The festival at the MISIS University brought together students from more than 30 regional groups, who showcased the history and culture of their regions and countries. Participants performed folk songs and dances, prepared traditional dishes, and organized an exhibition of items representing their national cultures and daily life. The event was organized by the NUST MISIS International Friendship Club.
The student festival Day of Nationalities has been held at NUST MISIS for the ninth time and traditionally gathers over 2000 students from NUST MISIS and other Moscow universities. Among the honored guests were official representatives of foreign states, Russian regions, and leaders of the executive bodies of Moscow:
- Mai Nguyen Tuyet Hoa, Secretary of the Education Department of the Embassy of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam in the Russian Federation;
- Aykaz Mikaelyan, Advisor to the Head of the Federal Agency for Nationalities Affairs;
- Kantemir Kurtaev, Chairman of the Youth Commission of the Council for Nationalities Affairs under the Moscow City Government, Expert of the Presidential Council for Interethnic Relations, Chairman of the All-Russian Interethnic Youth Union;
- Natalia Podlegaeva, Consultant of the National Policy Department of the Department of National Policy and Interregional Relations of Moscow.
Representatives from 14 regions of Russia, 8 CIS countries, and 12 other countries participated in the parade of nationalities. At the Culture Without Borders exhibition, students presented cultural attributes and household items from over 20 ethnic groups. As part of the Musical Wednesday project, students performed pieces by well-known composers from different nationalities.
The highlight of the celebration was a concert featuring creative groups performing folk songs and dances. Among the participants were winners of international and national vocal and choreographic competitions, and honored artists of various republics. Performers included: Yana Lysenko, honored artist of two republics; Bart, a dance ensemble and grand-prix winner of the international Kremlin Stars competition; Komron Mamadaliev, winner of international vocal competitions; National dance ensembles IrBis, Tsagda, Fisht, Nar, Nairian Par, and others.
After the concert, festival guests sampled national dishes from Slavic, Caucasian, Middle Eastern, Asian, African, and other cuisines.
NUST MISIS enrolls students from all regions of Russia and 85 countries worldwide, with international students making up 19% of the student body.
Last year, the NUST MISIS International Friendship Club won the Unity in Diversity competition organized by the All-Russian Interethnic Youth Union. The student association took first place in the category Best Practice in Strengthening Interethnic Friendship and Unity in the Student Community for its Festival of Nationalities project.
