The Turkic World Youth Education Forum, dedicated to the first observance of World Turkic Language Family Day, was held in Tashkent on 15 December 2025, organized by the International Turkic States University. More than 150 participants – government representatives, academics, think-tank experts, diplomats and young people – took part.

The forum marked a historic milestone: the official proclamation of 15 December as World Turkic Language Family Day at the 43rd session of the UNESCO General Conference in November 2025, an international recognition of the linguistic and cultural heritage shared by the Turkic peoples.

Discussions unfolded in two panel sessions: “Sustainable Development and Strategic Cooperation of the Turkic States in a Changing Geopolitical Environment” and “Toward Turkic Cultural Identity and a Common Spiritual Space: The Role of Turkic World Youth in the Process of Integration.” Addressing the forum, OTS Deputy Secretary General Dr. Mirvokhid Azimov emphasized education and youth as a top priority within the OTS's more than thirty areas of cooperation, and recalled the Charter of the Turkic World adopted at the 2024 Bishkek Summit.

That a university convened the forum is itself telling: higher education institutions are increasingly the venues where the Turkic world's cultural, linguistic and youth agendas meet. For TURKUNIB member universities – many of which teach and research Turkic languages – the UNESCO recognition offers an annual occasion to showcase their scholarship and connect their students to a shared regional heritage.

Photo: Organization of Turkic States (turkicstates.org)

Photo: Organization of Turkic States (turkicstates.org)

Photo: Organization of Turkic States (turkicstates.org)

Based on official OTS reporting: The Turkic World Youth Education Forum dedicated to World Turkic Language Family Day held in Tashkent