Surnames associated with the activities of the Russian Geographical Society. Russian Geographical Society. Dossier. Creation of permanent expeditions

(RGO), Imperial Russian Geographical Society (1850-1917), Russian Geographical Society (1917-26), State Geographical Society (1926-38), All-Union Geographical Society (1938-92), the name Russian Geographical Society was restored in 1992. Scientific and educational organization, one of the oldest geographical societies in the world.

The network of departments of the Russian Geographical Society played an important role in organizing work and popularizing local history knowledge. First in 1851 with the assistance of Governor General N.N. Muravyov-Amursky V Irkutsk The Siberian Department of the IRGO (SB IRGO, since 1877 - the East Siberian Branch (VSO) of the IRGO) was opened with subdivisions: Krasnoyarsk (1901) and Yakutsk (1913). On November 17, 1851, the military governor of Irkutsk, General K.K., was elected chairman of the department. Wenzel, the ruler of affairs (head) is Doctor of Medicine Yu.I. Stubendorf. In Western Siberia, the organization of a similar formation was preceded by an attempt to create Omsk a group of local historians (I.Ya. Slovtsov, P.A. Zolotov, A.I. Sulotsky and F.L. Chernavin) of the Society of Researchers of Western Siberia (1868-78). The West Siberian Department (ZSO IRGO) was founded with the active support of the Governor General N.G. Kaznakova in 1877, in 1901 its subdivision was opened in Barnaul(Altai) on the basis of the Altai Research Amateur Society created in 1891; in 1902 - in Semipalatinsk. The chief of staff is elected as its chairman West Siberian Military District General I.F. Babkov, ruler of affairs - teacher of geography of the Siberian Cadet Corps M.V. Singers. In 1884 Vladivostok The Society for the Study of the Amur Region (SIAK) is created, headed by F.F. Busse, in 1894 it became a subdivision of the one opened in Khabarovsk with the active participation of Governor General S.M. Dukhovsky Priamursky department of IRGO (PO IRGO). General N.I. is elected its chairman. Grodekov. Then the subdepartments begin to operate in Troitskosavsk And Chita(Zabaikalsky). In 1914, a subdepartment under the chairman A.M. Bodisco opens at Nikolsk.

The title “imperial” gave the right to receive subsidies (2 thousand rubles per year for each department, from 1914 to IRGO - 4 thousand rubles), free mail forwarding, assistance from the local administration in organizing and conducting expeditions, including the provision of armed a convoy of Cossacks and sending military topographers to their composition. Governors-General were usually the official patrons and honorary chairmen of branches. They approved the results of the elections of governing bodies, authorized the holding of meetings, the organization of lectures, the organization of expeditions, and so on. Their organizing function gradually turned into a controlling one. In the interaction of departments with subdepartments, scientific partnership prevailed over administrative dependence. A common form of contact with other scientific, educational, and administrative structures was the exchange of publications. Thus, ZSO IRGO has established such an exchange with more than 530 recipients in 85 cities of Russia and 18 countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, and America.

At the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th century. In the local formations of the IRGO, the service intelligentsia was represented mainly by officers, primarily topographers at the stages of the formation of departments - foresters, resettled officials, land managers, agronomists, statisticians, gymnasium teachers, etc. A large role in the activities of the departments, especially the VSO IRGO, was played by political exiles. The Siberian administration, despite the restrictions of the “Regulations on Police Supervision” (1881), satisfied the requests of the governing bodies of departments and subdepartments to attract exiled settlers to work. The VSO IRGO played an outstanding role in the daily work and expeditions YES. Clements, N.V. Vitashevsky, V.G. Bogoraz-Tan, F.Ya. Kohn, E.K. Pekarsky, M.P. Ovchinnikov, I.I. Mainov, S.V. Yastremsky etc. The number of members of the Siberian divisions of the IRGO ranged from 168 people (ZSO IRGO in 1887), 110 (VSO IRGO in 1905), 100 (Trans-Baikal subdivision in 1908), to 12 people (Krasnoyarsk subdivision at the time of organization in 1901). The composition of scientific communities remained unstable, the number of nonresident employees gradually decreased, and connections within the teams were weak. Financing of departments and subdepartments was carried out through government subsidies and donations from local entrepreneurs (A.M. and I.M. Sibiryakov, M.K. Sidorov, V.P. Sukachev, HELL. Vasenev etc.), membership fees, income from public lectures and museum visits.

