On March 3–5, the Valdai Discussion Club will hold its first Youth Conference, titled “The Valdai Club: The World in 2040,” as part of the World Youth Festival. The conference will be held in the Sirius Federal Territory, at the Park of Science and Art. The Youth Conference will be attended by Russian and foreign experts, as well as young specialists, graduate students and graduates of leading universities in the field of international relations from Brazil, China, Egypt, Ghana, India, Indonesia, and South Africa.
Programme of the Valdai Club's Youth Conference
"Valdai Club: World in 2040" as part of the World Youth Festival
Sirius Federal Territory,
March 3-5, 2024
March 3, Sunday
12:00 – 13:30 Workshop "The Future of a Multipolar World: What Will the World Look Like in 2040?"
(Sirius Science and Art Park, Conference Hall 6 "Gorchakov")
The term "asynchronous multipolarity" is often used to characterise the current state of international relations. While key players in the military and political sphere include Russia, China, the United States, India, and a number of other powers, certain sectors of the economy and scientific and technological development see the emergence and rise of centres of power, which serve as an alternative to the West. The current security crisis, coupled with attempts to isolate Russia and growing tensions between China and the United States, creates preconditions for restructuring the existing system of international relations. The session participants will outline the contours of the new configuration of the world order which will have emerged by 2040.
Speakers:
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Timofei Bordachev, Programme Director of the Valdai Discussion Club; Academic Supervisor of the Centre for Comprehensive European and International Studies at HSE University;
- Srikanth Kondapalli, Dean of School of International Studies, Professor of China Studies, Jawaharlal Neru University;
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Nourhan ElSheikh, Professor of Political Science, Cairo University.
Moderator:
- Andrey Sushentsov, Programme Director of the Valdai Discussion Club; Dean of the School of International Relations, MGIMO University.
March 4, Monday
12:00 – 13:30 Workshop "Mosaic Unity or Melting Pot: Is Dialogue on Values Possible at the Crossroads of Different Cultures?"
(Sirius Science and Art Park, Conference Hall 6 "Gorchakov")
The strengthening of multipolarity in international relations ensures equality in the status of states, whose policy is largely determined by cultural and civilisational factors. Complexity of the international relations’ dynamics is mainly due to the differentiation of the various states’ value-cultural picture of the world. The increase in the level of tension in world politics due to non-acceptance of the Western universalist value model is, among other things, a manifestation of the conflict at the level of ideas. The session will be devoted to the specific features of the influence of the value-civilisational factor on the dynamics of international relations.
Speakers:
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Oksana Sinyavskaya, Deputy Director of the Institute for Social Policy, HSE University;
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Gopal Nirmala, Director of the Department of Criminology and Forensic Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa);
- Wu Fei, Director of the BRICS Research Center.
Moderator:
- Oleg Barabanov, Programme Director of the Valdai Discussion Club; Professor, MGIMO University; Professor, Russian Academy of Sciences.
16:00 – 17:30 Workshop "Technological Progress as a Challenge and an Opportunity for Civilisation"
(Sirius Science and Art Park, Conference Hall 6 "Gorchakov")
In the modern world, science and technology have become a key driver of economic development. Each state strives to develop innovative potential in order to improve the quality of life of its population, increase productivity through the automation of processes, and build economic capacity to strengthen its position in the world. However, modern technologies also pose a threat in terms of potential risks of data breaches, weakening of state sovereignty in certain digital spheres, and the prospect of replacing humans in critical sectors. Experts face the challenge of finding optimal ways of technological development while ensuring the benefits of innovation and minimising potential risks. During the session, participants will discuss the opportunities and challenges of technological progress in the international context.
Speakers:
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Ilya Semerikov, Head of the Scientific Group of the Russian Quantum Centre;
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Rasigan Maharajh, Chief Director of the Institute for Economic Research on Innovation at Tshwane University of Technology;
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Arvind Gupta, Head and Co-founder of Digital India Foundation.
Moderator:
- Ivan Timofeev, Programme Director, Valdai Discussion Club; Director General, Russian International Affairs Council.
March 5, Tuesday
11:30 – 11:35 Opening of the conference (live: English, Russian)
(Sirius Science and Art Park, Conference Hall "Lobachevsky" ("Dostoevsky"))
- Fyodor Lukyanov, Research Director of the Valdai Discussion Club.
