MOSCOW, April 22 (RIA Novosti), Daria Chernyshova — The way Russians are defines perceptions of the country abroad, so that to boost Russia’s image it needs to boost human capital, Valdai Club’s recent report “National Identity and Russia’s Future” says.
“The way we are is important for the way our country is perceived,” Pavel Andreev a contributor to the report said at the presentation Tuesday. “The image of our country, given modern communication technologies – online technologies, overseas trips, business contacts, cultural exchanges, quality of human capital is more and more important,” he added.
The report outlines three key aspects in the development of human capital in Russia – “education (the future), the sense of ownership of one’s country (the present), and respectable acceptance of one’s own history (the past).”
“The strategy to bolster the Russian identity is above all necessary in the context of developing human capital,” the report says. It suggests that encouraging success and those who create it, socialization of citizens, building a rule-based state, using the culture, education and the media for social engineering and national character, as well as a new large-scale project are much needed.
The authors of the report laid out their views on Russia’s national identity in a way that transcends the traditional academic framework and leaves room for a free and wide-ranging discussion.
Russian President Vladimir Putin repeatedly outlined Russia’s urgent need for a united national idea in order to succeed in a global environment.
The Valdai International Discussion Club unites leading Russian and international experts in the history, politics, economics and international relations. Established in 2004, the Club seeks to foster a global dialogue about Russia and to provide an independent, unbiased, scholarly analysis of political, economic and social processes in Russia and the world.
