Climate of Trust Council

Cooperation with law enforcement, government and communities

• Conferences,Seminars and Round-tables
• Public Assistance Clinics
• Investigative Expertise
• Festivals and Youth Projects
• Media Relations

Conferences, seminars, and round-tables

Climate of Trust 2008: Voronezh – San Francisco
On April 19-25, 2008, the Climate of Trust Council hosted a delegation from Voronezh, Russia, as part of our ongoing series of exchanges to combat the rise in xenophobia, anti-Semitism and ethnic hatred in Russia. The Russian delegation included representatives from the local government, senior police officers, ethnic and religious community leaders, educators, and members of the Public Chamber of Voronezh – an umbrella organization of over 400 NGOs.

The delegates spent a week in San Francisco learning about American best practices in combating extremism, community policing, and conflict resolution. During their stay, the Russians attended workshops led by officers of San Francisco Police Department, representatives of District Attorney’s Office, Public Defender’s Office, Superior Court, and Police Commission, officials of various departments of City Administration, School Resource Officers, as well as community groups, such as Asian Law Caucus, Jewish Community Relations Council, La Raza, and Muslim Community Association.

The next phase of this exchange program will be conducted in Voronezh in June 2008.

The “Climate of Trust 2008: San-Francisco – Voronezh” exchange will culminate with a resolution to create a Climate of Trust Tolerance Center in Voronezh.

Seminar “Regional migration policy and migration processes in
Ryazan Oblast”
April 24, 2008, the Ryazan Regional Tolerance Center, Ryazan Regional Police Department, and the Ryazan branch of Moscow MVD University jointly conducted an inter-agency seminar entitled “Regional migration policy and migration processes in Ryazan Oblast”.

Participants of the seminar included members of the Committee on Social and Demographic Policy of the Ryazan Regional Duma (Legislative Assembly), senior officials of Office of Labor and Employment and Office of Public Health of Ryazan Oblast, officers of the Regional Police Department, railroad police officers, members of ethnic diasporas, local administrators, professors of the MVD University, and journalists.

Due to the increasing deficit of local labor resources, Ryazan cannot succeed without attracting foreign workers. However, unregulated legal status of foreign workers often leads to violations of law and order. In this respect, it is not enough to mention only systematic violations of visa regulations and registration procedures of foreign workers. There is also another, more urgent problem – deteriorating criminogenic situation, which particularly affects migrant workers from Central Asia.

Currently, authorities are using only administrative measures to mitigate this process. Criminal measures are not used at all, or applied selectively. There are also frequent violations of the rights of foreign workers, both legal and undocumented, when they cross administrative borders within Russia. In order to eliminate violation of foreign workers’ rights, bring order to the process of issuing work permits, and provide decent accommodation to migrants, it is necessary to introduce effective mechanisms for regulating the process of labor migration.

Participants of the seminar have noted that although Ryazan’s Regional Police Department has been persistently cooperating with the Federal Migration Service, governmental agencies, and employment, health, and social services to protect foreign workers’ rights and help them adapt to local conditions, there is still no structure or program that could effectively connect all interacting parties. Russian federal migration laws do not help in this case either, because these laws are not supported by regional statutes that could regulate migration.

At the conclusion of the seminar, participants offered concrete proposals to optimize interaction of all involved agencies in future.

Round table: “Federal migration policy and its implementation in
Ryazan Oblast”
April 17, 2008, Commission on Inter-ethnic Relations and Commission on Labor and Economics of the Public Chamber of Ryazan Oblast conducted a round table entitled “Federal migration policy and its implementation in Ryazan Oblast”. Moderators of the round table were co-chairpersons of the Commissions T. Gusieva and Sultonbek Boronbekov. Participants included representatives of the two Commissions, ethnic diasporas, Federal Migration Service, railroad police, Ryazan’s Office of Labor and Social Security, as well as executives and employees of businesses and industrial enterprises of Ryazan Oblast.