Siberian formations of the IRGO were involved in organizing and conducting expeditions and excursions, coordinating the local history activities of local intelligentsia and political exiles, published “Proceedings”, “Notes”, “Izvestia”, “Materials”, created museums and through them carried out multifaceted educational work. The greatest contribution to the organization of scientific research was made by members of the IRGO who worked in Siberia: I.S. Selsky, A.F. Usoltsev, M.V. Zagoskin, N.N. Agapitov, G.N. Potanin, V.A. Obruchev, V.I. Vagin, N.M. Yadrintsev, V.K. Arsenyev, G.E. Katanaev, P.L. Dravert, A.E. Novoselov, F.N. Usov, A.N. Sidelnikov, V.V. Sapozhnikov, Yu.A. Schmidt and others. VSO IRGO organized Vilyuiskaya, Amurskaya, Ussuriyskaya (leader R.K. Maak), Turukhanskaya (I.A. Lopatin, A.P. Shchapov), Olekminsko-Vitimskaya ( P.A. Kropotkin), Yakut (Sibiryakov) historical and ethnographic expedition. In 1902, a special archival commission was formed under him under the leadership of N. Drozdov. A member of the ZSO IRGO in 1877 - 1918 carried out 103 expeditions, trips and excursions over a vast area from Dzungaria to the Gulf of Ob.

Along with the research work of the Siberian formation, the IRGOs were engaged in active educational activities, mainly through the museums and libraries established under them. Thus, in the funds of the VSO IRGO museum in 1889 there were 9,048 exhibits, in 1913 - 24,878. Since 1889, the museum regularly held Sunday lectures and excursions for visitors. In the museum of the ZSO IRGO by the beginning of the twentieth century. There were departments: historical-archaeological, factory-handicraft and ethnographic, agricultural, hunting and fishing, meteorological, mining-mineralogical, forestry, botanical and zoological.

The department and subdepartment continued their core activities during the turbulent years of the socialist cataclysm of 1917-20. Their development went in the direction of deepening specialization and focusing on the implementation of the economic plans of the Soviet state. At the end of the 1920s. the VSO RGS included sections of earth science, economics, geology and mining, experimental fruit growing and plant acclimatization, ethnological, historical, paleoethnological, Buryat-Mongolian, Yakut, school of local history, historical and literary; as part of the ZSO RGS - physical-geographical, biological and economic. In addition to scientific workers, local historians, teachers, schoolchildren, and youth from the national outskirts were involved in the work of the societies. In the 1920s Krasnoyarsk, Altai, Semipalatinsk and other subdivisions were separated into independent departments. In 1928, the number of members of the VSO RGS was 288 full members and 112 employee members, the ZSO RGS - 130 and 18 members, respectively.

In order to coordinate the activities of departments of the Russian Geographical Society and other local history organizations in the mid-1920s. congresses were held in Irkutsk, Omsk, Barnaul, Krasnoyarsk and others. In December 1926, at the 1st regional scientific research congress, a decision was made to create a Siberian association of local history organizations (see. Local history), which included departments of the Russian Geographical Society. The functions of the association were transferred to the one created in 1925 Novosibirsk Society for the Study of the Productive Forces of Siberia(OIS). In the spring of 1931, with the liquidation of the OIC and the arrest of its leaders, including the chairman of the ZSO RGS V.F. Semenov, the departments of the Russian Geographical Society actually ceased their activities.

Its renewal occurred in the 1950s. The center of activity moved to regions where there was no developed system of professional research organizations: Altai Territory, Sakhalin And Kamchatka region. The departments continue publishing and forwarding activities. Employees of institutes take part in their work Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, regional universities and museums.

