On July 7-8, the Connect for Peace Festival 2026 was held in Almaty, Kazakhstan. The event, dedicated to the development of media literacy, brought together journalists, university teachers and students, media professionals, academics and representatives of public organizations from Central Asian countries.
Internews organized the festival within the framework of the CARAVAN project, implemented with the financial support of the European Union.
On July 6, the day before the event, an educational competition was held among the festival participants. In the competition, which took the form of a test, participants were divided into groups and answered questions. The competition mainly asked questions related to the history, culture and media of Central Asian countries. The winning teams were awarded prizes.
Vadim Sadonshoev, Director of the CARAVAN project, Johannes Baur, Head of the Cooperation Department of the Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of Kazakhstan, and David Dieudonne, Director of the Internews Europe program, delivered welcoming speeches at the festival.
On July 7, the training session began with musical performances. The training sessions included regional and international experts in journalism The future of the media, the use of artificial intelligence in the media, the fight against disinformation, digital security, new financing models, and the development of regional cooperation in Central Asia were discussed. Experts explained the methods of using artificial intelligence technology with examples.
Interested participants were given the opportunity to visit the Art Museum in Almaty.
On July 8, guests had the opportunity to watch documentaries about culture, ecology, historical monuments and social changes in Central Asia, as well as get acquainted with the national values of the countries of the region.
It is worth noting that in early May, the CARAVAN media project, funded by the European Union, held a special training course in Ashgabat on digital technologies and skills related to the introduction of artificial intelligence into the media system. The training course, dedicated to media literacy, was held for three days for students and teachers of higher education institutions, and for three days separately for representatives of the relevant ministries of the country and the mass media.
