INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF THE TOMSK REGION: PROSPECTS AND COOPERATION

Grigory Korotkikh, the specialist of the Department of Languages ​​of the Peoples of Siberia of the Faculty of Foreign Languages of the TSPU and representative of the Association of Indigenous Minorities of the North of the Tomsk Region made a business trip to St. Petersburg, where he met with his colleagues from the Herzen University.

The purpose of the visit was to discuss issues of cooperation in the field of preservation and study of the indigenous peoples of the North and their languages. Joint work will serve as a serious step in the development of this scientific direction. There are many reasons for this:

• The TSPU is included in the list made by the Russian Academy of Sciences (Moscow) as a leading research center for the study of endangered languages. For more than 25 years, specialists of the TSPU have been studying the indigenous peoples of Siberia and their languages, collecting historical, ethnographic, archaeological and linguistic materials.
• The Kolta Kup Association of the Indigenous Minorities of the North of the Tomsk Region is the oldest association of the indigenous peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East of the Russian Federation, founded in 1989. Its mission is to protect the interests and rights of the indigenous peoples of the Tomsk region, to assist in the revival and development of culture and education of indigenous peoples, to participate in the protection of the environment in the areas of compact residence of the indigenous peoples of the North of the Tomsk region. 
• The Institute of the Peoples of the Herzen University is the only higher educational institution in Russia that trains specialists in the field of ethnopedagogy, ethnophilology and ethnocultural studies for the northern regions. Graduates of the institute help in the preservation, study and popularization of the native languages ​​and culture of the indigenous peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East of the Russian Federation.

At a meeting with colleagues, Grigory Korotkikh, spoke about the activities of Tomsk organizations, shared his experience in the preparation and holding of educational and cultural events, visited the Institute's library, learned the composition of the resources.

During the discussion of further joint work, agreements were reached in three areas of activity:

• Tomsk specialists and linguistic activists representing the Association of the Indigenous Peoples of the North of Tatarstan hold classes for the students of the Institute, raising issues that are unique for the St. Petersburg University;
• assistance in the preparation of school programs for the study of the languages ​​of the indigenous peoples of the North of the Tomsk region for the institutions of the Tomsk region;
• creation of the Association of Teachers of the native language, literature and culture of the indigenous peoples of the North in the Tomsk region.

The first steps within the established cooperation have already been taken: professional portfolios of Tomsk linguists submitted to the Herzen university were approved. In addition, two other proposals from Grigory received support from representatives of the Tomsk Region Administration: on the inclusion in the school curriculum of disciplines for the study of the languages ​​of the indigenous peoples of the North of the Tomsk region and the creation of the Association of Teachers of the native language, literature and culture of the small peoples of the North in the Tomsk region. The plans for the implementation of the two ideas include an active invitation to participate and other specialists of the TSPU.