Lit.: Manassein V.S. Essay on the historical activities of VSORGO for 75 years of its existence // Izv. VSORGO. Irkutsk, 1927. T. 50, issue. 1; Semenov V.F. Essay on the fifty years of activity of the West Siberian Department of the State Russian Geographical Society. Omsk, 1927.

S.N. Ushakova, M.V. Shilovsky

Materials: http://russiasib.ru/russkoe-geograficheskoe-obshhestvo/

The Russian Geographical Society is one of the oldest societies in the world and the only continuously operating public organization in Russia. The Russian Geographical Society was established in 1845 by the highest order of Emperor Nicholas I. The idea of ​​​​creation belonged to the great admiral F.P. Litka, and the first President of the society was his student, the son of the emperor, Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich. The main task of the new organization was to gather and direct the best young forces of Russia to a comprehensive study of their native land.
The founders and first members of the society were world-famous officers, scientists, travelers, researchers - F.P. Litke, F.P. Wrangel, I.F. Kruzenshtern, V.P. Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky, N.M. Przhevalsky, N.N. Miklukho-Maclay, G.I. Nevelskoy, Russian geologists, naturalists, surveyors, linguists and philanthropists.

Since its founding, the Russian Geographical Society has not stopped its work, and over the years it has been called differently - Imperial, State, All-Union, and since 1992 it has had its original name - the Russian Geographical Society.
Under his auspices, monumental studies of European Russia, the Urals, Siberia, the Far East, Middle and Central Asia, the Caucasus, Iran, India, New Guinea, and the polar countries were organized. Also, the tradition of the society has always been a connection with the Russian fleet and sea expeditions, and the famous Russian explorers-navigators (P.F. Anzhu, V.S. Zavoiko, P. Yu. Lisyansky, L.A. Zagoskin, F.F. Matyushkin, K.N. Posyet, G.I. Nevelskoy, S.O. Makarov).
In 1851, the first two regional departments of the Russian Geographical Society were opened: Caucasian in Tiflis and Siberian in Irkutsk. Then new departments were created: Orenburg, North-Western in Vilna, South-Western in Kyiv, West Siberian in Omsk, Amur in Khabarovsk, Turkestan in Tashkent. They conducted extensive research in their regions and organized expeditionary and educational projects. By 1917, the Imperial Russian Geographical Society already had 11 departments (including the headquarters in St. Petersburg), two subdivisions and four divisions.
The Russian Geographical Society laid the foundations of the domestic nature reserve business, and within the framework of the Permanent Environmental Commission, the ideas for the first Russian specially protected natural areas were born.
The work of the Standing Commission of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society for the Study of the Arctic resulted in the world-famous Chukotka, Yakutsk and Kola expeditions, the organization of the first International Polar Year, during which autonomous polar stations were created at the mouth of the Lena and on Novaya Zemlya.
With the assistance of the Russian Geographical Society, in 1918, the world's first higher educational institution of a geographical profile was created - the Geographical Institute. And in 1919, the first geographical museum in Russia was founded, the collections of which occupied third place in Russia after the Hermitage and the Russian Museum.
In Soviet times, the work of the society changed: it was focused on small regional studies and large theoretical generalizations, the promotion of geographical knowledge actively developed - the famous lecture hall named after Yu.M. Shokalsky.
And yet, until the beginning of the 2000s, there was a long period of stagnation in the history of the Russian Geographical Society. In November 2009, Sergei Kuzhugetovich Shoigu was elected President of the Russian Geographical Society, and a Board of Trustees was formed from among the most significant persons in Russia (A.B. Usmanov, S.S. Sobyanin, V.Yu. Alekperov, A.B. Miller). The Chairmanship was assumed by Russian President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin. The period of revival of the glorious traditions of the 19th century has arrived. At the same time, the vector of work has changed significantly. If before the revolution the main task of the Russian Geographical Society was to open, annex and study new territories, now priorities have shifted towards the development of domestic tourism and instilling love for the Fatherland. The main activities of the Russian Geographical Society are expeditions and research, education and enlightenment, nature conservation, publishing books and working with youth.
Today the Russian Geographical Society has about 13,000 members in Russia and abroad. There are regional branches in all 85 constituent entities of the Russian Federation.
The regional branch of the Russian Geographical Society in the Republic of Bashkortostan was created in 1954, but in recent decades it existed rather nominally and was considered an outsider.
In September 2014, the Bashkir branch of the Russian Geographical Society was headed by Kamil Farukhshinovich Ziganshin - writer, traveler, honored cultural worker of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus. Today, among the few regional branches, the Bashkir branch has the status of a legal entity. The regional branch has more than 120 full members, more than 180 candidate members of the Russian Geographical Society, and active work is underway in all areas of activity.
In 2015, the RO RGS received two grants:
1. Research expedition “From Ik to Yaik”. Schoolchildren from the Tuymazy gymnasium with their leader I. Danilko walked tens of kilometers, organizing various events and research.
2. Tourist route “The Paths of Ural-Batyr” on the territory of the Natural Park “Iremel” with a length of 30 km, equipped with images and symbols of the epic “Ural-Batyr”.
In 2016, the RO RGS received three grants:
1. “Ecogeography for the blind.”
2. “Preservation and development of the unique natural craft of the Bashkirs - on-board beekeeping, as the basis of a new type of tourism - honey tours” on the territory of the Bashkiria National Park.
3. Media grant for the filming of a popular science film “the cradle of art - the Shulgan-Tash Cave (Kapova Cave).” The film will reflect the discovery of 150 new drawings, the maximum age of which is 36 thousand years, and will become a video argument for adding the cave to the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The Russian Geographical Society will create a single geoportal designed to become a cartographic Wikipedia, its president said, speaking at the XV Congress of the Russian Geographical Society.

