Published on: 2026-05-25
Source: Saint Petersburg Polytechnic University of Peter the Great –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
At the Saint Petersburg Polytechnic University of Peter the Great, the IV All-Russian Youth Award in the field of communications “Engineers of Meaning — 2026” took place.Flagship projectThe Higher School of Media Communications and Public Relations (VShMiSO) of the Humanities Institute of SPbPU united Russian students and schoolchildren from more than ten regions of the country. The event is organized by VShMiSO students under the guidance of teacher-mentors.
At the solemn opening of the award ceremony, the pro-rector for information, youth policy and security of SPbPU Maksim Pasholikov addressed the participants and organizers with a welcoming speech: Today we talk more and more often about meaning, about the design of social architecture. And who, if not an engineer, should be engaged in this? Politics has for more than a century solved tasks that make the country stronger and more competitive. Engineers of meaning today also solve national tasks.
Greeting the participants, the director of the Higher School of Media Communications and Public Relations of SPbPU, director of the “Meaning Engineers” award Marina Arkannikova said: On behalf of the organizers and personally, I congratulate you: you have made it to the shortlist, for each of you this award has already become a significant event on your professional path. I wish you interesting work. May this Award be for you all these two days a creative workshop. I wish you a beautiful defense, belief in yourself and, undoubtedly, victory to each of you!
A rich business program was organized as part of the event. In the lecture hall of the scientific research complex “Technopolis Politekha,” leading practitioners and experts in PR, advertising, media, and the creative industries spoke. Over the course of two days, students and schoolchildren worked with real cases, listened to lectures by experts from VK, Sber, Avito, Pulkovo Airport, the publication “Peterburgsky Dnevnik,” and also participated in a practical workshop.
Experts of the award evaluated more than 80 projects, 40 of which passed the in-person defense at SPbPU. At the solemn award ceremony in the Polytechnic Tower, Marina Arkannikova noted: This year the competition is special — there are more and more schoolchildren with us. It was gratifying for us to see how you worthily presented your author projects, how much you worked, overcoming yourselves. I hope very soon you will become the organizers of the award yourselves. For us, you have already become part of the Polytechnic and Peter the Great brotherhood! We look forward to seeing you next year!
In the two main categories, which were contested both for schoolchildren and for students, laureates were determined. In the category “Visionary of the Communication Industry,” the winner was student Elina Puzankova from SPbSU. A serious competition unfolded for the title of the brightest discovery of the season: the Grand Prix was awarded to the project “Samara. City with Layers” by the team of the Samara National Research University named after Academician S. P. Korolev.His idea is that Samara, like a layered pie, is revealed through personal experience: historical places, artifacts, and cultural institutions become part of the route for everyone who wants to truly get to know the city.
Along with gifts from SPbPU and partners, a bonus for the finalists was a concert-performance in the White Hall of SPbPU “I live in a voiced apartment” and a tour of the VKontakte office in the historic Singer House (House of Books).
The excursion to the VK office became a real revelation for me! We saw how the team’s work is organized, met young specialists, and learned about the latest trends in digital communications. This is incredibly motivating to keep developing further! — shared the impressions of the finalist of the prize, an 8th-grade student of Gymnasium No. 622 of the Vyborgsky district of Saint Petersburg, Evelina Pozdnyakova.
The “Engineers of Meaning” award has for the fourth time confirmed the status of a unique platform for young talents, where ideas and projects are born that are capable of changing cities and uniting people around values and meaning.
The names of the winners can be seen here.
Please note; this information is raw content obtained directly from the information source. It represents an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.