Winners 2025: representatives of Indonesia, Lebanon, Russia, France and Japan became leaders of public diplomacy

On the sidelines of the First World Public Assembly, the final competitions and award ceremony took placeIV International Competition “Leader of Public Diplomacy – 2025”.

In 2025, the competition brought togethermore than 150 applications from 42 countries. As part of the educational track, participants presented projects, wrote essays and took tests, and the competition committee assessed not only the professional level, but also the potential of ideas in the field of international public interaction.

Key feature of the competition in 2025was the expansion of the mentoring institution. For the first time, past laureates from different countries joined the work with the finalists, along with members of the International Organizing Committee. They accompanied the contestants at the stage of finalizing their projects, helped to reveal the idea and prepare for the final. This interaction turned out to be especially productive during the game stage, where the finalists, united in teams, designed virtual cities of the future and mastered practical tools of public diplomacy.

Within the framework of the Assembly of the Peoples of the World, the project mentors represented10 countries, among which -

1. Belarus,

2. Germany,

3. Spain,

4. Pakistan,

5. Portugal,

6. Transnistria,

7. Russia,

8. Tunisia,

9. Finland

10. and France.

The finalists of the competition were representatives15 states:

1. India,

2. Indonesia,

3. Spain,

4. Italy,

5. Kazakhstan,

6. Cameroon,

7. Kyrgyzstan,

8. Lebanon,

9. Poland,

10. Russia,

11. Tajikistan,

12. Tunisia,

13. France,

14. South Africa

15. and Japan.

1st degree laureates

First degree diplomas were received by participants fromIndonesia, Lebanon, Russia, France and Japan. Among them are public figures, entrepreneurs, experts in the field of education, intercultural communications and international cooperation, whose projects received the highest rating from the jury:

• Kapusta Evgenia Olegovna (Russia),Deputy Chairman of the Commission for the creation and activities of regional branches of the Russian-Chinese Friendship Society, member of the Central Board of "ORKD";

• Kore-edaElena(Japan), founder and president of KOREEDA ENTERPRISES Co., Ltd., founder & CEO of the women's business forum in Japan "Synergy of Opportunities" & "Leading Ladies Business Alliance in Japan", expert in the field of international trade, management and business development and intercultural communications in Japan;

• Moshchalkova Valentina Viktorovna(Indonesia),social entrepreneur. Founder of AVATAR Project Lab and Avatar Camps (Indonesia), Kaluga International School, a network of kindergartens, expert in international education, author of the educational model;

• Safa Svetlana Dmitrievna (Lebanon),member of the Regional Coordination Council of Russian compatriots in Africa and the Middle East;

• Churkina Larisa Sergeevna (France),teacher of foreign languages + RFL, Ambassador of the Russian language in the world;

• Shcherbinina Irina Vladimirovna (Russia),founder of the international volunteer movement to help firefighters of the DPR “Together we are strong”, volunteer of the FSOB “Voskhod”, delegate of the international movement of Russophiles.

2nd degree laureates

Representatives ofKazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Poland, Russia, Tajikistan, Tunisia and South Africa— journalists, teachers, cultural figures, public activists and diplomats who make a significant contribution to the development of humanitarian and public relations:

• Abdennur Haj-Farhat Marwa (Tunisia),press attaché of the Tunisian-Russian Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Tourism;

• Zelenskaya Nina Anatolyevna (South Africa),Director of the Russian Children's Center in Cape Town, Deputy Chairman of the KSORS South Africa;

• Ketova Galina Sergeevna (Kyrgyzstan),Honored Artist of Kyrgyzstan, director, president of the public foundation "Union of Compatriots", member of the Kyrgyz Union of Compatriots, vice-president of the Union of Theater Workers of Kyrgyzstan, board member of the World Federation of Russian-Speaking Women, creator of the youth theater - studio "GALA THEATER";

• Mirnaya Galina Aleksandrovna (Russia),teacher of the highest category, head of the “Young Diplomats of Kuban” club, holder of the “Honorary Mentor” badge;

• Suan Ayoub (Morocco),captain of a ship of the 3rd rank, student, laureate of the medal of the President of the Russian Federation for his contribution to the development of youth policy and culture, winner of the “Student of the Year in the Foreign Student of the Year nomination”;

• Tkachev Evgeniy Leonidovich (Poland),ambassador and project manager for the preservation of historical memory of the Russian Society “KNOWLEDGE” in Poland;

• Shilman Nadezhda Nikolaevna (Tulina) (Kazakhstan),journalist, editor-in-chief of the Atyrau socio-political newspaper “Caspian Commune”, deputy of the regional maslikhat;

• Shirinov Olimbek Makhmadbekovich (Tajikistan),Member of the Council of ANO "Eurasia", political commentator.

III degree laureates

The third degree of the competition was awarded to participants fromIndia, Spain, Italy, Cameroon and Russiaimplementing projects in the field of preserving historical memory, education, culture and international dialogue:

• Alexandrova Elena Alexandrovna (Spain),head of the project for the preservation of historical memory Russia-Spain and the association “Northern Children of the War of the USSR”;

• Barilo Elizaveta Alekseevna (Russia),Master of the “RESOURCE of Russia” program of the Presidential Academy, head of the development department of the BRICS Project Lab;

• Bhardwaj Tatyana Viktorovna (India),Secretary General of the Russian House Foundation, Delhi, India;

• Gorina Natalya Nikolaevna (Italy),founder of the Russkiy Mir educational center in Rome, co-author of textbooks for bilingual children;

• KvartnikovPavel Vyacheslavovich (Russia), Head of the Department of International Activities, Ryazan State University named after S.A. Yesenina;

• Mben II Elena Taimurazovna (Cameroon),teacher of RFL and head of the Russian theater studio TEREMOK, at the international Russian school of the Republic of Cameroon;

• Nigmatullin Ramil Marsovich (Russia),head of the school museum “Young Guard”, member of the Union of Journalists of Russia.

After the award ceremony, the finalists of the competition took an active part in discussion forums, round tables and panel sessions of the World Social Summit (WSS). According to them, participation in the VOS allowed them not only to rethink their own projects, but also to raise the bar of professional and value guidelines.

Yes,Valentina Moshchalkova(Indonesia) noted that such platforms make social and educational initiatives visible and significant, andTatiana Bhardwaj(India) emphasized the importance of discussing values, identity and humanistic guidelines in the context of rapid technological development.

The symbolic finale of the program was a landmark memorial action: representatives of the expert community handed over capsules with soil from the Brest Hero Fortress to colleagues from Transnistria and Tunisia. This gesture was a reminder of the importance of historical memory, unity and responsibility for preserving the truth, regardless of national borders.

Here, at the sites of the World Public Assembly, the finalists, mentors and experts of the competition signed24 cooperation agreements, which will determine the vectors of international interaction between leaders of public diplomacy from 15 countries of the world for many years to come.