Siberia - Territory of Peace and Harmony Festival is Held at INRTU

Siberia - Territory of Peace and Harmony Festival started in INRTU on November 3. Art performances were presented by students from Indonesia and Egypt, along with the students' Trade Union activists. Darya Lobanova, Vice-Rector for Youth Policy, and Stepan Bykov, Vice-Rector for International Affairs, congratulated INRTU students on the cultural project opening.

The Festival is being organized by INRTU Youth Policy Department, the Center for Cultural and Educational Work, the Students' Trade Union, the Baikal School of BRICS, and the Center for International Services. Various exhibitions were organised by the V.G. Smagin Department of Monumental and Decorative Painting and Design. The eventful program is organized by the hostel student councils and the International Student Club.

According to Vice-Rector Stepan Bykov, every 10th INRTU student is a foreigner. Students from 56 countries study here. Thanks to students from far and near abroad, the university has become a unique platform for intercultural exchange.

"Foreign students enrich our university with new linguistic and cultural knowledge, familiarize us with world religions and languages. This, for sure, requires mutual respect. That is why we hold the festival, which will help all INRTU students to learn more about each other, to unite and find friends in a large multicultural INRTU family", - said Stepan Bykov.

Amr Mahmoud, a lead musician of the Ethnobit ethnic percussion studio and a student from Egypt, performed for the guests. Ruben Romario Ratu impressed the audience with his strong voice and national Indonesian costume. Activists of the Students' Trade Union danced to the song "From Volga to Yenisei" (band "Lyube", 2005).

The festival will include intellectual games, presentations by national-cultural associations, photo and art exhibitions, concerts and master-classes. Overall, about 30 events are scheduled during the festival. On November 9 at 17:00 everyone is welcome to the INRTU assembly hall for the Korean culture celebration "Korea far and near". On Saturday, November 11, at 14:00, the doors of the White Hall will be open for those who love the sound of drums. International students are to demonstrate their talents at the "Privet, bonjour, hello!" contest on November 15 at 13:30 on the main university stage. The full program is available on the INRTU website.

Photo by Arseniy Chekmaryov