MGIMO International

MGIMO at IFY – 2026 🌐🟢

From September 11 to 17, Yekaterinburg – a city in the very heart of Russia – became the capital of youth dialogue for a few days and hosted the International Festival of Youth – 2026. The MGIMO team became part of this large-scale event by preparing a special program, the “Laboratory for Future Global Leaders” – a space where education, technology, and the international agenda came together in an interactive format.

MGIMO Space 📍

The MGIMO booth was divided into several thematic zones:

♟ “Diplomacy as a Game of Chess” immersed visitors in contemporary international politics. The information screen introduced them to the current global agenda, while an interactive three-player chess game with an AI assistant turned the metaphor of multipolarity into a gaming experience.

🎓 The “Forge of Global Leaders” zone was dedicated to MGIMO. Here visitors could learn about the university, while the AI program “Sorting Hat” selected a personalized educational route depending on the participant’s interests and preferences.

🌐 The “Feel Like a Global Leader” area shifted visitors from the role of observer to that of a participant in the global agenda. With the help of an AI mirror, everyone could see themselves at the UN podium or at a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov, or MGIMO Rector Anatoly Torkunov.

🏛A separate part of the stand was the zone for MGIMO master classes and presentations. A phygital mock-up of the university facade allowed anyone to literally look into MGIMO’s windows and feel like a university student for a few minutes.

Every day at the MGIMO stand was truly lively: activists from student associations gave tours, interactive activities, lectures, quizzes, and master classes, introducing Festival participants to the university and creating a space for communication.

During the Festival, MGIMO’s space was visited by thousands of participants and high-ranking guests from various countries, including:
• Sergey Kiriyenko, First Deputy Head of the Administration of the President of the Russian Federation,
• Maxim Oreshkin, Deputy Head of the Administration of the President of the Russian Federation,
• Dmitry Chernyshenko, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation,
• Yana Lantratova, Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation,
• Grigory Gurov, Head of Rosmolodezh,
• Konstantin Kolpakov, Deputy Head of Rossotrudnichestvo,
• Sivilay Mina, Deputy Secretary of the Central Committee of the Lao Youth Union,
• Alireza Rahimi, Secretary of the Supreme Council for Youth and Adolescents of Iran.

MGIMO Program 📃

As part of the Festival, MGIMO held a series of major events that brought together thousands of participants:
✅ interactive session “Skills of the Future: No-Tie Talk”;
✅ panel discussion “Leadership in a Multipolar World”;
✅ project game “Youth Laboratory for the New World Order”;
✅ master class “Laboratory of Voice”;
✅session “New Global Architecture of the World: An Open Dialogue with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia Sergey Lavrov”

The speakers at MGIMO’s events included:
➖Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia Sergey Lavrov,
⚪Maria Zakharova, Director of the Information and Press Department of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
➖Arno Gujon, Director of the Office for Public and Cultural Diplomacy of the Government of the Republic of Serbia,
⚪Dauren Abayev, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Kazakhstan to Russia,
➖Toufik Djouma, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Algeria to Russia,
⚪Kunal Sharma, President of the Indian youth platform Chhatra Sansad, and many others.

The IFY–2026 was a special experience for the MGIMO team. Thank you to everyone who stopped by our stand, took part in the events, asked questions, shared their ideas, and helped us create this atmosphere! 🩷

🌐 MGIMO International (ENG) | МГИМО для иностранцев (RUS)

“Laboratory of Voice”: How to Speak So People Listen 🎙️

🟢On September 16, at the International Festival of Youth – 2026, MGIMO held the “Voice Lab” workshop — a practical session on how to turn meaning and ideas into a powerful public speech.

📚 The session centered on two key elements of persuasive speech: meaning and voice. Participants explored how to shape a core message, build an argument, hold the audience’s attention, and at the same time work with their voice, intonation, pace, and pauses.

⭐The moderator was Yaroslav Skvortsov, Dean of MGIMO’s School of International Journalism. Together with Anastasia Borodina, a TV presenter and host of major events, they discussed why public speaking skills matter today, where preparation for a good speech begins, and how to adapt your communication style to different audiences.

And right after that practice followed🔥

Anastasia Borodina led a hands-on master class on voice control. Participants got to practice tools that directly affect how a speech is perceived: breathing, timbre, intonation, pauses, and pace.

🩷 Perhaps the main takeaway for participants was that a strong speech begins not only with what we want to say, but also with how we say it. In a world where the amount of information and the number of voices keeps growing, it is especially important to be able to articulate your position clearly, get it across to your audience, and make sure meaning is always heard behind the voice.

Thank you to Yaroslav Skvortsov and Anastasia Borodina for the practical tools, the open dialogue, and the chance to put new skills into practice right away!

🌐 MGIMO International (ENG) | МГИМО для иностранцев (RUS)

Youth Laboratory for the New World Order 🌏

📍On 16 September, at the International Festival of Youth – 2026, MGIMO hosted the “Youth Laboratory for the New World Order” project session.

Together with representatives from different countries and professional backgrounds, participants explored today’s key challenges before moving from discussion to developing their own projects and initiatives.

Among those speaking on the future and today’s challenges were:
🟦Abdelrahman Eliraki, PhD student at MGIMO and analyst specializing in Arab-Russian relations
🟦Farida Gafarova, Board Member of the Russian Association for the United Nations (RAS UN), Head of MGIMO’s Competence Center for Value Sovereignty
🟦Dmitry Kalinin, Chief Specialist in the International Relations Department of the Ministry of International and Foreign Economic Relations of the Sverdlovsk Region
🟦Denis Kazantsev, Deputy Chairman of the MGIMO Law Club

➡️Then came the team work. Participants split into four groups, each working with an expert on one of the challenges identified. In 30 minutes, the teams had to define the problem more precisely, identify the target audience, propose a project solution, and outline the expected outcome.

✅At the end, each team presented its initiative to the room. Experts then gave feedback, highlighted promising ideas, and offered advice on how to develop them further.

Most importantly, participants didn’t just discuss the key challenges of the future — they tried to turn ideas into concrete projects and mechanisms for international cooperation.

❤️Thank you to the experts and everyone who took part for the open dialogue, active engagement, and ideas that could well lay the groundwork for new international projects and partnerships!

🌐 MGIMO International (ENG) | МГИМО для иностранцев (RUS)