Pro-rector on youth policy of the Ural State Technical University (UPI) Aleksandre Ponomarev told that the festival program has been already worked out. Youth conferences, contests, exhibitions and concerts will be held within the five main areas: science, sports, art work, theoretical and practical conferences, and students’ media. Club of the cheerful and sharp-witted teams festival, students drama theatres, rock festival, art photography and reportage filming contest, judo, Thai boxing and cherliding championships, students law enforcement detachments gathering and many other things are waiting for today’s and former students. The festival’s novelty will be the retreat of chairmen of Board of pro-rectors on extra-curricular activity of Russia’s institutes of higher education.
The festival management succeeded in enlisting support of the federal government. The RF Ministry of Education and Science within the framework of the gifted youth support program has provided for 20 Laureate bounties in the amount of 60 thousand roubles each. About three thousand people are expected to take part in the Spring UPI-2009, with half of them being the SCO states representatives.
The participants in the meeting have also considered a matter of the SCO Youth Council formation. This proposal was set forward by the Youth Public Chamber and Russian Youth Association. The Association will include national youth organizations of the SCO member states. Each state will be represented by no more than two associations.
Foundation conference of the youth association is to be held early May in Yekaterinburg, along with the student festival. According to the First Secretary of Sverdlovskaya Oblast Committee of the Russian Youth Association Yelena Zvereva, participants in the conference are planning to prepare recommendations to the SCO governing bodies regarding the most acute problems worrying youth, as well as to discuss issues of cultural exchange, youth education quality improvement and formation of healthy generation.