Participants of the round table addressed such concerns as protecting rights and legal interests of foreign workers, strengthening respect for law among immigrants, and ensuring fair employment opportunities for foreign workers in consideration of the interests and labor rights of Russian nationals. They also analyzed the work of recruiting agencies and their role in the professional development of foreign workers and exchanged opinions on how to provide affordable legal assistance to immigrants.

Presentation of the “Culture of Trust” teacher’s manual
On March 5, 2008, in Naberezhnye Chelny, Tatarstan, directors of the Ryazan and Kazan Regional Tolerance Centers Oleg Kharkin and Vladimir Roskin presented an instructional manual for secondary school teachers entitled “Culture of Trust”. This manual has been published by the Kazan RTC within the framework of the Climate of Trust program and with support of Government of Tatarstan. Participants of the presentation included professors, administrators, and graduate and undergraduate students of local universities.
On the same day, Oleg Kharkin presented a lecture titled “Regional aspects of national security in the field of legal regulation of migration processes” for young police officers of Naberezhnye Chelny Police Department. This lecture is a part of a cycle of lectures for police officers, which is being conducted under the Climate of Trust program in Tatarstan.

International seminar: “School police officers and their social mission”,
December 27, 2007
International seminar “School police officers and their social mission” was conducted within the framework of the Climate of Trust program at the Ryazan branch of Moscow MVD University. The seminar aimed at creating mutual understanding between Russian law enforcement agencies and secondary schools in their work to prevent juvenile crime and asocial behavior.

The goals and objectives of the seminar were to:

Evaluate the effectiveness of the work of school police officers (SPOs) and their
interaction with school staff
Determine the place and role of SPOs in the structure of authority. Determine the legal status of SPOs. Determine the legal status of SPOs within law enforcement
Identify the limits of competency of SPOs. Study international practices of cooperation between police and school administrations
Identify the problems relating to the administrative and legal status of SPOs. Determine the functional responsibilities of SPOs
Emphasize the significance of legal education among secondary school students as the most important direction for preventing juvenile crime and delinquency
Evaluate the practice of introducing SPOs into law enforcement agencies. Determine the ways of improving the work of SPOs in future.

Over 120 people took part in the seminar, including SPOs of Ryazan Oblast, officers of the Department of Public Security Police and juvenile divisions, representatives of educational and youth relations authorities of Ryazan and Ryazan Oblast, members of local juvenile commissions, researchers of the Ryazan Regional Institute for the Development of Education, professors of the Ryazan branch of Moscow MVD University, school principals and administrators, and activists of local NGOs.

American participants of the seminar presented a training manual for School Resource Officers, which is being used in high schools in California. The Regional Center for Civil and Legal Education of Ryazan presented its experience of preventing juvenile crime.

The seminar was conducted with active support of the Ryazan branch of Moscow MVD University, Public Chamber of Ryazan, the Administration of Education, Science, and Youth Relations of Ryazan, police authorities of Ryazan, and the Ryazan Regional Tolerance Center.

The seminar is the latest in the series of the Climate of Trust activities aimed at preventing youth extremism in Russia. Earlier events included the conference “The strategy for preventing crimes and anti-social behavior among youth”, which was conducted in September 2007, in Rostov-na-Donu and the seminar “The problems of youth and youth policy during the forming stage of civil society and rule of law in Russia”, which took place in Ryazan, in December 2007.

At preliminary seminar in Voronezh, December 2007

Preliminary seminar “Cooperation of NGOs, authorities, and law enforcement in the prevention of ethnic, religious, and racial hate crimes” Voronezh, December 24, 2007
On December 24, 2007, the Climate of Trust Council and the Public Chamber of Voronezh conducted a preliminary seminar entitled “Cooperation of NGOs, authorities, and law enforcement in the prevention of ethnic, religious, and racial hate crimes”. This seminar was held at Voronezh State University. Participants of the seminar, representing police, human rights advocacy groups, ethnic diasporas, government, schools, and youth NGOs, shared their experience of working together to counteract xenophobia and extremism.

