The winners of the Children’s Initiatives Competition in the field of culture and the arts have been announced at the V International Children’s Cultural Forum. This year’s initiatives were united by the themes of culture, traditions, and the unity of the peoples of Russia. The projects focus on preserving national traditions and cultural heritage, developing cultural life across Russia’s regions, and reinterpreting traditional culture in a contemporary context.
Tatyana Golikova, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, addressed the winners:
“Congratulations, everyone! Thank you very much. All of us — the jury members and everyone in the audience — were genuinely rooting for you and sharing in your excitement, because we saw how much preparation and effort you put in. It was very emotional, and most importantly, your projects truly reflected the Year of Unity of the Peoples of Russia. Each of you managed to showcase something unique to your region and the peoples who live there. It was extremely difficult for us to choose the winners: all four projects are different and creative in their own way, and each has something special about it.”
The winners are:
— Grigory Shabunin from Tomsk region, who presented the project “Songs of the Peoples of Siberia: A New Breath.” His idea is to give the folk songs of Siberia a contemporary sound while preserving their authentic melodies, languages, and artistic foundations. The project is expected to result in an album, which the author plans to present in a live concert format.
— Sofya Shibaeva from Chelyabinsk region, who presented a capsule collection of contemporary clothing titled “From Homespun Cloth to the Runway: The Nagaibak Code in Contemporary Fashion.” The collection is inspired by traditional Nagaibak folk costume.
— Anna Minina from Arkhangelsk region with an animated film based on Stepan Pisakhov’s fairy tale “Northern Lights.”
— Mikhail Krisko from Kemerovo region with the project “Native Word.” The project combines three formats: an interactive digital glossary featuring alternatives to Anglicisms in the languages of the peoples of Russia; a series of animated videos demonstrating how these words can be used in teenagers’ everyday conversations; and an educational card game titled “Speak Your Own.”
The winners will receive organizational and financial support from the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation to further develop and implement their projects. Under the competition rules, projects were eligible to receive funding of up to 1 million RUB.
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The Children’s Initiatives Competition has been held as part of the International Children’s Cultural Forum since 2022, giving teenagers from different regions of Russia an opportunity to propose their own projects in the field of culture and the arts. In 2026, the competition received 36 applications from 30 regions of Russia, with 13 projects advancing to the semi-finals. Following several stages of selection, four finalists were chosen. This year’s key theme was “Unity of the Peoples of Russia.”
In previous years, the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation supported projects dedicated to regional history, literature, animation, museum development, and the preservation of cultural heritage. In 2025, the winners were Alexandra Udovichenko from the Republic of Crimea with the project “The Streets of My City,” Margarita Akulova from Omsk region with the animated film “Ryzhik from 1941,” Serafima Khlopushina from Samara region with the media project “The Cultural Code of Victory,” and Nikita Selyaninov from Tyumen region with the project “Victory Lives in Everyone’s Heart.”
