At the venue of the International Festival of Youth – 2026, taking place from September 11 to 17 in Ekaterinburg, a large-scale exhibition space will be set up to introduce participants to forward-looking solutions for the future that are already being developed and implemented in Russia today.
The Festival's goal is to give young leaders from 191 countries the chance to connect with peers from around the world, exchange experience, and work through global challenges together, helping to shape a vision of the shared future. The substantive logic of the IFY – 2026 program is built around seven key areas of life that shape the path toward sustainable progress for our country and the world at large: culture, health, natural resources, education, technology, transport, and digital services. The exhibition featured at the Festival is likewise structured around these seven areas, and is designed to inspire discussion and potentially even joint projects.
Across three pavilions at Ekaterinburg-EXPO, spanning a total area of 30,000 square meters, more than 140 exhibitors will present their developments and achievements. At the heart of the exhibition's concept is the idea of a platform for sovereign development, viewing the state as a single interconnected system in which these areas do not operate in isolation but in synergy, forming the foundation for the sustainable development of society as a whole and of every individual within it. Thus, the organizers are offering young people a holistic model of the future, one centered on the human being.
"We are creating not simply an exhibition of individual achievements, but a unified space that reveals the connections between human development, science, technology, industry, infrastructure, culture, and the urban environment. At the heart of the exhibition are seven thematic tracks, united by a shared logic and route, with the Avenue of the Future as its central axis. Regions, companies, and scientific and educational institutions will be presented here as parts of a single system and co-authors of a vision of the shared future. This format will let visitors not only learn about specific projects and solutions, but also see how, together, they shape opportunities for the country's development. For an international youth event of this scale, this is a fundamentally new approach to exhibition space: we want to show not only what has already been achieved, but also what the future can look like," noted Dmitry Ivanov, General Director of the World Youth Festival Directorate.
The exhibition's route follows a sequence of seven areas of life, framed in human-centered logic. The Festival's motto is "Follow Your Dream," and each section of the exhibition space answers the question of why achievements in a given field matter to people – what universal human dream they help fulfill. This journey opens with the Cultural Code (the dream of creativity), where, through heritage, the diversity of Russia's regions, and contemporary art, visitors explore the question of who we are. Next comes Well-Being (the dream of longevity), covering the full arc of human life – from maternal and child health to sport and the medicine of the future. This is followed by the Source of Life (the dream of overcoming hunger), tracing a path from water, land and plant breeding to harvest, food security, and a shared dinner for humanity. Human Development (the dream of new knowledge horizons) leads from childhood curiosity through education and science to professional life and homegrown technologies. Technological Leadership (the dream of limitless energy sources) turns engineering ideas into modern manufacturing, autonomous systems, and machine-building products. Roads of the Future (the dream of travel through space and time) brings together communications, aviation, railways and roads, and urban and water transport into infrastructure that erases distance. The final section, Modern Life (the dream of financial stability and comfort), draws everything together into the image of a digital city – encompassing cybersecurity, government services, finance, e-commerce, media, and gaming – showing how all the preceding levels become the natural backdrop of everyday life.
A significant share of the solutions on display at the exhibition are already in use in Russia and have proven their effectiveness. Many of them are ready to be scaled up and applied abroad. The IFY – 2026 common exhibition space is becoming a platform where Russia not only showcases its achievements, but also offers international partners concrete technologies, products, and models for joint development.
The International Festival of Youth – 2026 will be a landmark event, demonstrating to Russian and international youth alike the country's achievements in the economy, public life, culture, state-building, and the strengthening of interethnic peace and harmony. The Festival will also help promote an objective image of Russia in the international information space, inviting young people from different countries to jointly discuss, develop, and apply best practices for a sustainable future for all of humanity.
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.