On June 25, 2024, a scholarly conference "Bulgarian Northwest in scholarly research and fiction" was held in the Exhibition Hall of the Regional Historical Museum in the city of Montana (RHM - Montana). The forum was organized by the Branch of the Institute of Balkan Studies & Centre of Tracology at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (IBSCT-BAS). Co-organizers were the Municipality of Montana and RHM - Montana. Scholarly Coordinator of the event was Prof. D.Sc. Alexandre Kostov, Corresponding Member of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences and Head of the Branch in Montana. A day earlier, at a solemn session of the Municipal Council, Prof. Kostov was awarded the Badge of Honor of the city of Montana.

A total of 15 people took part in the conference, including well-known scholars and experts: Acad. Yachko Ivanov, Acad. Ivan Zagorchev, Acad. Vladimir Zarev, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vanya Ivanova, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Lyudmila Mindova, together with museum specialists and local historians from the city of Montana.

The event was attended by prominent personalities such as Prof. Dr. Borislav Velikov, Mayor of the city of Montana, Mr. Zlatko Zhivkov, and Mr. Ivo Ivanov, Chairman of the Municipal Council in Montana.

The scholarly forum was opened by Prof. Alexandre Kostov with a presentation of the collection "The Bulgarian Northwest - Education and Culture", which is the result of last year's conference, organized by the Branch of the IBSCT-BAS in the city of Montana.

During the event, Prof. Kostov stated: "For the Northwest to develop and move forward, it is necessary to know its history. The IBSCT-BAS team in the city of Montana has taken up the detailed research and promotion of this history. At the moment, the branch of IBSCT-BAS is the only research center in the region and receives the support of the Municipality of Montana. The conference is the sixth in a row and all papers will be issued in a collective volume, just as the previous five scholarly conferences", specified Prof. Kostov.