On September 19, Center-invest Bank hosted an awards ceremony for the winners of the Creative Don 2025 competition for the best creative projects. Participants submitted 132 works. A jury of 30 experts from various fields selected the best projects in 11 nominations.

In his address, Vasily Vysokov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Center-invest Bank, Professor, Doctor of Economics, and member of the competition jury, noted: "We initiated this competition because we are convinced and have proven theoretically, statistically, and practically that every resident of the Don region is a creator, our region is a major creative cluster, and any enterprise is a platform for the implementation of creative ideas. The competition results demonstrated the diversity of outstanding projects implemented by regional enterprises, both in the creative industries and in the real sector. The competition provided further justification for including a provision on creating creative working conditions in the Don region in the tripartite agreements between the authorities, business, and trade unions. We believe that the initiative to hold the competition should be supported in other regions in order to develop a creative environment, introduce innovations, and enhance the global competitiveness of the country’s residents and businesses."

This year the competition was held for the first time. The event was organised by Center-invest Bank, Innovative Humanitarian Projects Autonomous Non-Profit Organisation, the Union of Employers of the Rostov Region, the Federation of Trade Unions of the Rostov Region, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Rostov Region, and the Expert Yug business media.

The competition’s goal is to showcase the diversity of outstanding creative projects being implemented in the Rostov Region by regional businesses and organisations, and to draw attention to the achievements and best practices of using creative solutions in the real sector of the economy.

"The first creative projects competition demonstrated that creative solutions are being applied not only by organisations working in the creative industries, but also by enterprises in the real sector," comments Vladimir Kozlov, Chairman of the competition’s expert council and CEO of Expert Yug. "The competition provides an opportunity to discuss in detail the outstanding projects implemented in the creative sector over the past year.This makes the competition an integral part of the ecosystem for monitoring and supporting creative industries in the Rostov Region, and I hope we’ve established a tradition for years to come. This would allow for a significant expansion of the community around the strategic topic."

The awards ceremony was one of the highlights of the III Chistoye Pole Southern Arts Festival. The winners and finalists received commemorative diplomas and statuettes.

Center-invest Bank’s Green Theatre project: performance of Eugene Onegin. Selected Pages was recognised as the best project in the category "Best Project in the Field of Performing Arts."

The full list of finalists is published on the competition website: https://chistoepole.art/konkurs.