Themes by tag: culture
In less than two and a half years, Yulia Dudysheva, herself displaced from Crimea, has rebuilt and renovated 11 homes free of charge for families uprooted by war.
Before russia’s full-scale invasion, Dudysheva lived and worked in the Chernihiv region, building a career in advertising while occasionally helping friends with home repairs. But after Ukrainian forces liberated the region in the spring of 2022, she left her job, determined to find a new purpose in the wake of destruction.
By June 2023, she had launched a volunteer initiative called “Cozy Homes for IDPs”, focusing on restoring, repairing, and decorating homes for internally displaced people. Her first projects were for friends who offered their houses for renovation. Soon, her efforts expanded to other families who had lost their homes in the war.
Her most recent project took her to Ternopil, where she renovated a house for a family from Enerhodar, a city still under russian occupation.
Dudysheva also shares her work online, documenting every stage of the repairs and attracting a growing community of followers who help fund materials for her projects. Now back in the Chernihiv region, she continues her mission to bring warmth and stability to those rebuilding their lives after displacement.
Interviews with Yulia Dudysheva can be arranged both online and in person by prior appointment.
A Ukrainian Armed Forces veteran who lost three limbs in combat has set a national record for climbing the country’s highest peak. The official announcement will take place in the Lviv region on November 17, recognizing Zakhar Biriukov for the first ascent to the summit of Hoverla by a person with three amputated limbs.
Biriukov, 35, sustained devastating injuries in 2022 while serving on the front lines – losing both arms, one leg, an eye, and part of his hearing, along with severe facial wounds. Despite the trauma, he has dedicated his recovery to helping other service members find purpose after injury.
With his mission focused on supporting fellow service members to rebuild their lives, this climb up Hoverla, Ukraine’s 6,762-foot mountain, became a testament that physical loss is no match for inner strength and determination. “Life is not over, it’s just beginning,” Biriukov said, reflecting on his achievement and his determination to inspire others facing similar challenges.
Journalists are invited to attend the record announcement. Media accreditation is required.
Svitlana Matsiuta is an artist from Kherson. For the past 20 years, she has worked as an assistant set designer in a theater.
She experienced the full-scale invasion in her hometown. During the occupation, Svitlana and her son avoided leaving home out of fear of russian soldiers.
Despite financial hardship, she rejected all offers to work in the theater under russian control. In March 2022, reports began circulating in media and social networks claiming that wild geese had “downed” an enemy military plane. Inspired by this story, Svitlana created her own toy combat geese.
These toys symbolize Kherson’s unbreakable spirit and resistance.
Svitlana says the combat geese are especially popular among Kherson residents who have relocated to other parts of Ukraine or abroad. She has received orders from the U.S., the Netherlands, Germany, and Italy.
In addition to geese, the artist makes roosters inspired by the folk art of Maria Prymachenko and Polina Raiko. Creating these toys helps Svitlana distract herself from the shelling and keeps alive her dream of victory and the liberation of the rest of the Kherson oblast.
Svitlana Matsiuta is available for interviews online or in person in Kherson, by prior arrangement.
As a result of a russian missile attack on May 5 and 7, 2025, several exhibits, an exhibition pavilion, and one administrative building of the Oleg Antonov State Aviation Museum were damaged. Specifically, several windows were shattered and the window frame system was deformed in the building housing the collection of aircraft models, preserved engines, and rescue equipment. This allowed moisture to enter the building, endangering the exhibits.
The museum is currently undergoing restoration. The repair work is being carried out within the framework of the “Culture Unites: Museums of Japan – Museums of Ukraine” grant program, implemented by ICOM Ukraine with financial support from ICOM Japan and the Japanese Association of Museums.
By prior arrangement, journalists can document the restoration process and speak with museum representatives.
Background: Thanks to the grant program, 6 unique damaged exhibits will be restored, and new glass will be installed in the pavilion and the administrative building.
On November 8, the Buhurt Sich will hold an open training session for veterans as part of the Veteran Hut Open Day program.
