Global Dialogue in Art: Ulyanovsk Region Hosts 4th BRICS International Youth Camp

The 4th BRICS International Youth Camp took place in Ulyanovsk on 21–25 August 2024. The camp marked a continuation of the dialogue on education, information technologies, sports, and culture that was held at the BRICS Youth Summit. The theme of the camp this year was ‘Designing Public Spaces’.

The main goal of the 25 young leaders from BRICS countries in attendance was to create art objects that display the picturesque landscapes of the Ulyanovsk Region. The participants attended training sessions, panel discussions, and thematic lectures, and also went on excursions to tourist sites in the Ulyanovsk Region, including Undoria Geopark.

“This is the first time we have held a camp with such a group. Many of the kids were nervous because they had never taken part in BRICS events before. Our job was to give them as much information as possible about BRICS and why the values of a multipolar world, solidarity, and justice are so important,” Camp Director and Deputy Director of the Ulyanovsk Region’s Creative Industries Fund Diana Kovela said.

The camp participants were divided into three international groups that each worked with its own specific focus. The teams included artists, craftsmen, and sculptors. Their work resulted in a presentation of art objects, which will subsequently be installed at Undoria Geopark and the Undorovsky Paleontological Museum.

The first group created an interactive art object called ‘Revival of the Past’, which is a prototype of an ammonite made of tree stumps and glass.

The second team worked on a project called ‘Marine Heritage’, which features the tails of an ichthyosaur growing out of the ground and consists of metal frames filled with wooden rods and branches, which will be used to decorate the Undorovsky eco-trail in the near future.

The third team created a model of an ichthyosaur that the campers painted and dubbed ‘BRICSosaur’, which is now vying to become a new symbol of both the geological heritage of the Ulyanovsk Region and the entire movement for international youth cooperation among BRICS countries.

The BRICS International Youth Camp was organized by the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs together with the Russia-BRICS Project Office for International Youth Cooperation, the Creative Industries Fund of the Ulyanovsk Region, and the Ulyanovsk Region government. The camp was part of the plan of events of Russia’s BRICS chairship in 2024, which are being managed by the Roscongress Foundation.