At the seminar, a group of delegates was selected to participate in Phase I of the Climate of Trust: Voronezh – San Francisco exchange. Members of the delegation represent the Public Chamber of Voronezh, police, and local NGOs. Phase I will be conducted in San Francisco, in April 2008.

Climate of Trust Conference: “Strategies for Preventing Crimes and Anti-Social Behavior among Youth”Rostov-na-Donu, September 28, 2007
On September 28, 2007, the Climate of Trust Council conducted a conference to discuss strategies for preventing youth crimes and juvenile delinquency. The conference was held at the North Caucasus Academy of Civil Service in Rostov-na-Donu.

Participants of the conference included presidents of Rostov’s universities, government officials, police officers, scholars, directors of Tolerance Centers of Climate of Trust, and leaders of youth organizations and ethnic diasporas from Rostov, Ryazan, St. Petersburg, and Tatarstan.

Speakers addressed a variety of topics such as types of youth crimes, methods of preventing youth crimes, mechanisms for counteracting anti-social behavior of juveniles, and the impact of youth extremist organizations on social activity of young people.

Presenters stressed the need to prevent youth participation in extremist and terrorist groups. One of the proposed measures was to more proactively involve young people in educational and business activities. Representatives of the Ingush diaspora proposed to encourage young people of the Northern Caucasus to participate in seminars and workshops on conflict resolution.

In conclusion, participants of the conference decided to create a Tolerance Center in
Rostov-na-Donu. Conference materials will be published by the North Caucasus Academy of Civil Service.

St. Petersburg, 2007

Minorities Conference: "The city of our common destiny: Ethnic and cultural associations in Saint Petersburg"
The St. Petersburg Regional Tolerance Center conducted this conference in June. The conference brought together representatives of St. Petersburg's many ethnic and religious minorities, and gave them a chance to strategize about methods for promoting tolerance in the city. The event was productive and the participants have scheduled a follow up conference in the fall to continue working on their strategy.

Visits from Congress, the State Department, and USAID
In May, USAID's Assistant Administrator for Europe and Eurasia, Dr. Doug Menarchik, visited the St. Petersburg RTC, to meet with the Russian police officers whom he had met the previous month in Washington when they were there on a Climate of Trust exchange. Dr. Menarchik also had a chance to visit a newly opened police station and speak with its
patrol officers.

In March and April, delegations from Congress, the State Department, and USAID visited the St. Petersburg RTC, where they held round table discussions with local police officers and community members. Their objective was to hear about the hate crimes situation in St. Petersburg, and about police actions in curbing extremism. This event was co-hosted by the St. Petersburg City Court and the District
Police Department.

Ryazan, 2007

Inter-regional Conference: "Law enforcement and the community in Russia: Past and present problems of interaction"
In May, the Ryazan Regional Tolerance Center engaged the police department and regional administration in an inter-regional conference to address the role of police-community interaction in combating hate crimes and intolerance. The conference's goals were to evaluate the degree of mutual trust between law enforcement and the community in the region, and to develop principal directions of cooperation among law enforcement and state authorities, NGOs, schools, youth organizations, religious communities, and ethnic diasporas.

Panel session on migration with the regional government and the Public Commission on Interethnic Relations and Human Rights
In April, the Ryazan RTC conducted a joint panel session with representatives of the regional government and the Commission, leaders of the region's ethnic diasporas, and NGO activists. The participants discussed attitudes toward migrants, living conditions and problems of employment and human rights of migrants. At the conclusion of the session, the group resolved to prepare a policy plan on migrants' rights for recommendation to the regional Administration.

