From September 11 to 17, the International Festival of Youth will take place in Ekaterinburg, bringing together 10,000 participants from 191 countries. It will serve as a platform for dialogue among young leaders: participants will not only learn about the cultures of different countries but will also work together to shape a vision of the future. One of the program's most important sections is devoted to reflecting on cultural and historical heritage, featuring thematic exhibitions and shows offering a fresh perspective on the connection between past and present.
The International Festival of Youth is being held as part of the Youth and Children national project. The operator of the cultural program is Tavrida.ART.
The Festival's program will offer multiple perspectives on the shared heritage of different countries – heritage that not only shapes our worldview, but also strengthens the connection between generations and serves as a foundation for new solutions. Some projects will immerse visitors in dramatic chapters of history, while others will speak to the strength of the human spirit, scientific breakthroughs, and cultural achievements – the things that change the world and shape our shared experience. Together, these formats will create a rich, multifaceted picture of the past and its significance for the present and future.
The broader program will feature several thematic exhibitions. One of them is "Catastrophe of Memory: Neo-Nazism in the 21st Century," an educational multimedia exhibition project by the Museum of Contemporary History of Russia, organized by the Center for Public Enlightenment ANO for additional education with support from the Presidential Fund for Cultural Initiatives. The project will reveal to Festival guests the scale of the resurgence of neo-Nazism and the danger posed by the glorification of Nazism in the modern world.
The exhibition will feature materials from the collections of Russian museums, archives and news agencies. Visitors will see artifacts documenting the crimes of Nazism, both past and present, including original items provided by Yana Lantratova, High Commissioner for Human Rights of Russia.
Visitors' introduction to the exhibition will begin with videos on the liberation of Europe from fascism, footage from the Nuremberg Trials, and galleries of postage envelopes and stamps issued by various countries in tribute to the anti-Hitler coalition. This will be followed by multimedia materials documenting the spread of this ideology across Europe and the world, neo-Nazi and nationalist literature circulated in Ukraine and a number of other countries, and items brought back by museum staff from the zone of the special military operation. At the center of the exhibition will be an installation of replica museum artifacts called "Anti-Fascist Forum," and a multimedia memorial called "Alley of Angels," dedicated to children who died as a result of the fighting in Donbass. The exhibition will also feature murals created by artists under the direction of Alexander Kupalyan.
Specifically for international guests of the International Festival of Youth, the exhibition's key information will be translated into English, German, French, Spanish, Arabic, and Chinese.
An account of dramatic events from the past will be presented in the Memory Unites exhibition, made up of three thematic sections, each helping visitors reflect on a critical layer of historical memory. The first section will be dedicated to the victims of the genocide of the Soviet people during the Great Patriotic War, who suffered at the hands of the Nazis and their collaborators; the second will cover the liberating mission of the Red Army in Europe; and the third will focus on the Nuremberg Trials. The exhibition will include archival photographs, documents and maps, along with trial materials. It will also feature miniature replicas of monuments to Soviet soldier-liberators that were brutally dismantled in a number of European countries and later recreated in the Saved Europe park in the Kaliningrad Region. The project is being carried out by the National Center for Historical Memory under the President of Russia.
Reflecting on history is not only about confronting tragic pages of the past – it is equally important to preserve and pass on the memory of scientific discovery, cultural achievement, and human courage. That is the focus of the exhibition at the Russia – My History mobile historical park. The project was created by the Foundation for Humanitarian Projects with support from the Russian Education Ministry and is dedicated to prominent Russian figures and their achievements. Dmitri Mendeleev, Mikhail Lomonosov, Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, Sergei Korolev, Nikolay Pirogov, Ilya Mechnikov, Alexander Pushkin, Leo Tolstoy, Pyotr Tchaikovsky, and Ilya Repin – Festival participants will get to know scientists, inventors, physicians and cultural figures whose discoveries, ideas and works have become part of the world's heritage. The exhibition will bring together four thematic sections – Science and Space, Medicine, Inventions, and Culture – presented through 12 modular architectural structures fitted with LED screens, along with a cinema hall.
The strength of human achievement and creation will be told not only through exhibition spaces. One of the central highlights of the Festival's cultural program will be The Challenge show – a large-scale production dedicated to people who dared to face down adversity and won. At the heart of the show are real-life heroes of our time, whose actions have become widely known and whose personal stories have united and inspired millions of people around the globe.
"We are open to dialogue with the world – and with our show, we want to demonstrate that the power of a sincere act can unite people from every corner of the planet," the organizers noted.
The production will be made up of several parts, each telling the story of an individual hero. One chapter, for instance, will tell the story of Nikolay Tolpinsky, a volunteer and social media blogger from Rostov-on-Don. He became widely known for his humanitarian missions, which include building schools and homes, drilling wells, and providing medical and humanitarian aid in some of Africa's poorest regions – Kenya, Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
"As a child, I heard the stories of missionaries from Africa, who talked about how many children my age in Congo did not have access to clean drinking water. Those missionaries became heroes to me. So once I was old enough to make my own choices, I decided to start an organization to help in places where people have limited access to basic needs — shelter, clean water, food and education," Nikolay explained. "People in Africa and in Russia have a lot in common. We may differ in skin color, traditions, and worldview, but our feelings and aspirations are, fundamentally, the same — we all want to live happy lives, and we all have dreams.”
Another featured hero is Daniil Kolotushkin, a combat veteran who lost both legs but learned to walk on prosthetics in order to return to the stage and continue his music career. The Challenge show will feature Daniil's story along with an original piece of his own.
The Challenge does not just tell stories that prove people can change their circumstances when they choose to act, to help, to endure, to believe, and to persevere. For Festival guests, it will serve as an invitation to reflect on the idea that each and every one of us is capable of a heroic act.
Overview:
The World Youth Festival took place in Sirius on March 1-7, 2024, according to the Decree of Russian President Vladimir Putin on the development of international youth cooperation. The WYF-2024 brought together 20,000 young leaders from 190 countries.
In line with the Russian President’s instructions to preserve and further develop the legacy of the World Youth Festival, festival events are now held annually across the Russian Federation. In 2025, the World Youth Festival Assembly was held in Nizhny Novgorod, bringing together 2,000 young people from 120 countries. In 2026, the International Festival of Youth will welcome 10,000 participants. The next World Youth Festival for 20,000 participants will take place in 2030.
The World Youth Festival Directorate continues its work to strengthen international youth cooperation and develop a global community of young people committed to shaping a better future.
Tavrida.ART ANO develops the Tavrida Arts Cluster – a platform of opportunities for young cultural and arts professionals, which includes the Meganon Summer Schools of the Academy of Creative Industries, the Tavrida.ART Festival of Young Art, a federal network of art residencies, and other projects. Events of the art cluster are part of the Russia – the Country of Opportunities federal project under the Youth and Children national project and have been held since 2015.