From July 18 to August 24, the Russian LGBT Network of organizations and the St. Petersburg Public Organization Coming Out, with financial support by the Swedish Helsinki Committee, will hold a Summer School for the LGBT activists of Russia. Besides the activists from St. Petersburg, LGBT activists from Kemerovo, Krasnoyarsk, Kazan, Moscow, and Tyumen will participate in the Summer School.

This Summer School is one of the steps in the process of preparations for the Russian National Conference of Civil Organizations for the Development of LGBT Movement. The program of the Conference includes development of strategic vision on collaboration between the LGBT organizations of Russia, informational seminars on defense of LGBT rights, tactics for protection of one's own interests, history of the LGBT Movement, fundamentals of gender theory, feminism, and training sessions for participants on how to interact with each other and grow personally.

The main goal of the Summer School is to promote growth of professional competence of the regional LGBT activists. Additionally, the Summer School should help consolidate the Russian LGBT movement, and result in developing strategic planning and tactics for the work to be done in the nearest nine months.

You can find the Summer School program here.