On January 23, 2025, the Faculty of Global Studies of Lomonosov Moscow State University hosted the International Scientific and Practical Conference “Russia, Brazil and Africa: Strengthening Cooperation of the Global South.” The conference was organized by the Faculty of Global Studies of Lomonosov Moscow State University, the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Russian-African Network University, the Russian-African Club of Lomonosov Moscow State University, and the International Club of Russian-Latin American Studies of Lomonosov Moscow State University.
The aim of the conference was to help consolidate the intellectual elites of the Global South in search for answers to global challenges and threats.
The event was held in a hybrid format and brought together more than 110 leading scholars, experts and analysts from Russia, Brazil, and Africa.
The solemn part of the conference was opened by the Dean of the Faculty of Global Studies, Professor Ilya Ilyin. He welcomed the conference participants and highly appreciated the work of the Russian-African Club of Lomonosov Moscow State University, whose active efforts helped achieve an impressive scale in the cooperation with African countries.
In his welcoming speech, Prof. Roberto de Andrade Medroño, Rector of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro emphasized that the interaction policy between Russia, Brazil and Africa is successfully developing both in the BRICS association and within cooperation with the countries of the Global South.
The representatives of the universities in Egypt, Tunisia, and Zambia also extended their greetings to the conference participants.
The event continued with a plenary session, as part of which more than 20 leading international and Russian scholars spoke on international cooperation, educational initiatives, and issues the Global Youth has to face.
Prof. Daniel Barreiros, an expert in economics from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, believes that a special responsibility amid the new circumstances rests on the interdisciplinary cooperation in science and education, which is the foundation for the comprehensive cooperation both with the countries of the Global South and other regions.
Inga Koryagina, Director for International Development of the Russian-African Club of Lomonosov Moscow State University, Associate Professor at the Marketing Department of Plekhanov Russian Economic University, shared a presentation on the activities of the Russian-African Club of Lomonosov Moscow State University, which, according to the speaker, is a platform for global international cooperation. By creating inclusive platforms for dialogue between scientists, entrepreneurs, youth representatives and cultural figures, the club identifies and promotes opportunities for cooperation that contribute to sustainable development and shared success.
Associate Professor at the Department of Foreign Regional Studies of Moscow State Linguistic University Maria Kolesnikova emphasized that Russia has the richest school of African studies and vast experience, which should be used in Russian-African cooperation.
The youth session of the conference – the Tribune of Young Scientists – was held at the end of the plenary session. During the session, young scientists from universities in Russia, Brazil, and Africa presented their papers in English and offered their options to respond to global challenges and threats facing humanity. Thus, the young intellectual elite of the Global South is already being formed and consolidated.
All the conference participants noted the high significance of the event in strengthening international ties and future joint initiatives between the countries of the Global South. The organizers expressed their hope that such meetings would become regular and would lay the foundation for new initiatives in the field of international cooperation, contributing to the strengthening of mutual understanding and cultural exchange between countries.
