Dr. Dmitry Ivashintzov, Russia

Professor, Honoured Worker of Science of the Russian Federation, full Member of the Academies: Russian Academy of Natural Sciences, RIA, MANEB, scientist, water-power engineering specialist, poet and philosopher.

Professional interests: problems of risk in the field of water-power engineering, evolution of the person, cultural science. Main scientific employee is the Russian Institute of Water-power Engineering of V.E.Vedeneev. Cochairman of the International Association RUSSIAN CULTURE. Honorary Professor of UNESCO Department at St.-Petersburg. Editor-in-chief of the almanac "Russian World". Chairman of the Russian National Committee of Hydraulics (MAGI). The basic publications: philosophy: Outside of Homo Sapiens Evolution: http://phenomen.ru/public/journal.php? article=68; poetry, 60+ poems: http://www.stihi.ru/avtor/ivashintsov. The GHA Honorary Advisory Committee Member and o­ne of the “Peace from Harmony” and GHA founders in 2005. Address: St.-Petersburg, Russia;

E-mail: ivashintsov@gmail.com;

Web: http://www.peacefromharmony.org/?cat=ru_c&key=42;

http://www.peacefromharmony.org/? cat=ru_c&key=23;

http://www.russkymir.org.

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Dmitry Ivashintsov

Inevitability of Russian World

• tendency to transform Russian culture into a culture that is dead and has no support or prospects for reproduction in its major bearer — the Russian person;
• attempts at drowning our culture in the mass culture of the globalized humankind.

  Speaking about the first threat, of greatest concern is the demographic situation in primordially Russian areas, such as Pskovskaya, Novgorodskaya, Vologodskaya regions. The catastrophically low living standards of the rural population, the lack of employment opportunities for the city dwellers, drug addiction among the young, alcoholism affecting all social strata — all this can result in a disappearance of the main carrier of the vibrant Russian culture.

  The second threat — unification of cultures — is being discussed quite o­n a large scale and, seemingly, does not call for out intervention. However, a mere acknowledgment of each culture's significance for the global civilization will hardly help to preserve the erstwhile diversity. Above all, it is for us to examine the origin and historical mission of Russian culture, to understand and rationalize its role in the future of the world. We should look more attentively at the education reform currently underway and protect the young generation against the pandemy of thoughtless and immoral voyeurism of "reality-shows," the unstoppable flow of trashy potboilers and movies.

  Obviously, market economy dictates the rules, and yet government and civil society, the making of which in Russia is being so difficult, should be promoting, including financial assistance, the implementation of projects which will publicize the fine works of Russian art of past and present.

  Fellow Russians living abroad, especially descendants of the first-wave émigrés, can provide us with invaluable support in preserving the originality and authenticity of Russian culture.

  A prompt implementation of our Association's project of establishing in Petersburg a museum of Russian culture abroad can become a pivotal point for returning to Russia many priceless documents. Finally, we should be creating new symbols of modern Russia, designed to affirm Russia's spiritual and political grandeur. The enactment of an ordinance by St.Petersburg governor o­n putting up in Kronshtadt a monument to a Patriarch of Russia, a patron saint of the Russian fleet — apostle Andrew the First Called — would seem an appropriate step in this direction.

  As is made clear above, there are two tendencies related to our project: dispersion and accumulation of Russian World. We believe that dispersion can become constructive, and accumulation — mutually enriching.

  The motto of the Association of Russian cadet corps abroad —"Dispersed, but not disconnected" — seems very pertinent in this respect.

  The inevitability of Russian World is bespoken by the fact that Russian World exists already in the millions of hearts of our compatriots living in all parts of the world.