At the invitation of President of the FSK Board, Maja Gojković, Serbian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Culture and Media, and Olga Yarilova, Deputy Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation, the Forum of Slavic Cultures attended the Russian-Serbian Cultural Forum in Belgrade.
The common thread of the Russian-Serbian Cultural Forum – culture and tourism – brought together representatives of libraries, theatres, the film industry and creative industries from Russia and Serbia. The museum “road show” featured some of Russia’s pre-eminent museums.
In her address at the plenary meeting, which was attended by high representatives of ministries of culture and tourism of both countries, the FSK Director Andreja Rihter noted: “We are all aware of the social impact of cultural tourism – it helps build identity, facilitates intercultural understanding and preserves regional heritage and culture. Its contribution to the local economy too is far from insignificant.”
Ms. Rihter took part in the museum section as well. She introduced the FSK, its heritage activity and the Živa Award for the best Slavic museum and heritage site. At a special conference on cultural routes she discussed the Women Writers Route, a cultural route that is currently applying for the Cultural Route of the Council of Europe certification, and which she believes raises relevant questions and has a huge cultural, educational and above all tourist potential as it organizes activities that attract various audiences and target groups.
The forum offered numerous opportunities for meetings, presentations and networking between cultural institutions and tourist organisations from both countries, and was accompanied by a rich cultural programme, including an exhibition on the 200th anniversary of the birth of F. M. Dostoevsky at the National Library of Serbia and a special symposium on Russia’s literary giant.