“I propose to launch a single geoportal of the Russian Geographical Society, which will unite the entire array of cartographic materials we create, as well as paper maps stored in our funds. The geoportal can become a real cartographic Wikipedia, without having the main disadvantage of Wikipedia – not always high-quality and reliable information” , Shoigu said.

According to him, the basis of the geoportal will be more than 40 thousand maps, including cartographic images of the 17th-18th centuries.

“This will help eliminate topographical and geographic illiteracy, serve as a driving force for the legalization and declassification of maps that have long lost their strategic significance. It will allow the Russian Geographical Society to take the place of a leader in creating a system of national atlases of Russia: environmental, Arctic, national cultural heritage and so on,” the president added RGS.

According to him, the Russian Geographical Society has long been cooperating with the largest domestic producers and holders of cartographic information: Roscartography, the military topographic department of the General Staff of the Armed Forces and the Center for Cartography and Spatial Data Infrastructure. At the same time, assistance in creating a geoportal can be provided by the Ministry of Education and Science, Roscosmos, Moscow State University, "" and other organizations that possess and process satellite information.

Creation of permanent expeditions

Shoigu noted that the Russian Geographical Society will create in the near future seven or eight permanent expeditions in the most important regions of Russia.

“I propose to structure all the undertakings of the Russian Geographical Society in this area according to the geographical principle, namely: to create seven, maybe eight large permanent expeditions. For example, the Arctic, northwestern, Baikal, as well as Siberian and Far Eastern, where, by the way, “We could cooperate with colleagues from our board of trustees who are implementing the project,” Shoigu said.

According to him, the complex expedition will provide answers to a very wide range of questions directly related to economic activity and will bring specific socio-economic, cultural and humanitarian benefits to the region.

Shoigu assured that the Russian Geographical Society will continue the practice of holding international forums similar to the current “Arctic – Territory of Dialogue.” Thus, he considers it necessary to create a similar southern forum, in which representatives of the countries of the Caspian and Black Sea regions can take part, as well as an Asian forum, to which specialists from Southeast Asia can be invited.