Buhurt Sich promotes rehabilitation through historical medieval battles, known as buhurt or armed combat, an approach that combines physical training, discipline, and camaraderie. The method helps veterans regain physical strength while restoring emotional balance through teamwork and shared purpose.
In partnership with the Veteran Hur project, Buhurt Sich brings together two key aspects of recovery: physical rehabilitation through movement and psychological healing through community engagement.
Media accreditation is required. The venue address will be shared individually with those accredited.
A multimedia exhibition titled Iron People will open at the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in World War II on November 13, spotlighting the courage and resilience of the country’s railway workers who have kept a network – a lifeline for people moving around Ukraine and out of the country – running amid the ongoing russian invasion.
The project, created by Dutch photographer and documentary filmmaker Jelle Krings, pays tribute to more than 200,000 Ukrainian railway employees who maintain some 20,000 kilometers of track across the country. Despite constant russian strikes, they continue to keep transport lines operational, sustain military logistics, and help civilians escape the front lines.
Through photographs, personal testimonies, and sound installations, the exhibition tells the story of ordinary men and women whose steadfast work has become a lifeline for Ukraine. The centerpiece of the show is Krings’ short documentary Lifeline, which follows Tetiana Vislohuzova, head of an evacuation train that has rescued thousands of people from war zones. Visitors will also hear field recordings capturing the distinctive sounds of trains and stations that pulse through Ukraine’s wartime landscape.
Speakers at the opening ceremony will include:
– Alle Dorhout, Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Ukraine;
– Yurii Savchuk, Director General of the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in World War II;
– Jelle Krings, the project’s author;
– Oleksandr Pertsovskyi, Chairman of the Board of Ukrzaliznytsia JSC;
– Tetiana Vislohuzova, featured in the documentary. Journalists planning to attend must register in advance.
For reference: Iron People marks the culmination of Krings’ long-term project about the daily lives of Ukraine’s railways in a time of war. Since the start of russia’s all-out attack, he has traveled extensively across Ukraine, documenting the perilous work and deeply human stories of those keeping the nation’s railway network running. His photos and videos, already acclaimed internationally, are being presented in Ukraine for the first time in a multimedia format.
The exhibition is supported by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Ukraine.
Maksym Maksymenko is a veteran of the russo-Ukrainian War and a participant in the Revolution of Dignity. While still a student in 2014, Maksym and his friends traveled to Maidan Square and joined the protests. He served as a “sotnyk”, or unit commander, on the Maidan. With the start of the russian occupation of Crimea and attack on eastern Ukraine, he joined the Azov unit.
In 2016, Maksym returned to civilian life. He recalls this period as a time of self-discovery, during which he volunteered, engaged in civic activism, and started a small business.
When the full-scale invasion began, Maksym immediately returned to the military. Several months later, he was wounded and had to leave the army again. However, he adapted more quickly this time, as he had his beloved wife to support him.
While shopping for gifts, Maksym and his wife noticed a lack of websites in Ukraine dedicated exclusively to handmade products. This inspired the idea for Create4Me, an online marketplace that connects Ukrainian artisans, including veterans and volunteers. The Ukrainian Veteran Fund helped bring the project to life. Maksym believes that Ukrainian artisans create items that can captivate the entire world.
Maksym Maksymenko is available for interviews, both online and in person in Ternopil, by prior arrangement.
Kyiv will host the next stage of the nationwide Sport and War Veterans (UBD) competition on November 7, bringing together Ukrainian defenders through athletic rivalry, recovery, and camaraderie.
This round will feature futsal matches among war veterans, a fast-paced and teamwork-driven sport that embodies the shared resilience and unity of those who have served on the front lines.
The Sport and War Veterans (Combatants) initiative, launched by the National University of Physical Education and Sports of Ukraine in partnership with several organizations, is a series of annual tournaments designed to promote rehabilitation, social integration, and adaptation of veterans through sports. Earlier stages held in October included table tennis, swimming, e-sports, and arm wrestling, drawing participants from across the country.
