Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: Peoples'Friendship University of Russia –
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For several years in a row, students and experts from the RUDN Institute of Ecology have been contributing to the federal project "Clean Air" of the national project "Ecological Well-Being". In 2025, they worked in 12 industrial cities of Russia at once: Lipetsk, Cherepovets, Nizhny Tagil, Krasnoyarsk, Norilsk, Omsk, Novokuznetsk, Bratsk, Chita, Chelyabinsk, Magnitogorsk and Mednogorsk.
The students were engaged in video recording of traffic during rush hours, formed datasets for traffic intensity analysis using artificial intelligence technologies, and also assessed the impact of traffic flows on air quality in various meteorological conditions.
Sunny nights and a wind that knocks you off your feet
Students who worked in Norilsk, a city where there is no summer in the usual sense of the word, shared their impressions of working within the project with us. The weather here can change in half an hour.
"Strong wind that knocked the camera and cones off our feet and shook them, cold rain… Sometimes the bad weather lowered our work spirit and we wanted to give up. In addition, one of the difficulties was the polar day. After all, the sun does not set over Norilsk for 189 days, and even the locals, not to mention visitors, have completely lost their sleep patterns, and day and night mix. Therefore, for the first four days of our stay in the city, we could not get used to the fact that at three o'clock in the morning it was light outside and the sun was shining," – Ekaterina Kostenko, Bachelor of Science, RUDN Institute of Ecology (field of study "Energy and Resource-Saving Processes in Chemical Engineering, Petrochemistry and Biotechnology", 2nd year student).
The students also drew attention to environmental problems in Norilsk.
“The emissions here hit the mucous membranes and skin, causing unpleasant and sometimes painful sensations in the nose and throat,” says Vladislav Fadeev, a master’s student at the RUDN University Institute of Ecology (Ecology and Nature Management, 2nd year).
Local care
But despite the difficulties, the students also remembered the city from a pleasant side. Especially thanks to the care of local residents. According to the students, they always asked whether the participants of the national project needed help and even gave small gifts.
"I was approached many times and asked about something, were interested. There were various interesting conversations, even with Norilsk Nickel employees. But one of the most interesting moments happened when, as I understood, a local photographer passed by. He took pictures of everyone present. Later, when I had already moved on to other locations (it was eight in the morning!), he found me and gave me the pictures in which I was.
In their free time, the students enjoyed exploring Norilsk and its sights. For example, they visited a local museum and climbed one of the peaks of the Kharaelakh mountain range.
“In the museum, we were able to see and touch minerals and ores that we had previously only studied in theory during geology classes,” says Ekaterina Kostenko.
City of strong people
Participation in the federal project allowed RUDN students to acquire many useful skills that will be useful to them in their future work.
"We have developed, so to speak, immunity, increased stress resistance, since we found ourselves in quite unforeseen and difficult situations, from which we had to quickly find a way out, make fairly quick decisions that would subsequently affect the work, the filming. Therefore, the experience gained here is useful not only in our professional activities, but also in all spheres of life in general," – Valeria Romanova, Bachelor of the Institute of Ecology of RUDN (Ecology and Nature Management, 4th year).
"The main skill I gained was the experience of a business trip. Since in the future, when I start working in my specialty, I will most likely have to travel to different cities as well," says Daniil Dubovitsky, a bachelor's student at the Institute of Ecology at RUDN (specializing in "Energy and resource-saving processes in chemical engineering, petrochemistry and biotechnology", 3rd year student).
"Norilsk is a city of strong people, so this trip became a real test of strength and stress resistance. And these are very important qualities for further career development. I also learned how to perform the measurements that we took, and even got excited about the idea of doing an internship at the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation," Ekaterina Kostenko.
About the project
The federal project "Clean Air" is being implemented within the framework of the national project "Ecological Well-being". It is aimed at reducing air pollution in large industrial centers. Its goal is to reduce the total volume of emissions in 22 cities participating in the project by 20% by 2030.
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