November 10 – World Youth Day

November 10 – World Youth Day

10 November 2024

​On 10th November, 1945, after the end of World War II, representatives of 63 countries founded the World Federation of Democratic Youth in London. This was enough for another holiday to appear in the world calendar.

The World Federation of Democratic Youth called on the young people of the whole world to come together to confront military conflicts, to fight for justice, equality and national independence.

The WFDY’s primary mission is the protection of youth rights. It has initiated and actively promoted the creation of numerous international organizations providing material support to young people in Latin America and Africa. Thousands of students study at universities on WFDY scholarships. The Federation promotes youth interaction in tourism and labor and supports solidarity projects of all kinds.

The most important event known to many is the World Festival of Youth and Students.

In 1957, under the slogan "For Peace and Friendship," the festival gathered 34,000 young activists from 131 countries in Moscow. Many traditions of the festival and the celebration itself were born there. The emblem of the festival was designed by Moscow graphic artist Konstantin Kuzginov. He created a flower with five multicolored petals representing the continents: red for Europe, yellow for Asia, blue for America, violet for Africa and green for Australia. At the heart of the flower was a globe with the inscription "For Peace and Friendship."

Moscow hosted the World Festival of Youth and Students again in 1985. 26,000 young people from 157 countries took part in it.

The record for the number of participating countries is held to the 19th World Festival of Youth and Students, which also took place in Russia, from October 14 to 22, 2017, in Sochi. The festival welcomed around 25,000 young people from 188 countries under the slogan:

"For peace, solidarity and social justice, we fight against imperialism—respecting our past, we build our future!"

Students from Saint Petersburg University of Management Technologies and Economics participated in this festival.

In March 2024 the World Festival of Youth also took place in Sochi, the federal territory of Sirius. Although its dates did not coincide with World Youth Day, its main goals haven’t changed since the victorious year of 1945: to unite in solving social problems, enrich one another with culture and traditions and build a just world together. Our students served also as volunteers at the festival.