Russia has the second highest level of immigration in the world: at least 13 million immigrants were living in Russia in 2010. However, their integration is not without problems.
As SA4D demonstrated in a study, Russian young people have increasingly negative opinions of migrants.
Between 2008 and 2010, SA4D used a film and a computer game to contribute to migrants finding their way better in Russia and being better accepted. SA4D was also testing how well audio-visual tools are suited to integration projects.
Living and working in Russia
In cooperation with the Russian organisation RU PASS, SA4D produced a film to give economic migrants to the Moscow region advice for daily life and answers to legal questions. For example, the film deals with registering with the authorities, job hunting and sending money home. It was produced in Russian and subtitled in various languages. 10,000 copies of the DVD were distributed to immigrants and migration organisations in the Moscow area and in the three main countries of origin.
Promoting respect and tolerance
SA4D didn’t just work with the immigrants though – with the computer game ‘Xenophilia’, we promoted openness, respect and tolerance towards immigrants among Russians. SA4D developed the computer game in collaboration with the Humanist Research and Methodology Centre in Moscow. The original version of the game was released in Switzerland in 2005, and used successfully in schools.