With the world’s attention firmly focused on Russia, Save the Dream has today joined forces with the International University Sports Federation (FISU) and the Directorate for Sports and Social Projects in Kazan to engage youth leaders to develop practical ideas to support the Kazan Action Plan.

The Kazan Action Plan was adopted on 15 July 2017 by UNESCO’s Sixth International Conference of Ministers and Senior Officials Responsible for Physical Education and Sport, MINEPS VI. It marks an international commitment to link sport policy development to the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations, while providing three priority areas for international and national multi-stakeholder cooperation, namely:

1. Developing a comprehensive vision of inclusive access for all
2. Maximizing the contributions of sport to sustainable development and peace
3. Protecting the integrity of sport

As part of its activity in Russia, Save the Dream organised such “Ideation” Workshop jointly with the Directorate for Sports and Social Projects and under the auspices of the FISU Volunteer Leaders Academy taking place in Kazan from 14 to 21 June.

The event brought together 110 youth leaders from 92 FISU member federations around the world.

The aim of the workshop was to look at the themes across five selected areas of the Kazan Action Plan, namely:

Enforce gender equality/Empower girls and women

  • Build peaceful, inclusive and equitable societies
  • Provide economic growth and full and productive employment and work for all
  • Protect children, youth and other vulnerable groups  
  • Strengthen measures against the manipulation of sports competitions

The workshop was managed by the Save the Dream Executive Director Massimiliano Montanari, and Dr. Bahruz Balayev, Save the Dream’s Global Outreach Manager, with the support of FISU and Kazan officials. It sought to inspire new ideas and ways of thinking to support the implementation of the Kazan Action Plan.

Azat Kadyrov, Director General, Directorate for Sports and Social Projects in Kazan, said:

“The city of Kazan was proud to collaborate with Save the Dream and FISU on this workshop, which brought together students from around the world to discuss and brainstorm ideas on practical ways the Kazan Action Plan can be implemented. It was great to see so many young people engaged in the process and to hear their fascinating ideas for the future of sport development.”

Massimiliano Montanari, Executive Director, Save the Dream, added:

“Students from all over the world possess a powerful voice that should be nurtured. As future leaders in sport and in society, their passion and commitment to upholding the true values and integrity of sport is fundamental.

“We were delighted to host so many bright, talented and driven young people at our Ideation Workshop and to hear their exciting ideas on how to contribute, as young multipliers, to the implementation of the Kazan Action Plan. We are grateful for the support of FISU for hosting the workshop as part of the Volunteer Leaders Academy and to the Directorate for Sports and Social Projects for their contribution and warm hospitality in Kazan.”

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