Volunteer Recruitment and Training Centers for the IFY-2026 are opening in 23 regions of Russia From April 27 to May 3, Volunteer Recruitment and Training Centers for the International Festival of Youth 2026—held under the national project “Youth and Children”—will open across Russia.
Following the results of a nationwide competition organized by the World Youth Festival Directorate and the Dobro.rf Association, 28 centers in 23 regions of the country were selected. The centers for recruiting and training volunteers for the International Festival of Youth 2026 operate in the Arkhangelsk, Yaroslavl, Vologda, Volgograd, Rostov, Omsk, Tomsk, Sverdlovsk, Tyumen, Zaporozhye, and Nizhny Novgorod regions, Primorsky, Altai, Krasnoyarsk, Krasnodar, Perm, Stavropol, and Khabarovsk Territories, the Donetsk People’s Republic, the Republics of Bashkortostan and Tatarstan, St. Petersburg, and Moscow. These are key hubs for forming the IFY–2026 volunteer corps and are responsible for recruiting, selecting, and training volunteers.
“This is not the first time Russia has warmly welcomed talented young people from all over the world. The opening of 28 centers from Pyatigorsk to Khabarovsk marks the start of a major preparation. Volunteers will be tasked with a wide range of responsibilities: from accreditation and logistics to simultaneous interpretation and accompanying official delegations. They will assist medical staff, create a comfortable environment for participants with limited mobility, and help shape the information agenda. During regional expeditions, it will be the volunteers who show foreigners the beauty of Russia—from the Ural Mountains to the vast expanses of the Far East,” noted Artem Metelev, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Youth Policy and Head of the Dobro.rf ecosystem.
At the Volunteer Recruitment and Training Centers, special attention is given to training the specialists responsible for candidate selection. On April 25, a training session was held for interviewers from the IFY–2026 volunteer corps. The program included theoretical and practical modules and covered the entire training cycle—from studying methodology to analyzing real-life case studies. Participants gained a systematic understanding of the interviewer’s role, tasks, and responsibilities, and mastered the tools for conducting an objective and comprehensive assessment of candidates.
“A distinctive feature of the Center is its specialized approach: we train volunteers in the areas of attaché duties, protocol, and language support. For over 10 years, the Center has been training specialists who feel confident in an international environment, are fluent in several foreign languages, and understand the specifics of diplomatic protocol,” noted Mariam Khubieva, Deputy Head of the Project Department of the Educational Work Directorate at MGIMO, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
On April 27, the key phase of the Volunteer Recruitment and Training Centers’ work began: the selection of volunteers. In total, the volunteer corps received more than 20,000 applications—from which 2,000 of the most motivated and experienced candidates will be selected.
The selection process takes the form of a structured interview and allows for an assessment of the candidates’ motivation, experience, personal competencies, and readiness to work at a major international event. During the interview, candidates’ English proficiency and experience in one of 17 functional areas—ranging from logistics and accreditation to media relations and delegation support—are also evaluated. Based on the results of this stage, a comprehensive assessment of each candidate is compiled, including their level of key competencies and recommendations for inclusion in the IFY-2026 volunteer corps. Participants who successfully pass the interview will move on to the next stage—in-person training.
“The team successfully coordinates the selection of candidates not only from the Khabarovsk Territory but also from five regions of the Far East. Another strength is our own methodological initiative—the Volunteer Academy project, which is an online intensive course consisting of 12 training modules designed for the systematic development of volunteers’ competencies,” noted Anastasia Fursova, head of the Dobro.rf resource center of the Khabarovsk Territory.
Volunteers of the World Youth Festival 2024 and the World Youth Festival Assembly are being involved in the Centers’ work: they share their experience with the new team during meetings and panel discussions. Following the Festival, the volunteers will become part of the international volunteer community and continue their work on projects in their respective regions.
“The Center’s team is in high spirits! We still remember our work at the World Youth Festival in 2024. The entire team that selected and trained volunteers in 2023–2024 is ready to join the effort for the IFY-2026. We are confident that the experience gained at the previous festival will enable our team to select and train volunteers at the highest level!” noted Viktoria Zvyagintseva, Executive Director of the Arkhangelsk Region Volunteer Resource Center Association.
Overview:
The World Youth Festival took place on March 1–7, 2024 at “Sirius”, 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 accordance with the instructions of the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin on preserving and developing the legacy of the World Youth Festival, festival events on the territory of the Russian Federation will be held annually. The World Youth Festival Assembly was held in Nizhny Novgorod in 2025 and brought together 2,000 young people from 120 countries. In 2026, the International Festival of Youth will gather 10,000 participants. The next World Youth Festival for 20,000 participants will be held in 2030.
The World Youth Festival Directorate continues the work aimed at strengthening international youth cooperation and developing a community of young people who care about the future of the world.
The Dobro.rf social development ecosystem brings together volunteering, philanthropy, mentoring, social entrepreneurship, and NGOs. The Dobro.rf platform has nearly 10 million registered users, with 1,100 Dobro.Centers operating in 716 municipalities and 3,516 #WEARETOGETHER headquarters in 89 regions of Russia.