This upcoming event in Kyiv continues that mission, using futsal’s spirit of cooperation and quick decision-making to foster both competition and solidarity among veterans.
The tournament is organized by the National University of Physical Education and Sports of Ukraine and the university’s Educational and Rehabilitation Center, and the Kyiv Oblast Football Association. Partners supporting the development of veteran sports in Ukraine are also involved.
Overall, the Sport and War Veterans (UBD) cycle features nine disciplines, including swimming, table tennis, futsal, arm wrestling, sitting volleyball, and wheelchair rugby – all aimed at building a community of mutual support and helping veterans return to active, fulfilling lives. Ukrainian football players and officials are expected to attend the ceremony and present awards to the participants.
On November 12, special open Care Lessons themed “Stop Bullying: Where Did Rudyk Go?” will take place in Kyiv and Kharkiv, focusing on ways to combat bullying behaviors among young children. The events will feature Daria Herasymchuk, Presidential Advisor for Children’s Rights and Rehabilitation, who will lead the session in Kyiv, and Anastasia Svoboda, founder of the Academy of Care, who will host the class in an underground school in Kharkiv.
The interactive lessons, which begin rolling out in Ukrainian schools on November 10, are designed to provide simple, practical tools that help children aged 5 to 10 recognize and speak up about bullying rather than remain silent.
As Ukrainian children continue to live under conditions of prolonged stress and uncertainty caused by the war, cases of bullying have sharply increased. In the first four months of 2025 alone, police recorded 1.5 times more incidents than during the same period last year. Yet many adults still struggle to respond effectively, according to the Ministry of Education and Science, only 28 percent of teachers can confidently identify bullying.
The Academy of Care offers a systemic approach through its Care Lessons program, an interactive class built around the story of a missing character named Rudyk. Through this narrative, children learn to:
– recognize hidden forms of bullying such as insults and exclusion;
– establish personal boundaries and express emotions safely;
– develop a set of “Good Classroom Rules” to foster a culture of empathy and mutual support.
Media accreditation is required.
This is the first initiative in Ukraine where the principles and ideas of UNSCR 1325 have been reinterpreted through art. The event will feature paintings created during a series of artistic breakfasts by representatives from the government, diplomatic corps, civil society, and international partners.
Each group of participants was assigned a specific clause of the resolution and created an artistic interpretation of its meaning — focusing on the role of women in peacebuilding, security, recovery, and national decision-making.
These paintings will be displayed in the Cabinet of Ministers and other government institutions to convey the values of the UN “Women, Peace, Security” agenda through the language of art, reach decision-makers, and strengthen the dialogue on women’s participation in national recovery and security processes.
Participants:
- Taras Kachka, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine;
- Kateryna Levchenko, Government Commissioner for Gender Policy;
- Katarína Mathernová, Ambassador of the European Union to Ukraine;
- Natalka Cmoc, Ambassador of Canada to Ukraine;
- Alle Dorhout, Ambassador of the Netherlands to Ukraine;
- Nataliia Karbovska, Director of Strategic Development at the Ukrainian Women’s Fund.
Key topics:
- Why is discussing the implementation of UNSCR 1325 critical while Ukraine counters full-scale aggression and shapes its recovery architecture?
- What results has Ukraine achieved in nine years of implementing its National Action Plan on 1325, and how has this impacted women’s participation in security and recovery decision-making processes?
- How has the partnership between the state, civil society, and international organizations created a distinctive Ukrainian model for implementing 1325 — from the national level to regional coalitions?
- In what ways will further integration of the “Women, Peace, Security” principles help ensure community resilience, territorial recovery, strong institutions, and a comprehensive security approach after the war?
- How can art be used as an innovative tool for dialogue, diplomacy, and advocacy to strengthen the “Women, Peace, Security” agenda and engage new audiences, particularly decision-makers at the national and local levels?
Accreditation is required for the event. For security reasons, the location will be provided after accreditation is confirmed.
