Actual forms of work with ethnocultural heritage in public organizations of Russian Germans

Preservation of the culture and generation of the national identity of Russian Germans is strongly supported by activities of public organizations of Russian Germans today. At the local level, Germans can realize their ethnic potential in the centers of German culture. Such public organizations emerged in the early 1990s; it was an essential technique to preserve the Germans as an ethnic group in Russia; the German population decreased considerably due to the mass emigration to the historical homeland; today, there are more than 550 such organizations. The national-cultural associations focused their activities on the four main "fields" -linguistic, social, youth and ethnocultural. The ethnocultural component is implemented through calendar holidays, ethnocultural camps, organization offolklore groups, ethnocultural clubs, needlework circles - "Basteln". Master classes are nowadays the main form of work with the ethnocultural heritage of the Germans, especially with its material part. Panels - "spruch" - became a striking example of revitalization of tradition. Today it is one of the most sought-after elements of ethnocultural heritage in the activities of public organizations of Russian Germans. The actualization of this type of cultural heritage occurs through publications, master classes, competitions, creation of games and handicraft kits. The authors present the interviews with visitors and heads of culture centers and clubs of Russian Germans, data from official websites of associations and their official groups on social networks, as well as data from scientific literature.