How imperial Russia created its own tropics

Plus: A nostalgic ode to being 15 ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ Today in [aeon]( [PSYCHE]( Friday 22 September 2023 Historian Oleksandr Polianichev evokes the ambitious efforts of Tsarist Russia to emulate Europe’s rich equatorial colonies by importing flora and fauna from the [tropics]( to its lands on the Black Sea. – Sam Haselby, Senior Editor Nations and empires Essay [Dream of the Russian tropics]( [Imperial Russia had little access to the bountiful tropics that other empires enjoyed. So it created its own in the Caucasus]( by Oleksandr Polianichev As fun and infectious a short film as I’ve ever come across, [Venetian Men]( takes viewers on a whirlwind trip through 1990s Europe – a time and place when unbridled freedom reigned supreme. Recalling an adventure from her home in south London to Venice and back, Celia Willis’s exuberant account of being 15 in the pre-internet age is flavoured with the adage that life was simpler – and certainly more fun – back then. – Adam D’Arpino, Head of Video Life stages Film [A nostalgic ode to being 15, fearless and in love with the world]( 9 minutes [Share this newsletter with a friend]( [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Twitter]( You have received this email because you signed up to the Aeon+Psyche Newsletter list. © Aeon Media Group Ltd 2023. Level 5, 100 Flinders Street, Melbourne, VIC 3000 Australia. [PRIVACY POLICY |]( US]( | [UNSUBSCRIBE](