Round-table: "Immigration in Ryazan: Inter-ethnic accord"
This round-table was jointly conducted by the Ryazan Chamber of Commerce, a major regional newspaper, and the Ryazan RTC in January. Participants discussed the issues of interaction between migrants, the local population and government authorities of Ryazan and Ryazan Oblast and the efforts aimed at preventing interethnic conflicts. Over 30 representatives of Ryazan City Administration, Government of Ryazan Oblast, Russian Federal Migration Service, regional parliament, and ethnic communities took part in the round-table.

Kazan, 2007

Annual Culture of Trust Conference
In May, the Council for Religious Affairs of the Cabinet of Ministers of Tatarstan joined the Climate of Trust in co-hosting an annual Culture of Trust conference. The conference was entitled "Improvement of professional training as a prerequisite for effectively preventing hate and extremism". Over 100 people attended.

Participants of the conference included the head of the Council for Religious Affairs of the Cabinet of Ministers of Tatarstan, NGO activists from the Center for Assistance to Migrants and Center for Democratization of Education, and the Deputy Minister of the Interior of Tatarstan. At the close, they resolved to carry out a series of seminars on religious studies for police officers.

Novgorod, 2007

Conference: "State, society and the law in counteracting extremism and terrorism"
This conference was conducted in April 2007 as part of a joint international project involving the Novgorod Regional Tolerance Center, the City Administration of Novgorod, and Novgorod University. Participants of the conference included professors and scholars from the Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology of the Russian Academy of Sciences and London School of Economics, journalists, and human rights activists from Russia, the Baltic States and the former Soviet Union republics.

Presenters addressed such topics as the threat of incendiary materials on violence and hate to the community, the image of the enemy in contemporary Russian mass media, and the interaction between government and religious organizations in maintaining international security.

Meeting with officers of the Federal Penal Enforcement Service
In March, the Novgorod RTC's director and a leading human rights activist in protecting the rights of inmates, met with officers of the Russian Federal Penal Enforcement Service. They discussed the possibility of opening prayer houses/mosques in penal colonies of Novgorod Oblast.

The two advocates successfully convinced the officers to consider the Muslim inmates' needs, and they agreed to convert space in three penal colonies into mosques. Muslim inmates have already begun holding worship services there.

Round table: "The interaction of religious organizations and the government in preventing extremism and xenophobia"
This round table was conducted together with the Governor's Committee on Informational Policy in February. Presenters included the Vice-Governor of Novgorod Oblast, the head of the Governor's Committee on Informational Policy, the Chair of the Department of Cultural Studies at Novgorod University, and representatives of the region's religious organizations.

Participants addressed the issues of youth education and the role of religious communities in preventing extremism. They also addressed a proposed amendment to the regional Administration's order "On Creating a Council under the Governor's Office for Interacting with Religious Associations". The round table's assessment was presented to the Administration for further consideration and follow-up.

Workshop for women leaders of diasporas of Novgorod Oblast
In January, the Novgorod RTC held a workshop for women leaders of the region's diasporas. Participants represented the Azeri, German, Chechen, Jewish, Polish, and Tatar diasporas, as well as members of the Novgorod Women's Parliament, officials of the Mayor's Office of Novgorod, and police.

The topic of the workshop was "The role of women in preventing extremism and fostering tolerance". Participants focused on conflicts among students in secondary schools and colleges and the impact that graffiti has on a child's psyche.

At the conclusion of the program, participants created a working group to organize an international women's forum. They also began preparations for a festival of ethnic communities as part of the celebration of the 1150 th anniversary of the city, which will be held in Novgorod in 2009.

Rostov-na-Donu, 2007

Rostov 2007 Youth Forum

Youth forum on tolerance
This spring the Rostov Climate of Trust team joined with the North Caucasus Academy of State Service to organize a youth forum entitled, "Entering into dialogue today - keeping peace and friendship tomorrow". This forum was a follow-up to a winter Climate of Trust conference, "Peace and understanding among youth in Southern Russia". Over 200 young people, from over a dozen ethnic diasporas and religious groups, participated in the forum. They learned about the history, customs and traditions of the Don region's diverse communities.

