Roscongress Bringing People Together: Recap of the Roscongress Foundation Booth’s Work at the #WEARETOGETHER International Forum

Moscow just finished hosting the #WEARETOGETHER International Civic Forum, which brought together volunteers from more than 40 countries. The Roscongress Foundation presented its charitable and educational projects at a booth it organized jointly with its partners. The booth’s programme featured unique master classes, public talks, quizzes, and an AR quest hosted by the MARMA project.

«This was the first time the Roscongress Foundation presented its social projects at such a major forum. We can see how young people’s attitude to charitable and volunteer affairs is changing before our very eyes and how young people want to help and be of service to old people and people with disabilities. In this sense, the Roscongress Foundation acts as a real space of trust. People have started coming to us with proposals and suggesting joint initiatives. This is the kind of synergy that allows you to move mountains,» Roscongress Foundation Deputy CEO and Head of the Delegate Management Directorate Maria Kiseleva said.

Guests of the Roscongress Foundation’s booth had the opportunity to attend master classes on first aid, handicrafts as well as crowdfunding and its capabilities. The Foundation’s experts held presentations on how to pursue continuous learning, how to distinguish dreams from desires, and spoke about mentoring in business and sports. In addition, Nikita Nikishkin presented his Clean Business project on collecting plastic bottles.

The ‘School Friend’ educational project garnered high praise from the Forum’s participants and organizers. An agreement was implemented with the All-Russia People’s Front on joint work with the Runway project, which provides new remote opportunities for high school graduates who live under the care of relatives or the state. A proposal was also received to organize work as part of the ‘School Friend’ in African countries.

The national ‘We Are Together’ hotline, which the Roscongress Foundation launched in cooperation with the All-Russia People’s Front in March 2020, presented new projects to organize hotlines for social and charitable projects. The Roscongress Foundation’s partners include the Right Direction Charitable Medical Aid Search Service and the Circle of Kindness Foundation for Supporting Children with Severe and Rare Diseases.

Much attention was paid to charity projects. Experts from the Paper Bird Children’s and Adult Hospice Charitable Foundation spoke at the Roscongress Foundation’s booth, telling guests why it is important to instil a culture of helping others from elementary school, and also shared their experience in implementing the ‘Dreams Come True’ project. In addition, the Right Direction Charitable Medical Aid Search Service and the Paper Bird Children’s and Adult Hospice Charitable Foundation discussed new joint projects for 2022.

The Foundation also presented another one of its new projects at the booth: the Roscongress Career Centre, an alternative labour exchange for university students, job seekers with work experience, high school graduates, and anyone looking for a job. The main idea of the Career Centre is to give applicants the opportunity, through internships and participation in socially significant projects, to develop the skills needed to achieve their career goals in order to get a job at reputable Russian and international organizations.

As part of the #WEARETOGETHER Forum, the Roscongress Foundation’s sports platform, RC-Sport, and the Sozvezdiye Dobra Charitable Foundation signed a cooperation agreement. The parties agreed to provide each other with mutual information support and outlined plans for a joint event as part of the sports and entertainment programme of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.

The final event at the Forum was the ceremonial presentation of the ‘We Are Together’ International Prize. The Roscongress Foundation is a member of the organizing committee for the award. The winners of the Business competition were awarded certificates and also given the opportunity to take part in Youth Entrepreneurship Day at the Russian Investment Forum, which will be held in Sochi on 17–19 February 2022, and the International Youth Economic Forum at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, and also to organize an exhibition of their projects at these events as part of the Fund RC-Investments thematic area.

The greatest outcome of the Roscongress Foundation booth’s work was the high level of synergy among all its guests and Forum participants, the search for joint ideas, and the promotion of initiatives. The social agenda has taken on a crucial place in the Foundation’s work. The #WEARETOGETHER Forum gave a big boost to these activities.

The #WEARETOGETHER International Civic Forum was held in Moscow on 2–5 December. It was organized by the Russian Federal Agency for Youth Affairs and the DOBRO.RF platform. The Forum was held under the auspices of UNESCO.