RGS statistics

Over the past five years, the Russian Geographical Society has supported more than 300 grants and hundreds of projects. “In general, we can say that during the reporting period, the largest geographical expert community was formed. Its most authoritative members formed the backbone of the expert council of the Russian Geographical Society. Over the five years of work, they reviewed about 3 thousand applications, approved the allocation of 297 grants and 119 thematic projects, as well as 22 grants issued by the Russian Geographical Society jointly with the Russian Foundation for Basic Research,” Shoigu said.

At the same time, the Russian Geographical Society actively supports nature conservation, for which from 2010 to 2014 it issued 97 grants and supported 72 thematic projects, the minister noted. “With the allocated funds, a lot of work has been done to preserve rare species of mammals, organize expeditions, clean up Arctic territories from garbage, conduct environmental assessments and create environmental maps,” added the president of the Russian Geographical Society.

50 grants were allocated for research, 41 research projects were supported. In addition, 87 grants were issued and 59 projects were supported aimed at developing school and university education, and about a hundred youth and school expeditions were conducted.

According to Shoigu, the Russian Geographical Society is actively developing the traditions of expeditionary activities - it has always been and remains its key task. From 2009 to 2014, more than 900 regional, all-Russian and international expeditions were organized, to support which an expedition center of the society was created in 2011.

Films about travelers

Shoigu said that the Russian Geographical Society will promote the creation of feature films about the great Russian travelers.

“For example, the great Ivan Dmitrievich Papanin, whose 120th birthday will be celebrated in a week. His biography is enough for at least three “full meters.” Or Pyotr Kuzmich Kozlov, the legendary explorer of Tibet, who discovered the mysterious city of Khara-Khoto. Compared to him, I note, Indiana Jones is just a schoolboy,” Shoigu said.

In this regard, the president of the Russian Geographical Society suggested that the society’s media council think about creating films or television series like those that were filmed in Soviet times and which “we all watch repeatedly and with pleasure.”

“I’m talking about “Two Captains”, based on the novel by Veniamin Kaverin, about the films “Przhevalsky” by Sergei Yutkevich and “Miklouho-Maclay” by Alexander Razumny. I am sure that the Ministry of Culture and the Cinema Fund will meet us halfway in this matter, since state support for cinematography is first and foremost should be aimed at creating socially significant products with a powerful patriotic and educational message,” Shoigu said.

Reconstruction of the Young Nat movement

The Russian Geographical Society will also work to recreate the movement of young naturalists and the network of observations of natural phenomena.

“Another important point in terms of education is the reconstruction of the youth phenological network of the Russian Geographical Society. Let me remind you that in Soviet times it included thousands of schools, whose students enthusiastically collected information about natural phenomena,” said.

According to him, given the activity of modern children on social networks, the offer to photograph a natural phenomenon, fill out the appropriate form and transmit the information using a special program on a mobile phone or tablet will be in great demand.

“This will be a real step towards restoring the once powerful movement of young naturalists, which solved not only educational problems, but was also a real source of personnel for ecologists, geographers, and game managers,” Shoigu believes.

TASS DOSSIER. On April 24, a meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Russian Geographical Society will be held in St. Petersburg with the participation of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The Russian Geographical Society (RGS) is an all-Russian public organization. It unites specialists in the field of geography and related sciences (geology, biology, history, archeology, ethnography), as well as enthusiastic travelers, ecologists, public figures, etc. The main idea of ​​the society was formulated at the end of the 19th century by the Russian geographer and statesman Pyotr Semyonov- Tien-Shansky - “To attract all the best forces of the Russian land to the study of the native land and its people.”

Story

The Russian Geographical Society was founded on August 18 (August 6, old style) 1845 in St. Petersburg. On this day, Emperor Nicholas I approved the first temporary charter of the Society presented by the founders. Among the founders of the Russian Geographical Society were navigators and admirals of the Russian fleet Fyodor Litke, Ivan Krusenstern, Ferdinand Wrangel; members of the Imperial St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences (now the Russian Academy of Sciences) naturalist Karl Baer, ​​astronomer Vasily Struve; Quartermaster General Fedor Berg; Senator Mikhail Muravyov; linguist Vladimir Dal; Prince Vladimir Odoevsky and others - a total of 17 people (they received honorary titles of members - founders of the Society).

