The National Centre RUSSIA announces the launch of the nationwide project "Smile of Russia. Smile of Unity"

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On 9 July, as part of the III All-Russian Wedding Festival "Russia. Uniting Hearts" at the National Centre RUSSIA, experts discussed strengthening the unity of the multinational people of Russia and announced the launch of the large-scale "Smile of Russia. Smile of Unity" contest to create a visual archive of our country. The initiative, dedicated to the Year of Unity of the Peoples of Russia, will bring together residents from across the country to create a large-scale visual archive reflecting family histories and traditions, the unique genetic code of Russians, information about roots and family ties, and will also allow citizens to become the faces of the information campaign for National Unity Day as part of the contest. The project was launched by the House of the Peoples of Russia and Yandex in cooperation with Genotek, the Federal Agency for Ethnic Affairs of Russia and the scientific community. The project was launched during the panel session "Smile of Russia. Smile of Unity".

The National Centre RUSSIA supports projects aimed at preserving historical memory. The Centre will also become part of the contest.

"The National Centre RUSSIA was created by our President, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, so that we can be proud of our past and present. Russia's strength lies in the fact that over the centuries we have learned to live together. We are united by destinies, cultures, traditions, customs and shared historical memory. Russia is a civilisation of traditional values, and the National Centre helps preserve them and pass them on to new generations. We are proud that the world's only All-Russian Wedding Festival is held here. After all, love, family, fidelity and respect for one another are our main values. If we carefully preserve this legacy, our country can neither be defeated nor broken," said the Deputy Director General of the National Centre RUSSIA, Anastasia Zvyagina.

The discussion was moderated by Anna Polezhayeva, Director of the House of the Peoples of Russia and a member of the Presidential Council for Interethnic Relations. She noted that the project brings together modern technologies, science and real human stories, allowing Russia to be presented through the faces of its residents, family histories and the bonds between generations.

"We are a beautiful, strong and unique country. It is symbolic to talk about this at the III All-Russian Wedding Festival. Smiles can be different: a child's smile, a smile of joy, a smile through tears. But the main thing is to remember that beauty is born from our diversity, and strength lies in unity. Contest participants will be able not only to create their own map, but also to involve others and share photographs of their smiles from different parts of our vast country. We invite all interethnic families, and indeed all families taking part in the festival, to be the first to join this initiative. It can become a major shared family project that brings people together and helps them learn more about one another's history. We very much want to see smiling faces of people standing shoulder to shoulder — not only physically close, but also united in spirit and supporting one another. Then we truly can achieve anything," she explained.

Participants in the III All-Russian Wedding Festival presented their own example of such unity: interethnic couple Yaroslav Rudenko from the Republic of Bashkortostan and Alyona Syrkova from the Arkhangelsk Region. The newlyweds spoke about how traditions from different regions of Russia come together in their family and give rise to new family customs.

"Of course, we do not drink tea and kumis every day, but we try to bring together the traditions of our regions. I have brought northern cuisine from Pomorye into our family — kalitki and kulebyaki — while Yaroslav cooks Bashkir meat dishes. I also collect ornaments from different regions of Russia and use them to decorate our home. I very much want to preserve this culture and then pass it on to our children," Alyona Syrkova said.

The "Smile of Russia. Smile of Unity" project is open to all residents of the country. To take part, participants need to upload a personal or family portrait, mark on an interactive map the cities connected with their family history and create a personal "map of roots". Each entry will become part of a shared digital archive dedicated to the Year of Unity of the Peoples of Russia. The project is designed to present Russia through the lives of its residents, highlight the richness of cultural traditions, the diversity of its regions and the strength of family ties that have united our country for centuries.

Applications will be accepted until 20 September 2026. At the end of the project, the organisers will select the 20 most expressive images, whose subjects will take part in a professional photo shoot in Moscow. They will become the faces of the information campaign for National Unity Day. The final photo exposition will open on 4 November 2026. The project is implemented by the House of the Peoples of Russia with the support of Yandex and Genotek.

The National Centre RUSSIA is organising the III All-Russian Wedding Festival "Russia. Uniting Hearts" jointly with the Moscow Government and the Moscow Civil Registry Office. The I All-Russian Wedding Festival was held in 2024 as part of the International RUSSIA EXPO. The event has become annual and will be held on the Day of Family, Love and Fidelity.