The Management Board held a meeting on September 9 to discuss the Institute's project “Russia in the 21st Century: The Image of the Desired Tomorrow”, INSOR’s work in 2009 and the main trajectory of its work in 2010, and the endowment fund INSOR-Capital, which facilitates the work of INSOR.

INSOR board member E. Gontmakher presented INSOR’s new large-scale project.

“Russia needs to become a modern state, and perhaps it has now received a unique opportunity to focus and jump into the 21st century,” he observed. The INSOR project “Russia in the 21st Century: The Image of the Desired Tomorrow” is divided into six areas: economy, social sphere, foreign policy, Russia in the world, Russian political system, military organization and values and motivations. Experts will brainstorm on all six topics; by the end of the year, the information will be consolidated and the main lines along which Russia should move in all six areas will be established. “We will publish a report that will serve as the basis for discussion about Russia’s future by the end of the year,” Gontmakher explained. INSOR Chairman Igor Yurgens confirmed this. “We should formulate and place ambitious goals on ourselves in order to put together the nation,” he added.

Keeping in mind the importance but also the risks of the project, INSOR board member A. Auzan said that it is critical to form a distinct and desired image of the future, which will serve as the basis for further measures.

All board members shared the opinion that it is necessary to continue actively participating in the project.

INSOR Chairman Igor Yurgens gave the report on the foundation’s work in 2009.

The board members decided to adopt a more active position on the topics of education and science when discussing the institute’s future development. As a result of the discussion, the board decided to voice the institute’s position on the issues at hand and hold additional roundtables on education and science.

INSOR-Capital Director Anton Ostrovsky gave an account of the endowment fund’s activities during the last year.

“According to the results of the fund’s activities in 2008, this is one of several endowment projects in Russia that ended the year in the black. Its profitability measured from the beginning of the accounting period was 14.5%, which is a very good result, and we hope to reach 16% by the end of the year,” he remarked.

Furthermore, the board members were presented with books from the series “The Library of the Institute of Contemporary Development,” which has put out 23 publications since the start of the program (at the end of 2008).