The first chairman of the Russian Geographical Society was the son of Nicholas I, Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich, who was 17 years old at that time.

During its existence, the Society changed its name several times. In 1849, the permanent charter of the organization was adopted and it was renamed the Imperial Russian Geographical Society. In 1917, it lost the name "Imperial", from 1925 it was called the State Russian Geographical Society of the RSFSR, from 1932 - the State Geographical Society (GGO) of the RSFSR. In 1938, it was renamed the Geographical Society of the USSR (or the All-Union Geographical Society) and became part of the system of the USSR Academy of Sciences.

With the assistance of the Russian Geographical Society, the first nature reserves in Russia were created, and the world's first higher educational institution of a geographical profile, the Geographical Institute, was founded (1918). The North Committee, created under the Russian Geographical Society in 1920, coordinated work on the development of the North and the Northern Sea Route (later ceased to exist, its functions were transferred to the Arctic Institute and the Main Directorate of the Northern Sea Route).

On March 21, 1992, by decision of the organization's academic council, its historical name was returned to it - the Russian Geographical Society. The Russian Geographical Society was registered with the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation on February 10, 2003 as a non-profit organization.

Activity

The main activities of the Russian Geographical Society are the collection and dissemination of geographical information about Russia, the organization of practical field research, expeditions to different parts of the Russian Federation and the world, education and awareness, and nature conservation.

From 1849 to 2015, the Society conducted over 3 thousand expeditions in Russia (as well as the USSR) and in more than 30 countries of the world. Among them are expeditions to explore and develop the Arctic (Chukotka, Yakutsk, Kola), the Urals (to the Northern Polar Urals), Siberia and the Far East (Vilyuiskaya, Sibiryakovskaya), Central and Central Asia (Mongol-Tibetan), and the World Ocean.

The Russian Geographical Society was one of the organizers of the first International Polar Year (2007/2008) and the International Forum on problems related to the conservation of tigers on Earth (2010). Since 2010, the Russian Geographical Society has been holding the International Arctic Forum "The Arctic - Territory of Dialogue." The Russian Geographical Society is one of the organizers of the International Geographical Olympiad and the All-Russian Geography Olympiad, the All-Russian Geographical Dictation (since 2015), and the All-Russian Congress of Geography Teachers (since 2011).

The Russian Geographical Society participated in the publication of the Great Atlas of the World (since 1934), the Marine Atlas (1944-1946), the Atlas of Antarctica (1972), the monograph "Geography of the World Ocean" in six volumes (1980-1987), the Atlas of Snow and Ice Resources of the World ( 1997), Atlas of Birds of the Russian Arctic (2012), etc.

Since 2015, the Russian Geographical Society has been holding a photo competition “The Most Beautiful Country”.

Controls, structure

The highest governing body of the Society is the congress, which is convened every six years (until 2014 - once every five years; extraordinary ones can be held as necessary). A total of 16 congresses took place. In 1933, the All-Union Congress of Geographers was convened in Leningrad. However, numbers began to be assigned to congresses in 1947, when they received the status of the highest governing body of the Society. The First Congress (the second actually) was held in 1947, also in Leningrad. At the XV Congress on November 7, 2014 in Moscow, the current version of the charter of the Russian Geographical Society was approved.

During the period between congresses, the Society's governing council (a permanent elected collegial governing body) operates; it includes the president (sole executive body; elected by the congress for a term of six years), honorary president, and executive director. The governing bodies also include the executive directorate, academic council, audit commission, council of elders (formed in 2012), and council of regions (2013).

