"Higher Education Teachers’ Forum. Meaning Creators Clubs" launched at the National Centre RUSSIA

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More than 300 members of academic staff and university administrative teams took part in the "Higher Education Teachers’ Forum. Meaning Creators Clubs" at the National Centre RUSSIA. During the forum, experts discussed ways of engaging young people in social and cultural initiatives, as well as examples of how such initiatives are implemented in universities.

"The National Centre RUSSIA is always close at hand. Landmark national events take place here — it was within these walls that the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, recently launched the Year of the Unity of the Peoples of Russia. This demonstrates the importance of the work being carried out within the Meaning Creators Clubs and teaching communities capable of responding to complex challenges. It is the lecturer and mentor who, through personal example, helps students choose their development path. At the heart of this work lies love for the Motherland," said the Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, Olga Petrova.

The event continued a comprehensive programme focused on working with university academic staff and Meaning Creators Clubs and was timed to coincide with the launch of the Academy of Value-Oriented Education for Higher Education.

The Meaning Creators Clubs brought together experience from different regions and universities and marked the beginning of the development of unified standards and approaches to youth engagement and educational work in higher education institutions. The purpose of establishing the Clubs is to work with academic staff and to build common approaches to implementing youth policy and educational activities in universities. All of them aim to develop initiatives focused on educating young people within the academic environment.

The importance of mentorship, the role of the professional community and the responsibility of leaders in working with young people were highlighted by State Duma Deputy and Chair of the Leaders of Russia Club "Elbrus" of the presidential platform "Russia — Land of Opportunity", Tatyana Dyakonova.

"The Elbrus community brings together professionals with extensive experience and knowledge. One of the key areas of our work is to serve as role models for young people and guide them. The challenges facing our country — economic, social and cultural — require young people not only to possess knowledge, but also to have a strong worldview, clearly formed values and the ability to make responsible decisions. This is where the support of senior mentors represented by university lecturers and Leaders of Russia is especially important. Together, we help shape a generation of new leaders who will respond to modern challenges, lead others forward and act for the benefit of the country’s development," the parliamentarian noted.

As part of the forum, a series of events will take place on 13–14 February with the participation of experts and leading speakers in youth policy and educational work. The programme includes expert presentations, an interview session, an expert discussion and group work.

"The Meaning Creators Clubs are communities where lecturers from different disciplines — physics, literature, chemistry, philosophy and others — deliberately come together, understanding the value of building cooperation with one another. As a result, an informal network community emerges, connected through horizontal links, engaged in professional dialogue and united by the mission of educating students and transmitting Russia’s civilisational values. These communities form a network that engages student and regional networks, shaping the country’s intellectual elite," said the Academic Director of the programme "Guides of Meaning. DNA of Russia", President of MAKO, Chair of the Coordination Council for Network Communities under the Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation, and expert of the "DNA of Russia" project, Olga Golyshenkova.

From 2022 to 2025, the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation organised training programmes for university lecturers. More than 34,000 specialists took part.

A structured approach to working with academic staff in higher education institutions has been established by the Ministry in order to implement Presidential Decree No. 809 of 9 November 2022 "On Approving the Foundations of State Policy for the Preservation and Strengthening of Traditional Russian Spiritual and Moral Values".