Promotion of the region using the example of the Sakhalin region was discussed at the RUSSIA EXPO

The discussion " Stories that Promote Regions. Based on the Example of Sakhalin Region Content" was held in the EISR studio at the International RUSSIA EXPO. The speakers shared their experience in promoting regional identity and brands, explained the importance of this activity for the development of the country. Special attention was paid to the issue of patriotic education — positive, socially-oriented content about the regions makes viewers feel proud of both the specific territory and Russia as a whole.

The discussion was attended by Daria Kislitsyna, Director of the Department for Work with Regions of EISR, member of the Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation; Irina Sayutina, creative producer, ambassador of unique places, author of the project "VK Places" and the largest in Russia blog tour "TopBLOG"; Larisa Ostapenko, Head of the Tourist Information Centre of the Sakhalin Region; and Natalia Lindigrin, Director General of the ANO "Institute of Regional Problems". The meeting was moderated by Ekaterina Gumerova, Head of Communication Solutions Department of Polylog Group.

The relevance of the discussion topic was justified by Daria Kislitsyna. "Currently there is a deficit of regional brands in Russia, insufficient awareness of citizens about the identity of different subjects of the federation. All this creates a colossal space for work both for keen professionals and, first of all, for the territories themselves. The region should be interested in promoting its identity, as, for example, it is the case in the Sakhalin region," the expert concluded. She also spoke about the EISR projects aimed at promoting the agenda of the country's subjects. Among them there is a six-year regular monitoring of management practices, as well as discussions within the framework of the "Governors' Club" at major federal platforms. And the project "Russia: Impulses of Development" supported by Institute for Internet Development (IRI), whose participants tell viewers about the organic combination of stability and development in the regions. 

Irina Sayutina immersed the discussion participants in the tourism context of the Sakhalin region. The speaker described the initiatives successfully implemented in the region, including, for example, a project to develop surfing in Severo-Kurilsk. It was implemented with the support of the federal program "More than a Trip", regional authorities and the city administration. According to the speaker, the content created during the project had significant media coverage and contributed to the promotion of the territorial brand "Northern Kurils". Irina Sayutina also shared the main principles of creating media products about the regions.

"Everything is based on stories that we create by first of all evaluating the potentials of the territories, natural and ethnographic features, interesting projects of people. For example, in Severo-Kurilsk we tried a local dish — chebureks with octopus, the video with the recipe for their preparation was a success on social networks and attracted a lot of tourists. I am convinced that this dish can become a regional gastronomic brand and surprise guests of the region. At the heart of our stories is always the person. They live in a unique place and create amazing projects that they speak about with passion. Their work transforms the location into a point of attraction, and the content we create inspires millions of viewers and fosters a love for our country," concluded the expert.

Photo: provided by the RUSSIA EXPO press office

Continuing the conversation about the specifics of the Sakhalin region, Larisa Ostapenko reported on the key areas of the region's work to develop its tourist attractiveness. "The Sakhalin region is very active in promoting event activities. This year alone we will have about eight major public events, and this attracts people. Among them is the fifth Far East Theater Festival, which started on June 17 in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. I am convinced that the events of the festival are definitely worth seeing for everyone. But our region is not only Sakhalin Island. We are actively developing tourism on the rest of the territory. We have a surfers' school, and on Moneron Island we have the coolest diving school in Russia," the speaker shared her observations.

Larisa Ostapenko emphasized that the large number of events contributes to the dissemination of stories about the region that held these events throughout Russia. This, in turn, acts as a driver of development, attracts investors and tourists to the region, and forms an ecological environment that grows into a regional brand. The expert said that the Sakhalin region is now actively promoting a new brand — "Sakhalin — a Beacon of Russia".

"A public event acts as a news piece, which generates a trail of various kinds of content. It plays one of the main roles in promoting the region. It is an impeccable tool in terms of promotion of the region if the event is held with high quality, if it is covered in the public space," summarized Natalia Lindigrin.

The expert noted that when planning an event it is very important to think about how the content about it will be promoted in the media. Natalia Lindigrin also reminded about the attractiveness of video content, which is often actually appropriated by a person as a lived experience. She drew the attention of the discussion participants to the value of not only high-quality professional videos, but also user-generated content. Thus, according to the expert, experienced travelers carefully study reviews on various resources before going to a particular region, and it is important to keep this in mind.

At the end of the discussion Ekaterina Gumerova emphasized that the promotion of regional identity in the public field is a synergy of content about the development of the territory, which is born in the professional community, as well as user-generated content, which is born on the initiative of people in love with the regions. This synergy also includes the work of the regional authorities to increase the tourist attractiveness of the territory. The key goal here is to inform the maximum number of citizens about the features of the federal subject. Ekaterina Gumerova emphasized that a significant role in promoting regional identity is also played by major federal events such as the RUSSIA EXPO. "The Exposition space gives each subject of the federation an opportunity to present the peculiarities of its territory, to share its unique atmosphere with visitors, and for visitors to touch the history, culture, traditions of different regions," the moderator noted.

The EISR Studio on the platform of the International RUSSIA EXPO became a gathering point for expertise on the event lineup of the Exposition and the socio-political agenda in general. Leading Russian political scientists, sociologists, public figures and journalists regularly gather in the studio to analyze the semantic field of the Exposition and important events in the life of the country in the format of a live dialogue. The EISR studio is located on the second floor of Pavilion No. 75 of VDNH, where expositions of all Russian regions are presented.

The recording of the episode "Stories that Promote Regions. Based on the Example of the Sakhalin Region Content" dated June 25, 2024: https://rutube.ru/video/5e2e715c6a86a767123325758a740f9b/.