There are regional branches of the Russian Geographical Society in all 85 constituent entities of the Russian Federation. The largest is in the Republic of Bashkortostan, with a network of 65 local branches. In total, at the end of 2016, there were 137 local branches, which operate under 20 regional branches.

Managers

In 1945-1917. At the head of the Russian Geographical Society were the chairmen: Grand Dukes Konstantin Nikolaevich (1845-1892) and Nikolai Mikhailovich (1892-1917). The actual leadership was carried out by the vice-chairmen: Fyodor Litke (1845-1850; 1856-1873), Mikhail Muravyov (1850-1856), Pyotr Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky (1873-1914), Yuliy Shokalsky (1914-1917). Beginning in 1918, the head of the Society began to be elected. The first elected chairman was Shokalsky (1918-1931).

Since 1931, the post of president was introduced, it was held by Nikolai Vavilov (1931-1940), Lev Berg (1940-1950), Evgeny Pavlovsky (1952-1964), Stanislav Kalesnik (1964-1977), Alexey Treshnikov (1977-1991) , Sergey Lavrov (1991-2000), Yuri Seliverstov (2000-2002), Anatoly Komaritsyn (2002-2009).

Honorary Presidents

The honorary presidents of the Society were: Yuliy Shokalsky (in 1931-1940), members of the USSR Academy of Sciences Vladimir Komarov (1940-1945), Vladimir Obruchev (1947-1956). In 2000, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Vladimir Kotlyakov became honorary president.

Membership

Members of the Society on a voluntary basis can be adults of various nationalities, religions and places of residence - citizens of the Russian Federation, foreigners and stateless persons, as well as public associations. The entrance fee for individuals is 1 thousand rubles, the annual membership fee is 300 rubles.

At the end of 2016, 20 thousand 457 people were members of the Russian Geographical Society, of which 3 thousand 441 joined in 2016.

The Board of Trustees of the Russian Geographical Society, created in 2010, operates on a voluntary basis. It is headed by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The council includes the President of the Society Sergei Shoigu, the reigning Prince of Monaco Albert II, the Speaker of the Federation Council of the Russian Federation Valentina Matvienko, the Chairman of the Supreme Council of the United Russia party Boris Gryzlov, the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry Sergei Lavrov, the Mayor of Moscow Sergei Sobyanin, the rector of Moscow State University Viktor Sadovnichy, entrepreneurs Vagit Alekperov, Viktor Vekselberg, Oleg Deripaska, Alexey Miller, Vladimir Potanin, Mikhail Prokhorov and others.

Council meetings are held as needed, but at least once a year. The first took place on April 15, 2011 in Moscow. A total of seven meetings were held: two in Moscow, four in St. Petersburg and one on-site on the island of Valaam in Lake Ladoga in Karelia (August 6, 2012). The previous meeting took place on April 29, 2016 in St. Petersburg.

In addition, there are 38 regional boards of trustees operating at the branches of the Russian Geographical Society in the constituent entities of the Russian Federation (at the end of 2016).

Divisions, publications

The scientific archive of the Russian Geographical Society, located in St. Petersburg, is the oldest and only specialized geographical archive in Russia (formed simultaneously with the Society in 1845). It has 63.2 thousand storage units: documents, ethnographic collections (more than 13 thousand items), a photo archive (more than 3 thousand), 144 personal funds of geographers and travelers, etc.

The library collections of St. Petersburg and Moscow contain 480.7 thousand domestic and foreign publications on geography and related sciences. Cartographic funds number 40.7 thousand storage units. The Museum of the History of the Russian Geographical Society in St. Petersburg (opened in 1986) is included in the list of academic museums.

The Russian Geographical Society is one of the founders of the scientific publication "News of the Russian Geographical Society" (published since 1865). In 2012, the magazine “Around the World” (founded in 1861) received the status of the Society’s publication.

Grants from the Russian Geographical Society

Since 2010, the Board of Trustees of the Russian Geographical Society has been organizing the issuance of grants to research, environmental and expedition projects on a competitive basis. Money for them is allocated by patrons. In addition, since 2013, the Russian Geographical Society and the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (RFBR) have been awarding joint grants.

