Program activities and participants were introduced by Vice Governor of St. Petersburg Sergey Movchan, Chairman of the Science and Higher School Committee Andrey Maximov, Chairman of the Industrial Policy and Innovations Committee Maxim Meyksin, Chairman of the Labor and Employment Committee Dmitry Cherneyko, First Vice President of the Industrialists and Entrepreneurs Union of St. Petersburg Mikhail Lobin, and First Deputy Chairman of the Education Committee Yuri Solyanikov.

The project architecture was presented by Elena Ublieva, Deputy General Director of ExpoForum International for Commerce. She said that several major events would be held at the area of over 25,000 square meters. Pavilion H of ExpoForum will become a venue for St. Petersburg Innovation Forum and the  anniversary “Russian Industrialist” Forum. Pavilion G will host the Regional Open Championship of “Young professionals” (WorldSkills Russia), “Step into profession” City Competition, Abilimpics Regional Championship among people with disabilities and the Second Regional JuniorSkills Open Championship, and pavilion F will be the place for the citywide job and training fair.

Vice Governor Sergey Movchan expressed hope in the success of the event: “We would like to do something different as compared to all other innovative forums held recently throughout Russia. The combination of these projects on the same venue will create a good cumulative effect, which will be directed at young people that we motivate to choose high-tech occupations and professionals who we encourage not only to invent but to innovate.” The Forum will include some 100 events, which is double the number of events a year ago. A total of 1305 applications have already been submitted, including applications from 14 foreign countries such as Finland, Belgium, Israel, Sweden, Norway, Montenegro, Belarus, Latvia, Japan and from more than 30 regions of Russia.