President of the RGS
In November 2009, Sergei Kuzhugetovich Shoigu was elected President of the Russian Geographical Society. Since then, he has been re-elected to this position twice. His term was extended for the first time in November 2014 at the XV Congress of the Russian Geographical Society. And on December 1-4, 2020, the XVI Congress of the Russian Geographical Society was held. And once again, Sergei Shoigu was unanimously elected President of the Society. 211 delegates voted for this decision.
The President of the Russian Geographical Society, Sergei Shoigu. Photo: Aleksey Mikhailov
When I was young, I spent a lot of time in construction brigades. It was a wonderful time. Hiking, guitar songs around the campfire. Even the work didn't seem hard to us. I dreamed of reviving these traditions. And I would like modern youth to get into the spirit of traveling in their native country.
I was interested in the history of the Russian Geographical Society before. I read about its research and expeditions but I did not suspect what a difficult economic situation this legendary organization was in… I got the urge to support the Society. And when I received an offer from the Academic Council and the regional branches of the Society to run for the post of the President of the Russian Geographical Society, I realized that I could do more, and decided to become a candidate for the post of the President of the Russian Geographical Society.
The President of the Russian Geographical Society, Sergei Shoigu. Photo from the personal archive of Sergei Shoigu
Since taking office, Sergei Shoigu has begun to actively support the expedition, publishing, and educational activities of the Society. He initiated the creation of the RGS Youth Club, supported such new large-scale projects as the Geographical Dictation, the photo contest "The Most Beautiful Country", the RGS Festival, the expeditions "Kyzyl-Kuragino", "Gogland", "Tunnug" and many others.
Sergei Shoigu not only initiates the projects of the Russian Geographical Society and directs their implementation but also participates in the events of the Society personally: annually checks his knowledge in the Geographical Dictation, is a member of the jury of the photo contest "The Most Beautiful Country", and also meets with participants of the expeditions of the RGS.
The most exciting thing is the expeditions. For example, another expedition to the Tuvan Valley of the Kings has recently ended. The kurgan Tunnug, according to some scientists, is the oldest of the Scythian kurgans in Russia, and it hides many secrets. Another RGS expedition ended in the first half of July. It took place in the flooding zone of the Sayano-Shushenskaya HPP. And there was discovered an ancient mummy dating back to about the 1st century BC. But this is only a small part of the activities of the RGS, we have enough work."
The RGS regularly organizes media clubs: meetings with the press, which are often chaired by Sergei Shoigu. The President of the Russian Geographical Society personally tells journalists about the most interesting projects of the Society. And in 2018, in Crimea, Sergei Shoigu conducted an author's tour of the Konstantinovskaya Battery, recently restored at the expense of the Russian Geographical Society, for media representatives.
RGS’s President Sergei Shoigu inspects the lighthouse on Bolshoy Tyuters Island Photo by Vadim Grishankin
When we began work the battery in 2014, the walls of the fort were almost completely destroyed. There were piles of garbage inside. It looked depressing. We restored the historical appearance of the citadel in full accordance with its original drawings, restored the fallen soldiers monument, landscaped the territory, and created a permanent exhibition. The total area of the premises is now 4,500 meters. This is almost the same as in the Central House of Artists in Moscow.
Sergei Shoigu and the expedition volunteers The President of the Russian Geographical Society Sergei Shoigu and the volunteers of the Kyzyl-Kuragino expedition. Photo: RGS press service
Since Sergei Shoigu took office as the President of the Russian Geographical Society, the number of the Society’s projects and their participants has increased significantly. Today, the RGS has more than 23,700 members in Russia and abroad. The Society’s regional branches operate in all 85 regions of the Russian Federation. Thousands of volunteers take part in the Society's expeditions. Every year, the Society's exhibitions, lectures, and film screenings are attended by millions of people.
Today, the audience of the projects of the Russian Geographical Society is tens of millions of people in Russia and abroad. According to independent sociological research, the recognition of the Russian Geographical Society among the population has almost tripled over the past five years. But the most important thing is that the number of people who want to join the Society and take part in what we do is growing even more rapidly
In October 2020, Sergei Shoigu's book of short stories “Pro Vchera” (eng. "About Yesterday") was presented at the RGS headquarters.
Read some of the stories.