In total, from 2010 to 2015, the Company allocated 604 grants (including 66 jointly with the Russian Foundation for Basic Research) for a total amount of 1 billion 28 million 140 thousand rubles. In 2016, the Russian Geographical Society directly supported 105 projects, to which 170 million 705 thousand rubles were allocated. grant funds.

Support was received by the projects “Baikal through the prism of sustainable development”, “Ecological rating and ecological map of Russia”, the expedition “Kyzyl - Kuragino” (2011-2015), “Gogland” (since 2013), the multimedia ethnographic project “Faces of Russia”, cycles of documentary films about the history of the Turks in Russia, “Reserved Russia” (2011-2013), international non-fiction film festival “Arctic”, etc.

The Russian Geographical Society has supported programs to clean up the Arctic (since 2010) and to preserve rare animal species: since 2010 - Amur tiger, snow leopard, beluga whale, polar bear, since 2011 - Far Eastern leopard, Przewalski's horse, since 2012 - lynx, since 2013 - manula, walrus.

Headquarters

The society has two headquarters. The main (historical) one is located in St. Petersburg. Since 1862, it was located in the house of the Ministry of Public Education on Fontanka; in 1907-1908, the Russian Geographical Society's own building was built according to the design of the architect Gavriil Baranovsky in Demidov Lane (now Grivtsova Lane).

In January 2013, the headquarters was opened in Moscow in a building on Novaya Square, where in the 19th century. there was the Apartment House of the Moscow Merchant Society (in the 1920s - a dormitory for the ethnological faculty of Moscow State University).

Financing

From the moment of its formation, the Russian Geographical Society was part of the structure of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Initially, at the direction of Nicholas I, 10 thousand rubles were allocated for his maintenance. silver per year. By 1896, the state benefit had increased to 30 thousand rubles, and since 1909, an additional 10 thousand rubles were allocated annually. for the maintenance of the RGS house. Until 1917, government subsidies accounted for 50% of the Society's funding. In addition, funds came from private donations (20%), targeted contributions (10%), membership fees (10%), etc.

During Soviet times, the organization was funded by the state. In the 1990s. The Russian Geographical Society lost most of its state support, and employees were often not paid. The main source of funds was membership fees - mainly from organizations. The formation of the Society's Board of Trustees made it possible to fully support the activities of the Russian Geographical Society at the expense of extrabudgetary funds. Currently, the Russian Geographical Society does not receive government funding.

Society Awards

The society has its own awards - medals, prizes, honorary diplomas and certificates, personal scholarships, which are awarded for special merits and achievements in the field of geography and related sciences, environmental activities, and contribution to the popularization of the natural, historical and cultural heritage of Russia.

The first and main award of the Russian Geographical Society is the Konstantinov Medal, awarded to members of the Society for great merits in geographical science and exceptional contribution to the activities of the organization. It was established in 1846-1847. the first chairman of the Society. Awarded from 1949 to 1929 (in 1924-1929 it was called the “Highest Award of Society”). The awarding of this medal resumed in 2010. The second most important is the Great Gold Medal for scientific works. Awarded since 1947 for scientific expeditions, outstanding research in the theory of geography and long-term work in the field of geographical sciences.

The number of personalized medals includes gold medals named after F. P. Litke (established in 1873), P. P. Semenov (1899), N. M. Przhevalsky (1895; received gold medal status in 1946), gold and silver medal named after P. P. Semenov (1899, in memory of the services of the vice-chairman of the Society Pyotr Semenov-Tyan-Shansky; the awarding was discontinued after 1930, resumed after 1946), etc.

In total, from 1849 to 2015, the Society awarded 1,736 gold and silver medals of various denominations.

In the Russian Empire, the prize was awarded to them. N. M. Przhevalsky and the Tillo Prize. In the Soviet period and now - the prize named after. S. I. Dezhneva. In 2014, the Prize of the Russian Geographical Society was established, which received international status.