11:35 – 13:00 Session 1. The Future of World Politics in 2040 (live: English, Russian)
(Sirius Science and Art Park, Conference Hall "Lobachevsky" ("Dostoevsky"))
At present, multipolarity in world politics is on the rise. The current configuration of the system of international relations has qualitatively new characteristics: the role of the state and international institutions is changing, and the balance of power in the world is transforming. This dynamics is stimulated by the growing number of new challenges and threats, accelerating scientific and technological progress and changes in the new generations’ value picture of the world. The session participants will make a forecast of the main dimensions of world politics in 2040, shaped by technological, economic and value factors.
Speakers:
- Rasigan Maharajh, Chief Director of the Institute for Economic Research on Innovation at Tshwane University of Technology;
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Adlan Margoev, Lecturer at the Department of Oriental Studies, MGIMO University;
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Vitor Moura, Master's Candidate at Tsinghua University, Director at Brazil-China Chamber of Commerce (Bracham);
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Rupal Mishra, Senior Research Fellow, Ph.D. Candidate, Centre for Russian and Central Asian Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University.
Moderator:
- Andrey Sushentsov, Programme Director of the Valdai Discussion Club; Dean of the School of International Relations, MGIMO University.
13:00 – 13:30 Coffee-break
13:30 – 15:00 Session 2. Dialogue of Cultures in a Polycentric World (live: English, Russian)
(Sirius Science and Art Park, Conference Hall "Lobachevsky" ("Dostoevsky"))
The specific features of each country's policy are largely shaped by cultural and civilisational factors. Today's young generation is contributing to the transformation of the value and ideological foundations of states' strategies. The changing value picture of the world is gradually becoming an important factor in reconfiguring the landscape of world politics. In this session, the prospects for the development of a polycentric world in the context of cultural-civilisational and value-based factors will be discussed.
Speakers:
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Nelson Wong, Vice Chairman & President, Shanghai Centre for RimPac Strategic and International Studies;
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Nikita Neklyudov, Lecturer at Department of Applied International Analysis, MGIMO University;
- Polina Kalugina, Expert at the Centre for Analysis and Promotion of Research Results, MGIMO University;
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Zhang Huimin, Ph.D Candidate of School of Politics and International Relations, East China Normal University.
Moderator:
- Oleg Barabanov, Programme Director of the Valdai Discussion Club; Professor, MGIMO University; Professor, Russian Academy of Sciences.
15:00 – 15:30 Coffee-break
15:30 – 17:00 Session 3. Technological Development as a Challenge and an Opportunity (live: English, Russian)
(Sirius Science and Art Park, Conference Hall "Lobachevsky" ("Dostoevsky"))
In today's world, there is a trend towards accelerated development of science and technology, which is becoming a key driver of the economy. Advanced technologies, on the one hand, qualitatively change the way of life; on the other hand, stimulate inequality due to differentiated access to innovative developments. Amid the growth in international tensions, there is a trend towards the formation of separate scientific and technological blocs. The aim of the session is to identify the key trends in technological development as an important factor in the system of international relations and the world economy.
Speakers:
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Rahakundini Bakrie Connie, Director, Maritime Department, The National Archives of Indonesia;
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Irina Kiseleva, Analyst at the Institute for International Studies, MGIMO University;
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Zhuowei Zhou, Ph.D.Candidate in International Relations, Tsinghua University;
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Alexander Chekov, Research Fellow at the Institute for International Studies, MGIMO University.
Moderator:
- Ivan Timofeev, Programme Director, Valdai Discussion Club; Director General, Russian International Affairs Council.
17:00 – 17:30 Coffee-break
17:30 – 19:30 Open discussion. Valdai-2040: Looking Into the Future (live: English, Russian)
(Sirius Science and Art Park, Terminal "F", "Atom" Hall)
The discussion is devoted to key megatrends in the field of world politics, world economy and scientific and technological development, value-civilisational parameters of international relations. The aim of the session is to forecast how these trends will develop and what the system of international relations and the world economy will look like in 2040.
Speakers:
- Fyodor Lukyanov, Research Director of the Foundation for Development and Support of the Valdai Discussion Club.
Moderator:
- Andrey Sushentsov, Programme Director of the Valdai Discussion Club; Dean of the School of International Relations, MGIMO University.
