Diana Piletskaya and Vladislav Podberezsky, master's students in the Land Management and Cadastre program majoring in Cadastral Management, are participating in the International Baikal Winter Urban Planning University, organized by the Irkutsk National Research Technical University (IRNITU). The event's topic is "Irkutsk. Karl Marx Street Neighborhoods. New Life for the Historic Center." The first session took place on 18–24 September, and the second is scheduled for February 2026.

The competition involves developing projects aimed at improving the city's environment, architectural and urban design, infrastructure, and transportation. Every year since 1999, the International Baikal Winter Urban Planning University has proposed a series of topics important to the city and related to improving the urban environment. This year, students from various cities in Russia and abroad were divided into six teams based on their interests and competencies. Diana and Vladislav were members of the team working on the topic "Revitalization of Karl Marx Street. A New Transportation Plan for Irkutsk."

Since the project is intended to be practical, it consists of three stages. The first session represented the first stage and involved developing the technical specifications for subsequent steps. From September 2025 to February 2026, teams will work remotely to develop various project proposals on their topic, collaborating with other teams to create a unified framework of mutually complementary ideas and integrating them into a single, cohesive project. A second in-person session will be held in Irkutsk at the end of February, during which the teams will meet again to discuss their existing materials and proposals, make any adjustments, and present their projects to leading Russian architects and urban planners, as well as international experts.

"'Preparatory process for the technical specification defense' sounds confusing, but in reality, it was a very intense period during which various project development options were discussed, various combinations and possible design proposals were explored. The defense was quite exciting and challenging; the topic was declared to be of utmost importance for the city. The experts presented their proposals and ideas for what they would like to see at the end of the competition, and also offered parting words.

Each month, the project curator will hold a remote meeting with each team, during which all current developments will be presented.

“Cadastral activities allow urban planners to translate their ideas into feasible, legally possible, cost-effective, and safe solutions that improve the quality of life in the city,” noted Yana Volkova, PhD of Engineering Sciences, and the Acting Head of the SPbGASU Department of Geodesy, Land Management, and Cadastre.