The Rostov team plans to conduct the second
Climate of Trust youth conference in the Southern Federal district this October.

We hope to establish a full-fledged Rostov Tolerance Center in the near future.

Moscow, 2006

Round-table with the Russian Public Chamber Moscow 2006

Round-table with the Russian Public Chamber
In October, an American Climate of Trust delegation held a meeting with the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation. The delegation included Los Angeles County Sheriff Leroy Baca. The Russian group included the Chairman of the Commission on Control over Law Enforcement, and the Chairman of the Commission on Tolerance and Religious Freedom. Sheriff Baca shared with them his department's successful approach to establishing lines of communication between law enforcement and the community. The Chairmen were particularly interested in the Sheriff department's system of public councils, which provide direct input from the community's diverse ethnic groups. They expressed interest in setting up an analogous system in Russia.
At this meeting, the Chairmen learned about the Climate of Trust current projects, and in April 2007 they invited the Kazan RTC's director to brief them on the police officer pocket guide that his Center had produced.

Rostov-na-Donu, 2006

Rostov 2007 Phase I Exchange

Inter-regional Conference: "Peace and understanding among youth in Southern Russia"
In December, the Law Department of the North Caucasus Academy of Civil Service in Rostov-on-Don conducted a youth-oriented inter-regional conference for the Southern Federal District. Over 60 students and representatives of ethnic youth groups from the regions of Southern Russia participated in this conference.

The conference focused on the importance of promoting tolerance and mutual trust between the community and law enforcement, in preventing xenophobia and extremism in this volatile region of Russia. After the conference, a compendium of presentations was published and distributed throughout the region.

Ryazan, 2006

Regional Conference on counteracting extremism
In November, within the framework of the implementation of the law of Ryazan Oblast "On the Introduction of the Regional Program for Preventing and Combating Crimes in Ryazan Oblast in 2006-2010", the Ryazan RTC conducted a regional conference on counteracting extremism. Participants represented regional law enforcement agencies, government, and the community. Presenters addressed the issues of criminal, procedural, social, and psychological aspects of counteracting extremism.

Kazan, 2006

Annual Culture of Trust Conference
In June, the Kazan RTC conducted this annual Culture of Trust conference entitled "Promoting tolerance among youth". Representatives of law enforcement, government agencies, schools, and the community of Tatarstan discussed different approaches to strengthening inter-faith and inter-ethnic trust and respect among youth in a multi-cultural environment.

Stavropol, 2006

International conference: "Counteracting terrorism and securing civil peace and accord in conflict regions"
In May, the Stavropol RTC's director presented a report on the importance of education in preventing extremism and hate crimes.

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Ryazan, 2005

International Conference: "60 th Anniversary of the Victory over fascism and its importance in fighting hate crimes and neo-fascism"
An international conference commemorating the 60 th anniversary of the defeat of fascism was held in Ryazan in June. The conference drew a connection between that experience and its meaning in the current fight against hatred and neo-fascism in Russia. Over 200 people attended this event, including the Governor of Ryazan Oblast Georgy Shpak, who presided over the conference.

Round-table: "Cooperation between ethnic diasporas and police in creating a climate of trust and combating extremism"
This round-table was jointly organized by the Public Commission on Interethnic Relations and Human Rights, the Ryazan branch of the Moscow University of the Russian Ministry of the Interior, Police Administration (GUVD) of Ryazan Oblast, and the Ryazan RTC.

Participants of the round table included the heads of over 30 District Police Departments of Ryazan and Ryazan Oblast, leaders of NGOs and ethnic diasporas, and officials of the regional Administration for Education.

During this round table, members of ethnic diasporas had an opportunity to meet informally with police officers. As a result of these meetings, some of the most urgent issues got resolved. Thus, the head of the Jewish organization "Khesed Tshuva" Liudmila Zakharova reached an agreement with the head of the Skopinsk Police Department to cooperate on the case of a Jewish boy who due to his life circumstances requires some social assistance.

