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Young families are in the spotlight of science
The international essay competition "Young Families as the Pillar of Russia's Socioeconomic Development" has become a new platform for scientific dialogue between students and young scientists from across the country and abroad.
Participants presented research papers on the economy of the future, cultural continuity, and social innovation in the context of family policy. They explored this topic through three key areas: "A Family as the Foundation of Human Potential and Cultural Continuity," "Young Families and the Economy of the Future," and "Social Innovation and the Responsibility of Young Families."
The projects submitted to the competition demonstrated an unexpectedly mature and multidimensional perspective from young researchers on the traditional institution of the family. Instead of the familiar clichés of the "social unit," the authors propose complex concepts linking family values with corporate governance, digitalization, and macroeconomic stability.
"Young researchers have stopped viewing a family as an archaic relic or solely as an object of social care. The finalists' works show the emergence of a new paradigm, where a family serves as a complex and independent economic factor. Out of the diverse concepts presented, three papers stand out as those that most accurately expose the core of modern political economy," noted Alla Matveeva, head of essay competition and director of the USUE Institute of Master’s Studies.
The competition received over 180 applications from students and young researchers from Russian universities, from Kaliningrad to Vladivostok. They also included international students studying at Russian universities. An expert committee selected 19 best projects, which the finalists presented to the professional community.
The competition confirmed that young people see the institution of family both as a personal value and as a strategic resource for national development. The competition finalists showed that the economy of the future cannot rely solely on algorithms and market conditions. It requires a return to human connection, where the family becomes the primary and meaningful foundation for sustainable national transformation.
Anastasia Shavkunova, a student at Ural State University of Economics, won first place in the essay competition. She presented her paper on the potential of young families in the Russian Federation, illustrated by the Udmurt Republic.
The silver prize went to Sofia Yermakova, a student from Moscow, with her report “Family as the Foundation of Human Potential and Cultural Continuity.”
Third place went to Elizaveta Vasina, a student from Irkutsk, with her interesting and compelling topic - "The Price of Abandoning Family in the Age of Self-Realization."
Fourth place was shared by USUE student Mikhail Kichev, who spoke about the new generation family and innovative practices for mutual assistance among young parents, and Anna Pereverza, a student at Kursk State University, who spoke about the family as the foundation of human potential and the preservation of cultural traditions.
The fifth was Ranya Kaddour, a student at Ural State University of Economics. In his essay, he explored the situation of working mothers in the modern economic system from various perspectives.
The finalists' works will be included in the collection of 16th EEYF materials. The collection will be published in the Russian Science Citation Index (RSCI) and on the USUE website.
The competition was held in collaboration with the forum's regional venues. Its partner was the Western Branch of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. This format combined academic depth, practical focus, and inter-university cooperation.
