Unity in action: workshops of the marathon "Russia — A Family of Families" as a symbol of national harmony
Ethnocultural heritage as the foundation of the country’s unity became one of the key themes of the educational marathon "Russia — A Family of Families" by the the Russian society Znanie at the National Centre RUSSIA. Through a series of creative, sports and culinary workshops, participants experienced first-hand how ancient legends, songs, dances, cuisine and traditions of leisure become a bridge between peoples and serve as an important competitive advantage for Russia in today’s geopolitical realities.
A creative master class on performing traditional chastushkas was led by folk singer MATANYA. Participants not only showcased their talents but also proudly represented their regions in a lively chastushka contest and even shared the stories behind the national costumes many of them had brought to the marathon.
"My costume is a modern recreation, but it includes embroidery elements typical of the Mordovian costume, because the Republic of Mordovia is my home region," Anastasia from the Penza region said.
During applied arts workshops, guests learned to create wooden interior decorations and decorative pendants from beads and ribbons, paint items with national ornaments, and print patterns onto fabric.
"I am a very creative person, I love drawing, singing and dancing, so the workshops really interested me, and I painted this red poppy on a hoodie and printed folk patterns on it. I am amazed by the scale of this marathon — I did not expect everything here to be so huge, majestic, beautiful and interesting. For me, unity is the ability to hear one another through your own path and through the heart. And, of course, it is peace throughout the world," shared Mane Mukelyan, a student at Lipetsk State Pedagogical University named after P. P. Semenov-Tyan-Shansky.
The series of workshops became a real discovery for the marathon participants — an opportunity not only to learn more about the multinational culture and traditions of Russia, but also to symbolically connect the past and the present by recreating a small part of these traditions with their own hands.
"I really enjoyed the workshop because it not only develops creative skills but also allows you to make any design using the examples of folk painting provided by the instructors. For example, I painted a wooden ornament with beautiful berries on a black background, similar to Gzhel," said Diana Solomova from Vladivostok.
A cheerful sports warm-up for programme participants was led by three-time Olympic champion in synchronised swimming, television presenter and Head of the Russian Water Theatre, Maria Kiseleva. She invited guests to perform several simple exercises focused on attention, coordination and breathing which, according to the athlete, help recharge energy in order to work more effectively and move towards goals.
"You all did an excellent job, so we are taking you into synchronised swimming," Maria Kiseleva joked in conclusion.
At the Gastronomic Rows of the National Centre RUSSIA, the team of chefs from the project "Gastronomic Map of Russia" introduced marathon participants to the culinary traditions of the country’s peoples. In the block "Pancakes of the Peoples of Russia", guests tasted Karelian skantsy, chernavskie pancakes and karavaytsy from the Ryazan region, koman melna from the Republic of Mari El and other unique examples of pancake traditions. The winter presentation "Prepared by Cold: Stroganina" introduced audiences to one of the most distinctive dishes of the peoples of the Far North — stroganina. In the final block, "Soups of the Peoples of Russia", guests were presented with Donetsk borscht, Ossetian lyvzha, taiga solyanka, Baltic fish soup and other first courses from different parts of the country.
The educational marathon "Russia — A Family of Families", dedicated to the launch of the Year of Unity of the Peoples of the Country, was held on 5 February at the National Centre RUSSIA and brought together more than four thousand people — representatives of over 190 peoples of the Russian Federation, as well as international guests. The event was organised by the Russian society Znanie in partnership with the Government of Russia, the Federal Agency for Ethnic Affairs of Russia, Rosmolodezh, the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation, the Presidential Council for Interethnic Relations, the National Centre RUSSIA, the House of the Peoples of Russia, the Assembly of the Peoples of Russia, and the Eksmo-AST Publishing Group.
The event will take place as part of the Open Lecture Hall "Inventing the Future: Stories and Plots".
A series of events dedicated to the Day of Russian Science will be held on 8 February at the National Centre RUSSIA.
The largest youth event of 2026 will take place from 11 to 17 September in Yekaterinburg.
