On 19 June 2012 fourth scientific expedition of the Russian geographic society “Alyaska-2012” kicked off, it was supported by RENOVA Charity Fund. As a result of this trip to the shores of America work on research of inner regions of Alaska, revealed to the civilized world by Russian XIXth century pathfinders, has been completed. And the main result was the film “Alaska: notes from the New World”, which shows complicated interweaving of diaries and destinies of the two expeditions of XIXth and XXI centuries. The film compares observations of one of the first Russian pathfinders, officer of the Russian fleet Lavrenty Zagoskin, who opened to the world inner regions of Alaska, and the team of the expedition of members of the Russian geographic society, who repeated Zagoskin’s route for the first time 150 years after the original trip.

 

Thanks to the effort of members of the expedition the trip has become so interesting that its screening has won many awards on Russian and international festivals and forums. In particular, the film “Alaska: notes from the New World” was named the best programme on culture on the festival “Northern character 2012” in Murmansk, the television and radio company “Krai Ryazansky” in the Russian city of Ryazan (the native city of the members of the expedition), which filmed this programme, was awarded Grand Prix of regional journalistic competition “ Cut-glass crane“; at the all-Russian television contest “Tefy-Region 2012” in Kazan the film became one of the finalists, having made it to the top three in the nomination “The year of History”.

 

Currently, work on expanding the exposition of the Ryazan museum of travelers by artifacts from expeditions, takes place. Several exhibitions, based on the results of this series of research trips, have been organized outside Ryazan. And the Ulyanovsk and Ryazan regional branches of the Russian geographic society have already signed an agreement on organizing the new expedition — “Aleutian Islands: under the sails of Russian America” in summer 2013. And this means that the researchers are facing new encounters and new opportunities to show that Russian presence, although not long, has left a considerable print and these lands can by right be called “Russian America”.

 

From 22 May till 12 July 2012 RENOVA Charity Fund has held the first contest of grants among non-profit-making organizations “Social projects fair” in the Chuvash Republic. During two months of active work, the jury has managed to choose nine best programmes which got the Fund’s support. The Chuvash institute of culture and arts’ initiative of organization of the Festival “Cultural heritage of Chuvashia — contemporary retrospective”, which familiarizes broad audience with the rich cultural-historic heritage of the indigenous inhabitants of the region, won the first prize in the nomination “Culture”. “Christmas” Charity Orthodox Foundation and its festival “Easter joy” which has been uniting children and adults, not only those inchurched, by the atmosphere of the holiday of the Easter Sunday; and also History and Art museum of the city of Novocheboksarsk, which presented its project on creating a permanent exposition in the museum of study of local lore and the city’s history.

 

The republican sports society “Harvest”, which pays special attention to such rare and almost forgotten activity as development of country sport and organization of competitions and events among non-urban population of the region, received grants in the nomination “Sports”; all-Russian public organization of invalids of Afghanistan and war injuries “Invalids of war” with the programme “Healthy living for invalids”; and also “Chuvashia” foundation, which, together with the propagandists of healthy living from the city of Cheboksary, have proposed a project “Street sports of Chuvashia — 2012”, aimed at attracting young people to going in for sport.

 

The Theatre of Young Generation, named after M. Sepsel , with the project “Theatre ambulance” — a mobile theatre for people with disabilities, has celebrated victory in the category “accessible environment”; National library of the Chuvash Republic with the project “Biblioplay: equal opportunities”, which opens access for disabled people to latest achievements in science, education and culture; and the Chuvash republican council of women, which presented the project “Art therapy”. The awarding ceremony of the winners of “The Fair of Social Projects” took place on 19 June 2012 in the National Library of the Chuvash Republic. The grants were handed to the laureates by the General Director of the RENOVA Charity Fund Olga Bashkirova