Participants also discussed issues concerning migration and extremism, including providing legal and social help to the migrants. All sides stated that police officers should not be involved in ethnic conflicts. Police should provide equal protection of rights and interests of all citizens, irrespective of the gender, race, language, and religion. Participants of the round table agreed that this kind of meetings should take place regularly.

Seminar: "Moral security"
In November, a seminar focused on the moral aspects of promoting tolerance was held in Ryazan. The seminar's participants were students of high schools and colleges, educators, police officers, and members NGOs.

Seminar: "Youth policy and its role in counteracting extremism"
In December, the Ryazan RTC, the Ryazan branch of Moscow MVD University, the Public Commission on Interethnic Relations and Human Rights, and the Administration for Education of Ryazan co-hosted a seminar on youth policy.

This one-day seminar had five sections, where representatives of law enforcement, regional government, and schools discussed the issues of youth extremism, youth isolation, and hatred on the Internet and its destructive impact on youth. At the end of the seminar, participants proposed the ways of combating hate-based extremism in their communities, such as pro-active outreach and community policing.

Moscow, 2005

At the Moscow Climate of Trust Conference, 2005

International Conference: "Public Chamber and its role in forming civil society"
In November, a major international Climate of Trust conference entitled "Public Chamber and its role in forming civil society" was conducted at Moscow University of the Ministry of the Interior (MVD) of Russia. Participants of the conference included the US Ambassador to Russia William Burns, the Head of the Personnel Department of the MVD, LA County Sheriff Leroy Baca, San Francisco District Attorney, as well as judges, police officers, and leaders of NGOs from the United States and Russia.

The goals of the conference were to analyze the work of Public Chambers in Russia and encourage Russia's prosecutors, police, and judges to take a more active part in prosecuting hate crimes and securing rights and freedoms of citizens in Russia. Participants of the conference discussed attitudes and approaches of courts, law enforcement agencies, and prosecutors to combating extremism and accountability of these agencies and institutions before citizens. Presenters also touched upon such topics as the roles of law enforcement in building civil society, the implementation of laws to promote civil society, and reinforcing the rule of law in Russia.

Kazan, 2005

Annual Culture of Trust Conference
In May, the Kazan RTC conducted its annual conference focused on the improvement of cooperation of law enforcement, government, schools, and mass media aimed at preventing extremism among youth.

Novgorod, 2005

Round-table with ABA-CEELI
In November, an international round table entitled "The importance of mutual understanding between police and NGOs in preventing extremism and hate crimes" was conducted jointly with the American Bar Association - Central European and Eurasian Law Initiative (ABA-CEELI). Participants of the round table included representatives of ABA-CEELI, American and Russian lawyers, judges, and prosecutors.

The discussion focused on the importance of mutual understanding between law enforcement agencies, the judiciary, and members of the bar in counteracting hate crimes and extremism and promoting tolerance and rule of law in Russia.

Ryazan, 2003

Ryazan Conference 2003

International Conference: "Creating a climate of trust and fostering tolerance as a foundation for the prevention of extremism"
This conference was conducted by the Ryazan RTC in December. The goal of the conference was to summarize and analyze the experience of police, mass media, schools and NGOs in combating hate-motivated violence and extremism in Central Russia.

The conference brought together over 200 representatives of 18 regions of the Central Federal District of Russia including staff members of the Office of the Plenipotentiary Representative of President Putin in the Central Federal District, officials of regional governments, police officers, human rights activists, leaders of ethnic and religious communities, educators, and the media.

