Published on: 2026-05-04
Source: Saint Petersburg Polytechnic University of Peter the Great –
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At the Saint Petersburg Polytechnic University of Peter the Great, the 20th All-Russian Scientific and Practical Conference “Technologies of PR and Advertising in Modern Society” took place. It was dedicated to the Year of Unity of the Peoples of Russia. The theme for 2026: “Engineers of Meaning as Social Architects of Strengthening the Cultural Sovereignty of Modern Russia.” The conference organizer is the Higher School of Media Communications and Public Relations of the Humanities Institute.
Scientific discussions touched on geopolitical challenges to national sovereignty, meanings and frames of the modern representation of the world order, mediatization and digitalization as the spirit of the times, and issues of applying AI in the field of communication. The event was held with international participation and brought together leading experts, scholars, and young specialists from Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan.
The solemn opening in the White Hall of Politeka set the tone for the entire conference. GI Director Natalya Chicherina urged participants to think strategically: I wish you a productive discussion where you will find simple solutions to complex communication problems from the perspective of Russia’s national unity. A conceptual engineer is someone who is not afraid of difficulties, thinks strategically, and understands exactly how to shape and instill the most important values and narratives for the country to the target audience.
The director of VShMISO GI, Marina Arkannikova, noted that the conference topic is significant within the framework of a major agenda and supported her words with a quote from the Russian philosopher Nikolai Fedorov, which remains relevant to this day: “Faith and hope for the possibility of consensus and unity in the human family have long been lost. The impossibility of unity is considered an indisputable truth, but its unreachability becomes more and more evident every day; the need for it is felt ever stronger.” Nikolai Fyodorovich wrote these words at the end of the 19th century.Today they sound like a request already addressed to us, specialists in the communication industry.
At the plenary session, participants discussed the challenges facing specialists in the field of communications. The honorary guest of the conference, head of the Department of Public Relations in Business at the institute “Higher School of Journalism and Mass Communications” of SPbGU, president of the Association of Public Relations Teachers, academician of RAEN Dmitry Gavr, spoke in a public talk format on the topic: “PR-communications 26–27: trends, challenges, and expectations.”He drew attention to the necessity of improving tools for working with the audience in the conditions of digitalization: In some cases, our content policy, methods of persuasion, and interaction with the emotional intelligence of the audience do not reach the point where people work at the level of internationalization of national values. We begin to work not in an environment where, in addition to others, there is artificial intelligence, but in an environment shaped by this intelligence.
One of the main events of the plenary session was the awarding of students-prize-winners of the art exhibition “Russia. Unity. Culture,” dedicated to the anniversary conference. The participants created more than 80 II-artworks on a competitive basis, reflecting the traditions, symbols, myths, and everyday life of the peoples of our country. Experts in the field of visual communications — senior lecturer of VShMIS Yu. Kondin and member of the Union of Designers of Russia Evgeny Tuchkevich — selected the 20 best works. The exhibition enhanced the semantic space of the conference. The exposition was presented in the foyer of the White Hall.
The conference continued with the work of six sessions and a round table on the topic: “Narratives of unity in the geocultural space: history and prospects” with the participation of foreign colleagues. Discussed topics are questions of understanding social architecture and national identity, the evolution of cultural codes in the Eurasian space, images of the past, present, and future in the international media space as a platform for integration and development, issues of the influence of artificial intelligence on the communication industry.
A special place in the program was occupied by student sections, where young researchers presented their projects on issues of engineering in the field of communications, media construction of the cultural code of the peoples of Russia, social environment, and political leadership.
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