The International Festival of Youth 2026 recently took place in Russia, featuring a Children's Program with 60 projects from young innovators. These projects spanned various fields, including science and technology, digitalization, creative industries, sports, media, and civic engagement. The event brought together participants from both the Children's and Adult Programs of the Festival. The projects were displayed across four floors of the Pioneer House at the Specialized Education and Research Center.
The 60 projects were divided into seven tracks, with science and technology accounting for the largest share, comprising 21 projects. Other tracks included creative industries with 11 projects, digitalization and IT with 8 projects, and public administration with 6 projects. The sports, media, and civic engagement tracks each featured four projects. Visitors had the opportunity to interact with the creators and learn about their developments.
Artur Orlov, Hero of Russia and Chairman of the Board of the Movement of the First, toured the exhibition and reviewed the participants' work. He expressed satisfaction with the Children's Program, stating that the young participants were able to create original developments in priority areas for the country and present them to leaders of the technology market. The Movement of the First will support the most striking ideas within the project activities.
The Festival featured project laboratories and workshops where children interacted with experts from leading corporations. Thirty-nine partners, including Russian Railways, RUSNANO Management Company, and Geoscan Group, shared their experience and knowledge. The Children's Program brought together about a thousand young participants from Russia and abroad, with sixty leading industrial companies and universities posing real technological and scientific tasks before the teams.
Anton Gusev, Deputy Head of the Talent and Success Educational Foundation and Director of the Sirius University of Science and Technology, highlighted the success of the program. He stated that the international teams formed during the festival will shape the future of world science in 10-20 years. Many projects will continue at the All-Russian 'Big Challenges' competition.
One of the projects, "Invisible Digit: An Objective Vision Speed Test," was created with support from the Sirius University of Science and Technology. The team developed a hardware and software system for accurately assessing visual perception thresholds. They studied the critical flicker fusion frequency and the limitations of conventional subjective vision testing methods.
Penuel Zevdu Basazineu from Ethiopia participated in the festival and shared his experience. He stated that the joint work with others made a particular impression, and he believes that their project is very important as it helps people react quickly in extreme conditions. The project could be useful for pilots, drivers, and firefighters.
Key points
- Sixty school children from around the world presented scientific projects at the International Festival of Youth in Russia.
- The projects spanned various fields, including science and technology, digitalization, and creative industries.
- The festival featured project laboratories and workshops where children interacted with experts from leading corporations.