Public Assistance Clinics

Throughout the first two quarters of 2007, the Novgorod RTC's Public Assistance Clinic has been operating on a monthly basis at the Novgorod Administration's Center for Temporary Settlement of Internally Displaced Persons. The Clinic is staffed by the Novgorod RTC's director and a lawyer with a background in international law. Overall, 47 migrants came to the Clinic to ask for various forms of assistance, most of them were Armenian and Azeri. 12 people claimed that they were targets of xenophobic attitudes. The Clinic successfully assisted one the migrants in getting his job reinstated.

Investigative Expertise

Nikolai Girenko, a long-time partner and co-founder of the Climate of Trust, who was murdered in 2004, was actively involved in the investigation of hate crimes in Novgorod. His expertise on hate-motivated extremism helped convict a number of active members of the "Russkoe Natsionalnoe Edinstvo" (RNE), a dangerous and aggressive extremist organization.

In 2003, Mr. Girenko provided expert evaluation in the case of Pavel Ivanov, the editor of the "Russkoe Veche" newspaper. Mr. Ivanov was charged and found guilty under Article 282 of the Russian Penal Code (Incitement of Ethnic, Racial, or Religious Hatred). The judge sentenced Mr. Ivanov to a fine and banned him from journalism activity for three years.

In 2005, lawyers of the Novgorod RTC testified as experts in the case against Yuri Novikov who had planted replicas of bombs at the Novgorod Jewish Community Center. Mr. Novikov was found guilty and sentenced to three years in prison.

Festivals and Youth Projects

Festival of Ethnic Cultures in Ryazan

Festival of Ethnic Cultures in Ryazan
Since 2005, the Ryazan RTC has been conducting annual Festivals of Ethnic Cultures. During these Festivals, all ethnic and cultural communities and community-based organizations of Ryazan Oblast exchange their experience and present their accomplishments to a wide audience including police, government authorities, and the community. Every year, the Festival draws more attention from government decision makers and mass media, and more organizations offer to co-host this event.

Most recently, in 2007, over 300 representatives of the region's ethnic and cultural communities, police, and authorities took part in the Festival. Hundreds of participants viewed exhibitions of the rich cultures of the region's various religions and ethnic groups. In addition to cultural events, participants also presented community-oriented projects and programs for improving inter-cultural relations in the region. In 2007, the Festival was co-hosted by the Public Commission on Interethnic Relations and Human Rights, Government of Ryazan Oblast, and the regional Administration for Education.

In 2006, over 400 members of ethnic and religious communities, police officers, representatives of mass media and NGOs participated in the Second Festival of Ethnic Cultures. Among the honorary guests of the festival were the Vice Governor of Ryazan Oblast and other high-ranking officials of the region's government.

In June 2005, the Festival of Ethnic Cultures culminated in a gala concert celebrating diversity of Ryazan Oblast. Over 420 participants attended the concert including the leaders of Jewish, Muslim, and Orthodox community organizations, the press-attaché of the Israeli Consulate, the press-secretary of the Consulate of Tajikistan, a representative of the Russian Ministry of Regional Development, and a delegation from the United States.

Youth Talent Competition: "In Our Town "
Youth Talent Competition "In Our Town" is a successful project of the Climate of Trust in Northwestern Russia. High school students from small communities in Leningrad and Pskov Oblasts compete for the best school website on tolerance. Working on this project, participants examine their own prejudices, study the diversity of ethnic and religious groups in their communities, and learn about contributions made by those groups through history.

Youth Project: "Book, Culture, Tolerance"
In Tatarstan, the Kazan RTC and the Research Library of Kazan State University jointly implement a youth project entitled "Book, Culture, Tolerance". The goal of this project is to strengthen tolerance and foster respect towards different cultures among youth through reading.

Media Relations

Since 2005, the Kazan RTC and the Public Relations Department of the Ministry of the Interior of Tatarstan have been jointly implementing the "Media Project", which promotes tolerance and encourages the community to actively counteract hate-motivated extremism. Within the framework of the "Media Project", an article about the Climate of Trust and its efforts was published in the leading Russian police newspaper "Shchit i mech" (Shield and Sword) in August 2005.

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