, as being one key factor in maintaining its independence. As the U.S. Ambassador to Mongolia, Michael Klecheski was instrumental in that policy’s implementation and he shared his own personal experiences with this process.
A video recording of this lecture is available here: YouTube
Michael Klecheski retired from the U.S. State Department after his years as Ambassador to Mongolia. That was the last assignment of his over 35 years as an American diplomat, during which he served abroad in Russia, Kazakhstan and elsewhere, and in Washington D.C. on the Department’s 24-hour Operations Center and the NATO Desk. He also served as Director (and for a time, Acting Senior Director) for Russia at the National Security Council.
Currently President of The Mongolia Society, the Ambassador has a M.A. and M.Phil from Columbia University in political science and a BSFS (Bachelor of the Science of Foreign Service) from Georgetown University. He also has an honorary doctorate from the Mongolian National University.
COMPETITIONS
Winners of the 2022-2023 Best of the Next Generation of American Mongolists Competition
June 7, 2023
The Mongolia Society and the Embassy of Mongolia are pleased to announce the winners of the 2022-2023 Best of the Next Generation of American Mongolists Competition.
Funded by the Embassy of Mongolia to the United States and conducted by The Mongolia Society, this competition recognizes the top three individuals whose combination of thoroughness and quality of research, knowledge and use of primary sources in original languages, and scholarly promise and commitment to advancing the field of Mongolian Studies best exemplifies the Next Generation of American Mongolists. The competition was open to master’s- and doctoral-level students and new PhDs. Materials submitted were judged in a “blind” review by a panel of judges with proven academic credentials in Mongolian studies.
Overall, the quality of the seven (7) essays submitted was outstanding and the Society hopes to publish many of them in the Journal of The Mongolia Society.
First Place (with a cash prize of $2,500): Dr. Dotno Dashdorj Pount (2023 PhD, University of Pennsylvania); Visual and aural translation of Buddhist culture from Tibet to Mongolia: Dating two texts from the Cult of Chinggis Khan textual corpus
Second Place (with a cash prize of $1,500): Dr. Samuel H. Bass (Visiting Assistant Professor, Indiana University/Bloomington); On kitad (Chinese) as a Pejorative and in Mongolian Slavery Terminology
Third Place (with a cash prize of $1,000): Dr. Kenneth E. Linden (Visiting Scholar, University of Tartu, Estonia); Veterinarians, Vaccines, and Hybrids: Veterinary Science in the Mongolian People's Republic
Honorable Mention (in alphabetical order):
Anton D. Ermakov (Master’s Candidate, Indiana University),
Stephen Garrett (PhD Candidate, University of Pennsylvania)
Kristen R. Pearson (PhD Candidate, Harvard University)
Dr. Jessica Madison Pískatá (Visiting Assistant Professor, Oberlin College)
SOCIETY CELEBRATIONS
SOCIETY ANNUAL MEETINGS
The Society remembers Dr. György Kara
October 19, 2022
Photo by Y. Boldbaatar. Used with permission.
As we end 2022, we reflect on those dear friends and colleagues we lost this year. In particular, our Society remembers Dr. György Kara, or Khar Dorj, as he was known to his many students, friends, and colleagues. A long-time member of the Mongolia Society and long-time Chairman of the Board, Dr. Kara was a much-beloved instructor, mentor, and colleague. The following is a brief summary of his life and contributions to our field.
Dr. Kara’s Career Achievements
Dr. Kara was Professor of The Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies and Professor emeritus of ELTE University in Budapest, Hungary. From 1970-2000, he served as chairman of the Department of Inner Asian Studies at ELTE and from 1973-2005, as head of the Research Group for Altaic Studies of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. For several years, he also served as chairman of ELTE’s Department of East Asian Studies and director of its Institute of Oriental Studies.
He was a member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and of the Committee of Oriental Studies of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. From 1958-2005, he taught Mongol, Tibetan and Tungusic language courses at ELTE University in Budapest. He did the same at Indiana University in Bloomington, where he was invited, in 1986, to teach a broad range of subjects, including Altaic linguistics, Classical Mongol, Buriat, Manchu, Ewenki, Chuvash, Old Turkic structure, Old Turkic in various scripts, Mongolic languages and dialects, Shamanism and folk religion of the Mongols, their traditional civilization, literature, folklore, writing systems and phonetic history as well as several new courses for Department of Central Eurasian Studies. He continued teaching at Indiana University until his last stay in the hospital in April 2022.
Dr. Kara was an internationally respected scholar in his field. Expert in Mongolic languages and cultures, Altaic philology and Inner Asian cultural history, he contributed more than 400 publications on Mongolic, Turkic, Tungusic and Tibetan studies.
Dr. Kara was a member of the editorial board of professional journals and serials in Hungary, Russia, the United States, and China. He did field work and research, edited several important documents of Mongol language, cultural and literary history, translated old and new Mongol literature, recorded and analyzed oral texts, and described some hitherto unexplored dialects. He was a guest in the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London; spent a year as senior researcher in Europe’s largest collection of Mongol old books and manuscripts in St. Petersburg, Russia; was visiting scholar in Japan, between the 1970s and 2002 did regular research work in the Turfan Collection of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences in Germany.
He was recipient of the Alexander von Humboldt Forschungspreis, the Pole Star Order and Labor Merit Order of Mongolia, the Gold Medal of the Permanent International Altaistic Conference, the Alexander Csoma de Kőrös Prize, the Europa Publishing House Prize (Budapest), and diploma of honor from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mongolia. He was an honorary member of the Central Eurasian Studies Society (USA), the International Association of Mongolian Studies (Ulaanbaatar), and the Turkish Language Society (Ankara). Some of his anniversaries were honored with six collections of papers. No less than seven Festschrifts have been published in his honor.
The following statements were made by several of Dr. Kara’s colleagues. They were posted to the Facebook page of the Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies. A forthcoming issue of the Society’s journal Mongolian Studies will honor Dr. Kara’s contributions to our field.
Öner Özçelik, Central Eurasian Studies Chair: “I feel very fortunate that, last Spring, I was able to audit his course 'Old Turkic',” said Özçelik. “He was truly devoted to his field; he could have hours of discussion about the origins of a single word, and in doing so, he could take you on a trip from one end of the world to another. He cared a lot about his students, who meant the world to him. He even tried to continue his three classes this semester even through hospital stays, in heroic Professor Kara fashion. Beyond his scholarship and teaching, despite his deep knowledge about the field, he was a very humble person, and always added some humor to his conversations. He will be truly missed."
Dr. Jamsheed K. Choksy, CEUS Distinguished Professor: “While I was chair of the department, every summer he would visit Hungary for research. He would always ask me if there was anything he could do to further IU or the department while in Hungary,” Choksy shared. “He always placed the students first, right to the end. Professor Kara’s knowledge will be impossible to replace.”
Professor Christopher Atwood, University of Pennsylvania: “A life can’t be summed up in the printed word, but my teacher … could be captured in his voice,” said Atwood. “That slight frown, that quiet laugh, that distinctive accent, that eccentric vocabulary full of amusing witticisms and insights — that was him. No one who learned from Professor Kara would ever denigrate precise and exact knowledge … but remembering his living voice, I know its limits. Amurlingui noirsooroi, bagsh aa.”
As our Society grieves for our friend and colleague, Professor György Kara, our hearts go out to his family during this difficult time.