Examine how information, technology, and identity shape security and democratic resilience in the Baltics.

This one-week, field-based program examines how media, technology, and identity intersect in one of Europe’s most geopolitically significant regions. Through lectures, workshops, discussions, and visits to organizations in Riga and Daugavpils, participants explore information integrity, multilingual societies, and national security in the age of artificial intelligence.

Meet journalists, educators, researchers, and civic actors working with issues including disinformation, fact-checking, language policy, AI, and media literacy. An overnight trip to Daugavpils adds the perspective of Latvia’s eastern border region, where questions of language, identity, media access, and competing information environments are particularly visible.

The program is open to students, educators, and professionals, as well as others with a serious interest in media, security, and the Baltic region.

If you are a current student: It is your responsibility to check the academic calendar of your home institution to ensure you do not miss class and/or have the necessary approvals in place for participation. Applications received after the session deadline will be considered on a space-available basis.

Program Details

Note: Summer session will start with arrival on a Thursday rather than Saturday.

Day 1 (Saturday):Arrival in Riga, introduction to the neighborhood of your very centrally located hotel. We anticipate arrivals throughout the day so we will take it easy today while you acclimate to your new time zone. Plus, you have a very busy week ahead!

Day 2 (Sunday): Introduction to Latvia

  • Program orientation
  • Old Town & Art Nouveau Walk: history, language, and layered identities
  • Welcome lunch
  • Guided tour at the Museum of the Occupation of Latvia
  • Interactive Folklore & Song Workshop
  • Overnight in Riga; Included meals: B, L

Day 3 (Monday): Media Ecosystems in Latvia

  • Lecture #1: Media Landscape and Media Literacy in Latvia
  • Site Visit
  • Lecture #2: Fake Experts, Fact-Checking, and Disinformation in Practice – Baltic Example
  • KGB Museum (guided tour)
  • Overnight in Riga; Included meals: B, L

Day 4 (Tuesday):AI, Language, and Disinformation

  • Lecture #1: AI, Russian-Language Media, and the Baltic Information Space
  • Interactive workshop: AI and Information Ethics
  • Lunch (on own)
  • Dialogue (with local youth):Baltic Youth, Media, and Trust in the Digital Age
  • Visit to Soviet Communications Bunker
  • Overnight in Riga; Included meals: B

Day 5 (Wednesday): Media Literacy & Security

  • Site Visit
  • Lunch (on own)
  • Lecture: Media Literacy and Security
  • Documentary Screening
  • Overnight in Riga; Included meals: B

Day 6 (Thursday): Identity, Language, and Belonging

  • Lecture #1: Language Policy and Media Access in Latvia: Between Identity and Security
  • Lecture #2: Regional Identities in Latgale – Inside the State but Outside the Narrative
  • Departure by train to Daugavpils
  • Overnight in Daugavpils; Included meals: B

Day 7 (Friday): Daugavpils – Community Resilience and Identity in Latvia’s Borderland

  • Site Visit: New East NGO – intro, tour, and workshop Media Literacy and Community Resilience
  • Guest Speakers: Short (opinion-style) talks – Language, Media, and Security in Border Regions
  • Roundtable (New East, with lunch): Living Between Narratives
  • Performance (TBC): “The Man and the Tyrant” (One-Man Interactive Play)
  • Return to Riga
  • Overnight in Riga; Included meals: B, L

Day 8 (Saturday): Media Literacy in Action: Verification, Reflection, Wrap-Up

  • Two-Part Training: Media Literacy in the Baltics
  • Lunch (on own)
  • Course Reflection Roundtable (participants only): What Resilience Looks Like in the Baltic Information Space
  • Short Essay Assignment & Course Survey
  • Certificate Ceremony
  • Farewell Dinner
  • Overnight in Riga; Included meals: B, D

Day 9 (Sunday):Transfer to airport for departure.

Included meals: B

Schedule is subject to change.

Participants stay in a centrally located 4-star hotel in Riga, in shared twin rooms with breakfast included. A single-room supplement is available for $435.

SRAS Certificate Courses are location-based, intensive, and interdisciplinary in nature. Through lectures, workshops, dialogues, and other experiences, we address current and global issues that are even more relevant and visible in our host country. Upon completion, you gain a certificate, many contacts, and experience to share on your resume.

Riga, Latvia’s capital and largest city, provides a particularly relevant setting for studying media, identity, and security. Latvia is a multilingual society with a significant Russian-speaking population, while its history, geographic position, and membership in the European Union and NATO place questions of information security and societal resilience high on the public agenda.

Riga is also home to media organizations, research institutions, civic initiatives, and government bodies working on issues ranging from journalism and fact-checking to strategic communication and digital security. Its compact scale makes it possible to connect classroom discussion with organizations and specialists working directly on these issues.

This program uses a short application and a simplified payment schedule. A $50 non-refundable application fee is due when you apply and is applied toward the total program cost. Once your participation is confirmed, a $450 non-refundable deposit is due within seven days to reserve your place. The remaining program balance is due 45 days before arrival.

Cancellation: If SRAS receives written cancellation at least 20 days before the program begins, 20% of the total program cost is refundable. For cancellations received fewer than 20 days before the program begins, no refund is guaranteed.

If SRAS is able to recover costs or fill a vacated place, we will endeavor to refund additional amounts where possible. Participants are encouraged to consider travel insurance that provides appropriate cancellation or interruption coverage.

Funding & Discounts

SRAS Ambassadors awards and SRAS Online Research Internships awards may be applied toward eligible future SRAS programs and study tours.

Group Discount: Participants who bring two or more friends may each receive a $150 discount. All participants must identify one another in their applications. The discount does not apply to participants already receiving special group pricing, including affiliate discounts.

Interested in bringing a group to Latvia to explore media literacy, information security, identity, or related topics? SRAS can work with faculty to adapt this program or develop a custom short-term program around your course and academic goals.