Yamal authorities, Artek Fund agree to cooperate in preserving culture of northern peoples

The Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District (YAND) government will cooperate with the Artek International Children’s Centre Support Fund to preserve and protect the identity, culture, languages, and traditions of Russia’s northern peoples based on an agreement signed by YAND Deputy Governor Alexander Mazharov and Artek Support Fund Chairman Alexander Ryabinin, TASS news agency reports.

“As part of the agreement, the parties plan to interact in an effort to develop international and interregional cooperation and to preserve and protect the identity, culture, languages, and traditions of Russia’s northern peoples”, the region’s press service said in a statement.

The document aims to draw public attention to the problems and achievements of projects involving the study, exploration, and development of the Arctic, promote involvement in the formation and implementation of environmental preservation and protection programmes, and provide assistance and support to cultural organizations of Russian compatriots abroad, the press service said. It also includes measures to support and promote the Russian language and involvement in the development and introduction of innovative forms of general and continuing education.

The government said 48 Yamal schoolchildren visited Artek between September 25 and October 15, 2016 as part of the ‘Planet Ocean’ environmental tour. The tour aimed to develop and realize the creative, scientific, and educational potential of children and young people as well as attract the attention of schoolchildren to science and technology.